Cloud integration platform providers can be divided into two groups. "Most of the vendors offering hybrid cloud integration technology come from the middleware market, which has traditionally addressed how companies integrate data and applications," said Carl Lehmann, research manager for enterprise architecture, cloud integration and business process management at 451 Research.
As an example, he cites Informatica, a well-known middleware technology used for data and application integration. "Informatica adapted its technology for the cloud a few years back, and they're now offering Informatica Cloud," he said.
Other companies born in the cloud are reacting specifically to the opportunity, he added. Two examples from this group: SnapLogic and Dell's Boomi Group.
Regardless of whether the vendor is a traditional middleware player or born in the cloud, the technology can run on-premises, in the cloud or both. "It's becoming more common to develop the integration in the cloud, then run it on-premises or in the cloud, then report back to an admin console for performance monitoring and management, which can be either on-premises or in the cloud," Lehmann said. "It has elements that exist in both in most cases. The good vendors have the capacity to create an integration process and run it anywhere."
Many large enterprises have significant investments in various types of integration technology, and they want it to evolve to work on both sides of their firewalls, Lehmann continued. "That's what Informatica has been doing with Informatica Cloud. That's what Dell has done with its Boomi technology. The good platforms have a common code base that operates equally well on either side of the firewall," Lehmann said.
Purpura said MuleSoft's Anypoint Platform is the only platform that supports ground-to-cloud deployment (with integration and connectivity running inside the firewall), cloud-to-cloud deployment (running fully in the public cloud) or cloud-to-ground deployment (also running entirely in the public cloud).
Originally posted on TechTarget.com
