Service Oriented Architecture

Intro

Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is the framework, concepts, and style that implement service orientation. In EA, SOA structures services, contracts, and interactions across the enterprise.

Key points:

• Defines service layers, contracts, and governance.
• Enables interoperability and reuse.
• Common use cases across EA/BPM/Data/App/Tech include enterprise integration, shared business services, and platform APIs.
• Pitfall: over-engineering without clear business value or governance.

Examples:

• SOA layer exposing customer, order, and billing services.
• Canonical data contracts across systems.
• Policy enforcement for versioning and security.

In practice:

Establish service governance, design standards, and shared infrastructure to implement SOA effectively.

Related terms: Service; Service Orientation; Reference Architecture

FAQs:

Q: Is SOA outdated in the cloud era?
A: No; its principles underpin modern APIs and microservices.

Q: Do we need an ESB for SOA?
A: Not necessarily; choose integration tools that fit your patterns and scale.

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