10/13/22, 5:38 PM What is middleware?

Topics  Understanding middleware  What is middleware?

What is middleware?
Published March 21, 2018 • 3-minute read Copy URL

Overview
Middleware is software that provides common services and capabilities to
applications outside of what’s offered by the operating system. Data management,
application services, messaging, authentication, and API management are all
commonly handled by middleware.

Middleware helps developers build applications more efficiently. It acts like the
connective tissue between applications, data, and users.

For organizations with multi-cloud and containerized environments, middleware can

make it cost-effective to develop and run applications at scale.

The origin of middleware

The term middleware first appeared in a report following the 1968 NATO Software
Engineering conference in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The conference sought
to define the field of software engineering, and included software design, production,
and distribution.

What kinds of middleware are there?

2
As a broad category, middleware can encompass everything from web servers to
What brings you here today?
authentication systems to messaging tools. Here are a few of the common use cases
for middleware in modern development.
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New application
development
Middleware can support modern and
popular runtimes for a variety of use
cases. Developers and architects can work
with agility across platforms, following
sets of foundational runtimes,
frameworks, and programming languages.
Middleware can also deliver commonly
used functions such as web servers, single
sign-on (SSO), messaging, and in-
memory caching.
Comprehensive integration
Middleware integration tools connect
critical internal and external systems.
Integration capabilities like
transformation, connectivity,
composability, and enterprise messaging,
combined with SSO authentication, make
it easier for developers to extend
capabilities across different applications.
https://www.redhat.com/en/topics/middleware/what-is-middleware
What is middleware?
Optimization of existing
applications
Middleware can help developers
transform legacy monolithic applications
into cloud-native applications, keeping
valuable tools active with better
performance and more portability.
Application Programming
Interfaces (APIs)
Many middleware services are accessed
through APIs, which are sets of tools,
definitions, and protocols that allow
applications to communicate with each
other. APIs make it possible to connect
2
completely different products and
What brings you here today?
services through a common layer.
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Data streaming Intelligent business

While APIs are one way to share data
between applications, another approach is
asynchronous data streaming. This
replicates a data set in an intermediate
store, where the data can be shared
among multiple applications. One popular
open source middleware tool for real-time
data streaming is Apache Kafka.
automation
Middleware can help developers,
architects, IT, and business leaders
automate manual decisions. Automation
can improve resource management and
overall efficiency.

Why is middleware important to cloud computing?

For all the benefits cloud-native development provides, it also brings added
complexity. Applications can be deployed across multiple infrastructures, from on-
premises systems to public clouds. Architectures can vary widely. Developers are
juggling multiple tools, languages, and frameworks. And the pressure is on to do more
in less time and at a lower cost.

Organizations turn to middleware as a way to manage this complexity and to keep

application development quick and cost-effective. Middleware can support
application environments that work smoothly and consistently across a highly
distributed platform.

Build here. Deploy there. It works the same, thanks to the middleware beneath the
applications.

What role does middleware play in app development?

2
Modern business apps are engineered to run at scale,Whaton premises,
brings you hereand across clouds.
today?
To build them, developers need an application environment with unified foundational
capabilities. Middleware is the key to assembling such an environment.
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We can think of these capabilities in 4 layers, plus tooling:

The container layer

This layer of middleware manages the delivery aspect of application life-cycles in a
uniform manner. It provides DevOps capability with CI/CD, container management,
and service mesh capabilities.

The runtimes layer

This layer contains the execution environments for custom code. Middleware can
provide lightweight runtimes and frameworks for highly distributed cloud
environments such as microservices, in-memory caching for fast data access, and
messaging for quick data transfer.

The integration layer

Integration middleware provides services to connect custom and purchased apps, as
well as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) assets through messaging, integration, and
APIs to form functioning systems. It can also deliver in-memory database and data
cache services, data/event streaming, and API management.

The process automation and decision management layer

This final layer of development middleware adds critical intelligence, optimization and
automation, and decision management.

Tooling
In addition to these 4 layers of middleware there’s application development tooling.
This allows teams to build applications using preset templates and containers, and
facilitates efficient code sharing and joint development. Tooling supports a consistent
and coherent application development and delivery experience on-premises and
cloud.

What brings you here today?

Keep reading
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ARTICLE

What is integration?
Need to know what integration is? Learn what it is, how to incorporate it, and why it’s a
lot better with open source.

Read more

ARTICLE

What is Apache Kafka?

Apache Kafka is a distributed data streaming platform that can publish, subscribe to,
store, and process streams of records in real time.

Read more

ARTICLE

What is an API?
API stands for application programming interface—a set of definitions and protocols to
build and integrate application software.

Read more

What brings you here today?

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More about integration

Products Related articles Resources Training

A comprehensive set of integration and runtimes technologies engineered to

help build, deploy, and operate applications with security in mind and at scale
across the hybrid cloud.

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Hosted and managed platform, application, and data services that streamline
the hybrid cloud experience, reducing the operational cost and complexity of
delivering cloud-native applications.

Learn more

2
A set of products, tools, and components for developing andhere
What brings you maintaining
today?
cloud-native applications. Includes Red Hat AMQ, Red Hat Data Grid, Red Hat

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10/13/22, 5:38 PM What is middleware?

JBoss® Enterprise Application Platform, Red Hat JBoss Web Server, a Red
Hat build of OpenJDK, a Red Hat build of Quarkus, a set of cloud-native
runtimes, Migration Toolkit for Applications, single sign-on, and a launcher
service.
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A comprehensive set of integration and messaging technologies to connect

applications and data across hybrid infrastructures. Includes Red Hat 3scale
API Management, Red Hat AMQ, Red Hat Fuse, Red Hat Runtimes, change
data capture, and a service registry."

Learn more

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