Microsoft Azure BizTalk Services is a collection of integration services that run in Azure, connecting applications hosted in the cloud or a data center on the ground. Applications communicate with the service either by an HTTP Post to a bridge or via an intermediary adapter to a bridge.

The term "bridge'' immediately reminds us of something that connects two end points. In the context of information systems, we are talking about a bridge connecting two or more disparate systems. A bridge is a BizTalk Services EAI and EDI component that processes, transforms, and transports data between two disparate systems. This component applies the VETER pattern': Validate—Enrich—Transform—Enrich—Route.

MABS can provide Enterprise Application and Business-to-Business integration as a service that fits nicely into service-orientated architectures. At the time of writing this book, MABS is a work in progress, and the release of more functionalities such as Business Rules Engine and Business...