Microsoft`s middleware platform and core .NET application, BizTalk Server 2000, was released to manufacturing yesterday, and the BizTalk 2.0 framework specifications were published simultaneously.
BizTalk is designed to allow business processes to span different applications. Customers use the XML capabilities to talk to digital marketplaces and EDI systems, and connect those transactions to legacy back-end systems, such as enterprise resource planning back-office processes.
Microsoft has also published the final version of its BizTalk Framework 2.0 specification. Based on industry standards for data exchange and security such as SOAP 1.1 (Simple Object Access Protocol), XML and S/MIME, the BizTalk Framework enables the secure exchange of business documents over the Internet. Development of the BizTalk Framework is overseen by the BizTalk Steering Committee, which comprises industry partners, consortiums and standards bodies.
BizTalk will be available from January in both enterprise and standard editions. Enterprise Edition is targeted at large organisations, trading hubs and digital marketplaces, and has support for integrating unlimited internal applications with unlimited trading partners over the Internet. BizTalk Server 2000 Enterprise Edition will support multiple processor and clustering deployments to handle even the largest transaction volumes. The suggested retail price for BizTalk Server 2000 Enterprise Edition is $24 999 per CPU.
BizTalk Server 2000 Standard Edition is targeted at small and medium-sized organisations and has support for integrating up to five internal applications with up to five external trading partners, such as exchanges or digital marketplaces. Intended for small to medium-sized transaction volumes, the standard edition will not have support for multiprocessor or clustered deployments. The suggested retail price of BizTalk Server 2000 Standard Edition is $4 999 per CPU.
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