What is UDDI ? Why Soap ?

Web service is a way of communication that allows interoperability between different applications on different platforms, for example, a java based application on Windows can communicate with a .Net based one on Linux. The communication can be done through a set of XML messages over HTTP protocol.

Web services are browsers and OS independent service, which means it can run on any browser without the need of making any changes. Web Services take Web-applications to the Next Level.

Let’s say, you are a java developer and you can publish your functions on internet or LAN through java web service so any other developer (let’s say .Net developer) can access your function.

Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI):

Directory where any publisher can publish their web services and consumer can get access to all web services. Web services can register with a UDDI and make themselves available through it for discovery.

Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP)

SOAP is a standard protocol specification for message exchange based on XML.
Communication between the web service and client happen using XML messages. SOAP is a XML format used to encode and decode different messages across network so that irrespective of technology it can understand each other.

Simple web service architecture has two components:

·Client

·Service provider

So in order to communicate client must know some information for e.g.

·Location of web services server

·Functions available, signature and return types of function.

·Communication protocol

·Input output formats

Service provider will create a standard XML file which will have all above information. So if this file is given to client then client will be able to access web service. This XML file is called WSDL.