IMS & SOA: Answers to the Most Commonly Asked Questions

by Robert Morris
March 17, 2009

Q: Can IMS conversational transactions be SOA-enabled?

A: Contrary to what most developers consider conventional, IMS conversational transactions can be SOA-enabled. To be able to convert an IMS conversation into a Web service, you’ll need to be able to track and specify the start of the IMS conversation, the continuation of the conversation, and how or when to end it. This way, you can service-enable the IMS conversation without leaving any open resources. Figure 1 shows how an IMS conversational transaction can be service-enabled.

 

Q: Can I pull in data from external Web services into my existing IMS transactions?

A: It’s possible to synchronously execute external Web services. To achieve this, it’s best to employ a solution that will do the work of helping you locate the Web service, call it, and provide the calling program with the response data. lf you have an existing IMS transaction that would benefit from data through external Web services that are available, you can add simple code into your program and issue a singular Application Program Interface (API) call.

Q: What about designing services for reuse?

A: The whole concept of application reuse isn’t so novel. It’s been around a long time, and IMS programmers have been building reusable services from the beginning. IMS developers were arguably the first services-based developers. While they weren’t using Web services and XML, they were building reusable IMS transactions. These IMS transactions are completely reusable services that can be orchestrated to accomplish scores of transactions or business processes.

Q: What about resource utilization and scalability?

A: As SOA adds layers of processing, scalability, performance, and resource utilization are always concerns. Companies sometimes will choose to begin with a small test case. If it’s successful, they’ll then deploy on a larger scale.

Ensure you choose a solution that’s efficient and capable of good performance. As companies seek to lower costs and take advantage of new functionality, they need the ability to service- enable workloads and shift them to environments such as Linux on System z and to leverage specialty engines.

Summary

IMS is ready for SOA. Its role as a robust, proven transaction system is the perfect match for SOA. IMS developers are already seasoned and knowledgeable, and can undertake virtually any SOA project. The key to success is to fully understand your requirements and select products that can directly meet those requirements. Proper preparation will ensure your initial and long-term service-enablement efforts will result in resounding acceptance and support.