Features
Command Line Applications
InstantSOAP can be used to publish existing command-line
applications. New applications can be added to existing InstantSOAP
installations. These can be configured using a Web interface or
through a simple XML document.
Java Applications
InstantSOAP can be used to publish existing Java applications. There
are a variety of different Java interfaces for simple services
which, for example, change one String into another, or more complex
interfaces for those which require more richness.
Synchronous and Asynchronous Interfaces
InstantSOAP supports both
synchronous and
asynchronous interfaces to it's published services.
Synchronous services involve a single connection to the web server
which remains open for the time the service takes to run.
Synchronous are generally simpler to build clients for, and
potentially involve less network traffic. However, the single
connection is liable to "time-out" at various places on the network,
breaking the connection. Asynchronous services allow the client to
start a job and then come back at a later, allowing for
computations which take a long time.
WAR file deployment
InstantSOAP services do not require a specific installation. The
service container is a single war file, which can be subsequently
deployed in Tomcat.
Maven build
Using Maven, it is also possible to package a specific service as a
standalone war file, which can be deployed independently of other
InstantSOAP dependency. This provides a convienient way to share an
excutable version of the service.
Plugability
InstantSOAP is highly configurable and pluggable; it is possible to
replace or extend most parts of the system. For example, it is
possible to configure new components to access the server-side
tools; we have used this to enable access to command-line tools; we
plan to add additional support for job distribution and further
languages. InstantSOAP is configured using the
Spring Framework
.
