This chapter describes the underlying structure of an Application Services Interface (ASI) and the specialized types of ASIs used by business services. It also explains the relationship between ASIs, EAI, and Web services, as well as authentication and security issues. Topics include the following:

• About ASI Structure
• About Integration Object Structure
• ASI Data Synchronization Services
• Exposing ASIs with Interface Technologies
• About ASIs and Web Services
• Authentication and Security for ASIs