Transports and Interfaces: Siebel eBusiness Application Integration Volume III > Interfacing with Microsoft BizTalk Server > Siebel BizTalk Interface Architecture >

Exchanging Integration Messages

Siebel's BizTalk interface supports the following message formats and transport protocols:

Message Data Format. Both inbound and outbound messages use XML. BizTalk Server performs any data translation, if required, using XSLT.

Transport Protocol. Siebel applications and Microsoft BizTalk Server exchange inbound and outbound messages using the following transports:

• For Heterogeneous environments, the Siebel application and BizTalk communicate using:
  • File (read and write)
  • HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
• For Windows-only environments, the Siebel application and BizTalk communicate using:
  • COM (Component Object Model)
  • AIC (Application Integration Component)
  • File (read and write)
  • HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
  • Message Queuing (MSMQ)

Inbound and Outbound Interfacing

As the receiver, the Siebel application can receive inbound messages using MSMQ, File, Siebel's AIC component, or HTTP.

As the sender, the Siebel application sends outbound XML documents by means of MSMQ, File, HTTP, or the BizTalk Server COM Interchange Interface.

Figure 5 illustrates the inbound and outbound processes.

Figure 5.  Siebel Application and BizTalk Inbound and Outbound Interfacing

• Asynchronous Messaging. The Siebel client sends an outbound message without waiting for an acknowledgment. It is free to process other events.
• Synchronous Messaging. The Siebel client sends an outbound message and expects a reply within a given timeframe. After the return message has been received, the Siebel application resumes processing of any events that were waiting to proceed.