SOAP Web Services Overview
SOAP web services are Extensible Markup Language (XML) applications mapped to programs, objects, databases or complex business functions. They utilize a standardized XML messaging system to send or receive requests to authorized parties over the internet. Businesses can implement SOAP web services to provide standards based processes that can be utilized by other organizations or integrated with business partner processes. Since the programming logic encapsulated by each Web service is independent of any one platform or technology set, SOAP web services provide an independence and flexibility for integration across and between businesses.
The following protocols are used to publish, expose or access SOAP web services:
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WSDL (Web Services Description Language): a WSDL file exposes a Web service interface, interaction patterns and protocol mapping. WSDL can be readily interpreted by other applications, systems and platforms.
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UDDI (Universal Description, Discovery and Integration): A Web Service can be categorized and registered in a UDDI Registry so that applications can locate it and retrieve its WSDL. Currently NetSuite does NOT provide a UDDI registry.
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SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol): A Web Service can use the SOAP messaging format to define an envelope for SOAP web services communication via HTTP, HTTPs or other transport layers.
Using SOAP web services, you can integrate existing business functions within your organization to NetSuite through the use of web services. SOAP web services can be invoked in real-time to perform operations such as retrieving, adding, updating, and deleting data.