WS-CAF

Web Services Composite Application Framework (WS-CAF) is an open framework developed by OASIS. Its purpose is to define a generic and open framework for applications that contain multiple services used in combination, which are sometimes referred to as composite applications [ [http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=ws-caf OASIS Web Services Composite Application Framework (WS-CAF)] , OASIS, 2006] . WS-CAF characteristics include interoperability, ease of implementation and ease of use .

Scope

The scope of WS-CAF includes:

* Provision of WSDL definitions for context, coordination and transactions.
* Message formats will be specified as SOAP headers and/or body content.
* The specification is to be programming language-neutral and platform-neutral.
* Demonstrated composability with other Web Service specifications that are being developed as open, recognized standards
* The goals of promoting convergence, consistent use, and a coherent architecture.
* Support composability as a critical architectural characteristic of Web service specifications. WS-CAF and WS-Context are targeted to become building blocks for other Web service specifications and standards.

Input specifications

The WS-CAF accepts the following Web services specifications as input:

* WS-Context
* WS-Coordination Framework (WS-CF)
* WS-Transaction Management (WS-TXM)

Benefits

The benefits and results of CAF are intended to be standard and interoperable ways to:

* Demarcate and coordinate web service activities
* Propagate and coordinate context information
* Notify participants of changes in an activity
* Define the relationship of coordinators to each other
* Recover transactions predictably and consistently in a business process execution.
* Interact across multiple transaction models (such as are used in CORBA, CICS, Enterprise JavaBeans or .NET environments) [ [http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/ws-caf/charter.php OASIS Web Services Composite Application Framework Charter] , OASIS, 2006] .

ee also

* WS-Coordination - an alternative transaction standard

References