Understanding SOA with Web Services

Chapter 10. Transaction Processing

Transactions ensure that a group of Web services achieves a common result. Web services often depend upon each other to complete a complex application request, such as updating a customer record (which might update multiple customer databases) or processing a purchase order (which might update multiple inventory management databases). Transactions use various protocols to ensure that the results of these interdependent services are formally coordinated so that when the failure of one service impacts the success of another, or of the composite application as a whole, the system handles it, rather than the application.

The relationship of a transaction to a Web service might be as simple as delegating a transaction ...