Before examining Oracle SOA Suite 12c in more detail, it is important to understand where it lies within the application architecture framework.

Within the Oracle technology stack, Fusion Middleware lies between applications and backend infrastructures such as a database, an operating system, and hardware (refer to Figure 1.4). Applications such as Oracle E-Business Suite and Oracle Fusion Applications rely on numerous middleware components to serve several functions. The areas that Oracle Fusion Middleware is meant to address could include reporting. There may be single sign-on requirements. There could likely also be integration with other external applications.

Figure 1.4: Location of the Oracle Fusion Middleware stack within the environment architecture

Unfortunately, many technologists, including Oracle itself, sometimes refer to Oracle Fusion Middleware as a product when in fact it is a collection of software products of which Oracle SOA Suite is a part of. Just to reiterate, despite various press releases or blog post allusions, there is no product called Oracle Fusion Middleware.

Oracle Fusion Middleware encompasses products that service areas of business intelligence, identity management, content management, integration, and more. Products such as Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition (OBIEE), Oracle Access Manager (OAM), Oracle WebCenter Content, and Oracle SOA Suite are all designed to satisfy these various middleware needs, and all of these run on the core application server, Oracle WebLogic Server.

Oracle SOA Suite 12c is a middleware component of Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c and provides a set of infrastructure services to support SOA composite applications and Oracle Service Bus (OSB) services. Though this single product can satisfy the overwhelming majority of an organization's SOA needs, it is not the only integration product within the Oracle Fusion Middleware integration stack. Products such as Oracle API Manager, Oracle API Catalog, and Oracle API Gateway (OAG) cover the governance needs of SOA applications. Oracle SOA Core Extension (formerly known as the Oracle Application Integration Architecture Foundation Pack), an extension to Oracle SOA Suite, provides a framework that is intended to reduce development efforts through the inclusion of templates and methodologies. Tools such as Oracle Data Integrator (ODI) and Oracle GoldenGate are designed for bulk data transfers. And new tools to Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c are Oracle Managed File Transfer (MFT) and Oracle Enterprise Scheduler Service (ESS), which are designed to support file transfers and scheduling. The following figure shows Oracle SOA Suite 12c at the center of the Oracle Fusion Middleware integration product stack:

Figure 1.5: Oracle SOA Suite 12c at the crux of the Oracle Fusion Middleware integration product stack

Oracle SOA Suite 12c is the product of choice for most integration infrastructures, and as shown in Figure 1.5, it is the heart of the Oracle Fusion Middleware integration suite of products. It includes numerous subcomponents that include BPEL, Mediator, Service Bus, Business Activity Monitoring, B2B, Web Services Manager, and more. It is not uncommon for Oracle SOA Suite to be deployed and used in conjunction with some of the other integration products described earlier and depicted in Figure 1.5.