What Is Interoperability?

Interoperability, also known as interoperability, refers to the ability of different computer systems, networks, operating systems, and applications to work together and share information.

There are different levels of interoperability, such as syntactic interoperability and semantic interoperability.

Chinese name: Interoperability
Foreign name: Interoperability

Definition: The ability of applications to share information
Provide: Multi-protocol support

Introduction to Interoperability Terms

Interoperability

Interoperability is divided into different levels because the two systems connect and share information, and you cannot simply assume that users can also access this information from their own applications. For example, a UNIX workstation can connect to a Novell NetWare server using the TCP / IP communication protocol. However, users of UNIX workstations cannot access files on the server unless they use a compatible file protocol. In this example, Novell NetWare NFS loaded on a NetWare file server will allow UNIX users and NetWare customers to access files and other network resources in an integrated and seamless manner.

But even this level of interoperability does not guarantee that it is possible for a UNIx user to open and edit the files he accesses on a NetWare server. Users accessing non-compatible file formats will require translators and converters. In some cases, the application itself has access to the file formats produced by applications operating in other environments. Major software vendors, such as Microsoft, have partially mitigated this difference by generating applications that work in multiple environments. For example, Microsoft Excel spreadsheet programs work in both Windows and Macintosh environments. If a Windows user transfers a file to a Macintosh user, the Macintosh user can open the file and use the formatting code provided by the file.

Interoperability solutions

The term "open system" means products that work together by designing in accordance with mutually recognized standards, such as the Open System Interconnection (OSI) model introduced by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The layers all describe how the systems are connected and communicated. The 0SI model is a reference point for designing and building interoperable systems across the globe. The bottom layer of the protocol stack defines the networking hardware and how the systems actually transfer data to each other, while the upper layer defines the interoperation between applications. Most vendors produce products that adhere loosely to this standard, which means that some layers are implemented as defined by OSI and others are not. Because the standard is not strictly adhered to, interoperability remains a concern for network managers.

The Open Software Foundation (OSF) is working to support interoperability at the presentation and application layers. Its distributed computing environment (DCE) provides programmers with tools that programmers can use to generate interoperable applications, freeing them from the complexity of working with low-level protocols. The generated application can run in a distributed heterogeneous network environment. The remote procedure call (RPC) provided by OSFDCE has transmission independence and transmission transparency. Transmission independence means that RPC can run on any wide area network or local area network, and transmission transparency means that distributed application code runs in the same way regardless of the network environment in which the application runs.

E-mail and messaging systems provide the only way to solve interoperability issues. An enterprise E-mail system uses the E-mail system as a gateway or exchange system to provide users on different systems with a way to exchange messages, files, and other information. Messaging systems are also implemented in applications to provide inter-application communication or non-real-time message exchange between users and applications. For example, a user might make a request to the database for a report and receive the report from his / her inbox the next day. Even better than e-mail are groupware and workflow software applications, which allow users to coordinate their scheduling and engineering.

Interoperability is a major concern in enterprise computing environments. The enterprise network aggregates computing resources that previously belonged to various departments and divisions, with the purpose of allowing users across the network to access data on various systems. Front-end applications running on Windows, Macintosh, DOS, and other environments require access to data on a variety of back-end systems that come in a variety of formats and can be accessed using Structured Query Language (SQL). But because there are slight differences in SQL from various vendors, front-end applications must be aware of each difference or rely on the back-end server to translate the commands sent to them. Conversion functions to mask this difference, another solution is "middleware". It provides a layer of interoperability between front-end and back-end applications. Some of the middleware are listed below and will be discussed in other chapters of this book.

Microsoft Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) ODBC provides some common functions performed by most back-end database systems.

Front-end applications are then written and entered into ODBC to take advantage of these ODBC capabilities.

Independent database API (IDAPI) IDAPI is similar in function to ODBC and is also designed based on the call level interface.

Distributed Relational Database Architecture (DRDA) DRDA is an IBM standard for accessing database information on IBM and non-IBM platforms that follow the SQL standard. It is a key component of the IBM Information Warehouse framework.

Apple's Data Access Language (DAL) Apple developed DAL to provide Macintosh users with access to multiple back-end database products, including IBM mainframe and mid-range database. DAL is related to SQL.

Oracle's Glue Glue is an API that includes a series of commands for accessing back-end database servers. According to reports, Glue will take fewer steps to access data than ODBC.

In an object-oriented system, an object requests the host (ORB) to provide key communication tools to distribute messages between the system's applications, services, and tools. You can think of the ORB as a software bus, or backbone network, providing a common messaging interface through which many different kinds of systems can communicate with each other. An object submits a request to the ORB, and then the ORB finds the object that can serve the request, formats the request, and sends it to the service object. The receiving object then responds to the request and returns a response to the ORB. The ORB formats and forwards the response to the requester. In this model, objects simply specify a task to be performed, they do not need to know any details of the object of the service task and its address. The ORB handles all the details of finding objects, formatting messages, and transmitting messages. ORB is a common interface for all objects in a distributed environment.

STREAMS is a development and operating environment that allows the use of multiple communication protocols on a network. It is used in UNIX and Novell NetWare environments, as well as in other environments. An application running in a STREAMS environment can easily use any of the communication protocols it supports. STREAMS is a modular system in which the protocol stack can be added or deleted as required. It provides developers with a set of tools for implementing communication protocols in the form of modules.

At the lower levels, interoperability provides multi-protocol support, so users can access many different types of systems. For example, if the TCP / IP and SPX / IPX protocol stacks are installed on one computer, users on this computer can access a NetWare server and a UNIX server. Nove11's Open Data Link Interface (ODI) and Microsoft's Network Driver Interface Specification (NDIS) provide the ability to load multiple protocol stacks and operate these protocols on a single network interface card.

Interoperability related entries

Compound Documents; Distributed Computing Environment, OSF OSF; Document Interchange Standards; Electron Mail; Groupware; Messaging API; Messaging API between Inter-Application applications; Middleware middleware Object Linking and Embedding; Object Request Broker; Open System Interconnection Model; Remote Procedure Calls; Windows Open System Architecture; Windows Open System Architecture.

Interoperability related definitions

Interoperability Syntax Interoperability

Syntax interoperability is indispensable for any work that advances interoperability. If a system can communicate and exchange data, then it has the ability to work syntactically. In terms of data communication, the basic elements include prescribed data formats, communication protocols, and interface descriptions. Generally speaking, the XML or SQL standard provides syntax interoperability.

Interoperability semantic interoperability

Data exchange involves at least two computer system participants: the sender computer system and the receiver computer system. The data exchange is intended to bring useful results to all participating computer systems, or to either or both parties. However, all users of these participant computer systems have agreed in advance on what constitutes a useful result. Only when the data exchanged between the participant's computer systems can be correctly processed and used by the other party, can it be said that the semantic collaborative work ability is realized. ^[1]