ORB (object request broker)
In simplest terms, an ORB creates a client/server connection between two objects across a network. The goal is to allow applications, which may be running on completely different operating systems, to exchange and act on information.
Neither the objects, the programmers who create them, nor the end users who use them need to know anything about the other objects in the network because the ORB is designed to handle the interactions. Specifically, ORBs:
- Abstractly define an application's interfaces so that other applications can use them.
- Discover applications and the associated interfaces elsewhere in a network.
- Allow applications to message and respond to one another.
Interfaces are defined with an interface definition language. CORBA is one example of an attempt at ORB specifications.
ORBs predate such XML-based protocols as SOAP, which attempt to do something similar (and, in fact, some vendors now offer tools to connect ORB and Web-services based systems).
Additional resources
Topic: Applications
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