Software Architect's Handbook

What makes SOA different from other distributed solutions?

Distributing application logic and separating it into smaller, more manageable units is not what makes SOA different from previous approaches to distributed computing. Naturally, you might think the biggest difference is the use of web services, but keep in mind that SOA does not require web services, although they happen to be a perfect technology to implement with SOA. What really sets SOA apart from a traditional distributed architecture is not the use of web services, but how its core components are designed.

Although SOA shares similarities with earlier distributed solutions, it is much more than just another attempt to create reusable software. The differences undoubtedly provide ...