Let’s look at how AIA fits.
Here’s a diagram of a typical architecture using Oracle’s E-Business Suite. I’ve broken out the AIA components to provide more detail. I apologize in advance for combining both physical an logical tiers in this diagram but I’m hoping it will help those who are less technical about E-Biz.
The lowest layer is the database layer and tier used for E-Business Suite or PeopleSoft or other applications. The database usually resides on it’s on set of dedicated server(s). Everything above it, uses the database layer for storing persistent information.
The next layer up is the Application Server Tier. It is usually on a separate set of server(s). The Application Server 10g provides the various servers that support E-Biz. The relevant want is the OC4J server which is the Oracle Container for Java. This is a sophisticated Java server environment.
The next layer up is Oracle’s Fusion Middlware SOA Suite. It is a set of Java products to support Business Process Execution Language (BPEL), the Enterprise Service Bus (ESB), Service Repository, and Business Process Engine. The SOA Suite runs inside the OC4J environment along with other Java-based products.
The next layer is AIA and the top layer is the E-Business Suite Application.
Next post we’ll break the AIA layer up and look at its components.