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November 15, 1999

Windows DNA 2000:
Distributed Development
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Although COM objects were originally conceived as Windows operating system components, they are no longer a Windows-only affair--another key to acceptance. Microsoft now supports COM on Unix, as well as on midrange platforms from Baan, Digital Equipment, Hewlett-Packard, SAP, Siemens, and Silicon Graphics.

Microsoft first extended COM services to support remote execution in the Distributed Component Object Model, and DCOM still performs that function in COM+. By adding support for multiple linked networks, such as intranets or the Internet, Microsoft has positioned COM+ as a viable architecture for widely distributed applications.

Using DNA 2000 to extend existing applications to include transaction services or message queuing is remarkably simple. An existing COM application that accesses a database might need only a couple of lines of code to implement transaction services (although, of course, transaction services would have to be available on the system). The same is true for adding message queuing to an application.

Being able to add these features so painlessly makes it very easy to migrate an internal application running on a single site to a distributed application running across multiple sites, perhaps even accessing databases at partners' sites using a virtual private network connection through the Internet.

Of course, updating existing applications is only part of the problem. Distributed applications require a raft of new servers to provide network services, including transaction management, message queuing, middle and back-end functions, and cluster management. DNA 2000 includes extensions to existing DNA tools aimed at covering the entire distributed model, including Windows NT Server, SNA Server, and Site Server Commerce Edition.

The new version is based on Windows 2000 Server, which contains the core of DNA, including COM+ services, Internet Information Services Web, and transaction and messaging services. DNA 2000 adds:

Commerce Server 4.0, which provides business-to-consumer commerce software for easier and better user personalization, additional site analysis tools, and new catalog features.

BizTalk Server, which allows integration of applications throughout the enterprise and between businesses via the exchange of Extensible Markup Language (XML) documents.

Integration Server "Babylon," which replaces SNA Server, providing bidirectional network, data, and application integration with a variety of legacy hosts.

Microsoft SQL Server "Shiloh," the next generation of the SQL Server 7.0 database server, which adds native XML support and integrated data-mining capabilities, and takes full advantage of Windows 2000 for greater scalability and availability.

Visual Studio, Microsoft's complete set of development tools that spans multiple languages (Visual Basic 6.0; Visual C++ 6.0; Visual J++; Visual InterDev, a Web development system; and Visual FoxPro 6.0, a database development system) and provides a common development environment for Windows DNA. It includes the Windows 2000 Developer's Readiness Kit.

Most of these server updates add XML support. XML promises to make it easier for distributed applications to pass data between different platforms, in ways that are only starting to be explored. Among the electronic processes XML is expected to facilitate: billing, purchase orders, and other forms.

Because most vendors have adopted XML as the core of the integration strategy, Microsoft's suitewide support for XML makes integration with existing non-Microsoft platforms easier, if you're willing to upgrade to the most recent release of these non-Microsoft systems. XML is likely to solve another problem common to tying these systems: directory synchronization. XML, for example, will be the basis for exchanging information between directory services such as Novell Directory Services and Microsoft Active Directory. Native support for XML throughout Windows 2000, DNA 2000, and Visual Studio 6.0 ensures that future applications will take advantage of XML as it becomes more widely used and supported throughout the business world.

Another upcoming Microsoft product, AppCenter Server, will allow distribution of DNA applications across high-availability server farms for load-balancing of DNA applications without a heavy increase in management requirements. AppCenter Server will enable users to deploy a Web application built under Windows DNA on several NT systems to create Web farms or clusters.

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