Hybrid Application Server Mediating Enterprise Data Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current application hosting environments struggle to facilitate seamless interaction between applications hosted in multi-tenancy environments and enterprise environments, where data access and management are restricted, leading to limitations in data sharing and integration across different identity systems.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a hybrid application environment that enables an application server within a hosting environment to generate and direct hybrid data requests over a connection established between the hosting and enterprise environments, allowing hosted applications to access data stored in the enterprise environment while managing different identities and authentication mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If applications are hosted within a multi-tenancy hosting environment, then application deployment flexibility and scalability are improved, but the ability to access and interact with data in restricted enterprise environments deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
An application server acts as an intermediary component that bridges the hosting environment and enterprise environment. The application server receives data requests from hosted applications, generates hybrid data requests, and directs them to enterprise applications, thereby enabling data access without requiring direct connectivity between the isolated environments.
Solution Approach 2:
The system architecture is segmented into distinct functional components: hosted applications in the hosting environment, application servers in both environments, and enterprise applications in the enterprise environment. This segmentation allows each component to operate independently within its environment while maintaining controlled interactions through defined interfaces.
2Reliability
If data is stored within the enterprise environment with access restrictions, then data security and control are improved, but data sharing and integration with hosted applications deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The application server serves as a secure intermediary that mediates all data access operations. It receives authenticated requests from hosted applications, generates appropriate hybrid data requests to enterprise applications, and returns data to the requesting application, thereby enabling controlled data sharing while maintaining enterprise environment security restrictions.
Solution Approach 2:
The application server performs multiple functions: it hosts applications in the hosting environment, receives and processes data requests, generates hybrid data requests, directs traffic to enterprise environments, and manages identity mapping. This multi-functionality enables a single component to handle both security enforcement and data sharing facilitation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If different identity systems are used in hosting and enterprise environments, then environmental independence and security models are improved, but identity mapping and authentication integration deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The application server acts as an identity mapping intermediary that receives hosted identities from the hosting environment, maps them to corresponding enterprise identities, and uses the mapped identities for authentication with enterprise applications. This process maintains the independence of each environment's identity system while enabling seamless authentication integration.
4Speed
If hosted applications directly access enterprise data, then data retrieval speed is improved, but system complexity and security management deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The application server is positioned as a necessary intermediary that hosted applications must access to reach enterprise data. While this adds a processing step, it consolidates security management, identity mapping, and request routing functions in a single component, thereby reducing overall system complexity compared to allowing direct access from multiple hosted applications.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and software for facilitating hybrid application environments. In at least one implementation, an application server within a hosting environment receives a data request initiated by a hosted application within the hosting environment. The hosted application may initiate the data request in response to a page request made on behalf of a hosted identity logged into the hosting environment. The application server generates a hybrid data request based on request information comprising at least a portion of the data request and the hosted identity and directs the hybrid data request over a connection established between the hosting environment and an enterprise environment for handling by an application server within the enterprise environment.