Red Hat 'virtualizes' data with new JBoss ESB

Red Hat has updated its ESB (enterprise service bus) software with an integration tool that allows users to aggregate data from multiple sources into a single view.

This new extension, called the JBoss Enterprise Data Services Platform, is one of a number of new features on the just-released version 5.1 of the JBoss Enterprise SOA Platform.

The JBoss Enterprise Data Services Platform can be used to create a data service from multiple data stores, even if they have differing formats. Feeds from the data service can be ingested by other applications through the ESB, allowing an organization to create a workflow that can volley data across multiple software programs.

Red Hat executives call this process of creating data feeds from multiple sources "data virtualization."

"Being able to integrate and synchronize useful information out of a wide range of disparate data sources remains a serious stumbling block to the enterprise," said Craig Muzilla, Red Hat middleware vice president and general manager, in a statement. "JBoss Enterprise Data Services Platform [allows] enterprises to more fully realize the value of their data."

The extension includes a number of different components, including tools for creating data views, a metadata repository, a runtime environment for creating the data feeds, and integration with the Red Hat ESB platform.

The JBoss Enterprise SOA Platform offers process automation through a variety of approaches, including EAI (Enterprise Application Integration) and SOA (Service Oriented Architecture), or via the emerging EDA (Event-Driven Architecture).

In addition to the data integration extension, the JBoss Enterprise SOA Platform 5.1 also includes a number of other fresh enhancements. It ships with the latest version of JBoss Developer Studio, version 4.0. It includes a copy of the Apache Foundation CXF Web services stack (CXF is an abbreviation of the two original projects that were combined to form the current stack, Celtix and XFire).

For organizations interested in testing out service orchestration, the package also include a technology preview of the WS-BPEL (Web Services-Business Process Execution Language) runtime engine. It also includes a technology preview of the Apache Camel Gateway, an enterprise integration pattern framework that offers a number of new adapters for the JBoss Enterprise SOA Platform.

Joab Jackson covers enterprise software and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Joab on Twitter at @Joab_Jackson. Joab's e-mail address is Joab_Jackson@idg.com