DEVOPSdigest

Software AG has launched new updates to its webMethods platform that will simplify the process by which developers can find, work on and deploy new APIs and integration tools or capabilities.

The new unified API Marketplace will allow companies to set up communities where API and Application developers can work together effectively. The new Embed feature will enable SaaS companies to quickly add integration capabilities into their software.

Dr Stefan Sigg, CPO at Software AG commented: “API Management is a crucial area for companies to execute. As the world becomes more distributed – across companies, partners and regions – the need to be connected is greater than ever. Our aim is to simplify this connected world and to help data move around an organization. The latest updates to webMethods will help our customers become more efficient in their API strategies. Every company is feeling the pinch in technology skills, which is why we want to help manage that resource as best as possible through greater collaboration and automation. We want to give organizations opportunities to combine Buy AND Build – enabling them to spend their precious development time on customization for their specific needs.”

These time and resource savings can also be seen in the unified webMethods API Marketplace. Companies can now roll out an ‘off-the-shelf’ community space instead of spending significant time building one from scratch. Developers themselves will benefit hugely as well. Application developers can quickly and easily find the APIs they need, with an indication of whether they’re live or still being worked on. While API developers can connect with app developers to help ensure that their APIs fit the requirements of the application. Companies are able to set the parameters for these communities, with the option to allow external developers to participate in this process.

The need to be more connected and to keep data moving is something organizations prioritize in their software choices. webMethods Embed is a new feature that software developers can use to build integration capabilities into their software from its launch. Not only does this give them a drag-and-drop capability to save them time, it also allows them to roll out SaaS offers with Low-Code/No-Code capabilities for the end user. Building those integrations as part of the development cycle requires additional cost and resource. However, Embed now allows developers to quickly add 550+ connectors to apps and data, sophisticated orchestration and easy workflow design.

Suraj Kumar, head of Integration, API and Microservices at Software AG added: “APIs have become products, and for businesses that means they need a marketplace for them and the ability to control the speed of delivery. Traditional API portals are difficult to customize, often inflexible and don’t play well with all API gateways. And then there’s the challenge of getting new developments live. Through our API Marketplace and our Container Registry, we’re helping our customers to manage the complexity of creating connections.”

Another feature of the new webMethods updates is the Container Registry. It will cut weeks from the time needed to deploy webMethods software into private cloud environments by automating many of the complex tasks associated with containerization. The complexity of deploying new software into a private cloud environment can require months of high value developer resources. The pre-containerized offering from webMethods significantly reduces this requirement, helping those organizations that need to evaluate efficiency improvements in every area.

Additional updates include integrated API security, tested and validated with our partner Noname Security for discovering unmanaged APIs, identifying and blocking complex API attacks, and understanding data exposure to protect sensitive data.

The latest updates for webMethods are available immediately for on-premise customers and are on a continuous rollout for cloud environments.