IBM Integration Bus Reviews

We use the solution for synchronizing data across the enterprise and opening data to extend its use by simplifying and making it consistent regardless of its source. 

It's for installing a line of indirection between data source and consumer to reduce contention at the source, and to add security, audit, and combine data from multiple places.

With it, we are implementing GDPR rules on data use, compensating for systems being unavailable, and delivering low latency for website users.

I have designed solutions for payment processing, Service-Oriented Architectures, micro-service architectures, data sharing and synchronization, and point to point data sharing using this product across banking, retail, and many other industries.

Many projects absorb a great deal of time and budget to find data and understand how to access it. This product allows data to be found and cataloged, allowing multiple projects to create a full directory of data in the enterprise over time.

The introduction of a mediation component allows data to be combined from multiple sources and for those sources to change or expand without impacting the consumers. In some settings, the number of consumers can be significant (100+) making adapter patterns rather expensive to maintain.

Having a single (logical) place to go for information reduces the responsibilities of the consumer for navigation - in turn allowing systems to move, update, and be replaced with reduced risk and cost. 

The cost reductions are significant but rely on proper architecture and design.

The solution's most valuable aspects include:

Data enrichment and consistent access. It reduces the need for programmers of consumer applications to understand where data is sourced, or how it is combined. It allows us to avoid the need for consumers to understand multiple API protocols and security arrangements, and in some circumstances can reduce the impact of systems being unavailable.

Data mediation and secure access. It reduces programmer error and hides the underlying systems, making it simpler to change them. It imposes a line of control between consumer and source, reducing the scope of testing needed for new consumers, and avoiding tests on consumers when the source changes.

High-performance data management for data in motion. The product supports clustering and can be tightly integrated into IBM MQ, making it a perfect platform for payment processing and high-performance data processing (50,000 tx/sec and above). For those that do not need the performance, this translates to cloud consumption savings.

Resilient communication management. The product can use transactional integrity to assure consistent data and non-loss communications (especially when combined with IBM MQ). This means that when processing large numbers of transactions no time is lost trying to discover what was lost.

The product has been well managed and continually improved throughout the time I have used it. 

There is very little that can be improved. It already contains adapters for MS-Dynamics and other enterprise packages and supports many protocols and transmission structures. 

The next versions are moving toward container use. It would be a shame to make the product highly complex just to support one pattern of deployment. It is my hope that IBM continues to focus on practical functionality that is simple and cost-effective.

We've used the solution for 20 years - since it was previously named MQ System Integrator.

IBM ACE is very well engineered and very stable. We have several customers running old versions that have been 100% reliable for their operational lives.

If an installation does encounter a failure, for example power failure, the product is good at reporting useful messages, and in combination with IBM MQ to protect data running through the system. The product can be installed in a clustered configuration to remove single points of failure, and to scale to accommodate higher loads.

It's very stable.

This solution is highly scalable and resilient. It's combined with MQ or load balancers for fault tolerance and highly parallel processing.

It's highly scalable.

In my experience, support has always been very good for this product. 

Positive

I have previously used databases to store and forward and C-programs to manipulate data. When this could no longer cope (sometime in the 1990s), I discovered IBM MQ and other messaging products, which are designed to do what we were building. The MQSI product of the time was simply magic and the latest incarnations (App Connect Enterprise) are far beyond anything that could be done with a database. 

I have reviewed other technologies, including Microsoft, open-source, and others. It remains my opinion and experience that this product delivers quicker development and more reliable outcomes.

A was working as part of the vendor team, as part of the implementation consulting organization.

Very much depends on the industry and project.

Installation of the base product has been simplified over the last five years or so, and is now fairly straight forward. 

You need an infrastructure design for the product deployment and an integration architecture and design documented and agreed to get the best from this software. It is relatively easy to program (Extended SQL, Java, and other options are available), however, it's important to think and take advice before you start.

The product is generally priced per processor core.

We use IBM Integration Bus for document conversions.

We decided to move away from IBM Integration Bus for IT technical refreshments.

I have been using IBM Integration Bus for ten years.

IBM Integration Bus is a stable solution.

I rate IBM Integration Bus a nine out of ten for stability.

IBM Integration Bus is a scalable solution.

I rate IBM Integration Bus an eight or nine out of ten for scalability.

I rate the solution’s technical support an eight or nine out of ten.

Overall, I rate IBM Integration Bus a nine out of ten.

We use the product to connect legacy systems to newer accounting platforms. SAP, more specifically.

What IBM brings to the party is its whole support infrastructure. I'm scaling the product with a granular approach. If I apply it in a corporate environment, what can I do with it? And if I decide to take IBM Integration Bus, can I fulfill everything I know needs to be done, including what will come up? For example, if we've got a new feature we've never heard about, will we be able to use it? The answer is yes. The multi-approach and the multi-capabilities are valuable.

The solution needs instruction or guidance. While you're building, without referring back to training, you should get more guidance from the solution towards the next step. From an analyst's perspective, where you get stuck is not the system. If a team has been trained on the solution and they get stuck, it's because they don't know the next thing to do. When you get stuck, the solution should tell you, "You need to do XYZ to not be stuck." The solution should have fulfillment guidance.

I'm an analyst. I've been working with the product for the last ten years, on and off.

Once the solution is set up, it's solid. We don't have to worry about stability.

The solution is scalable. The bus is being used. The actual systems that we integrate are not even IBM. The legacy systems might have come on there, but it's irrelevant. Our integration team has 15 members. A CIO manages the solution. The integration team comprises two teams of six, with a senior manager and an analyst.

The tech support could be better. Their knowledge is not a problem, but usually, they get stuck and escalate it. And since I need to work on something else, they drop the ball.

The initial setup is complex. It took too long to deploy.

I have seen an ROI. The main reason is that it's not IBM's product, it's their organization. IBM is always in it for the long run. There are too many other guys with sizable products who have come up in the last seven or eight years in India and are not in it for the long run. If I were a corporate that had already been around for 25-plus years, I wouldn't even think about going elsewhere. We don't get an immediate ROI. Besides, we don't use an IBM product for that reason. The ROI comes in when you have worked with it on a ten-year plan. That is where the power comes in. Through teamwork, where there are people who know it, and you get very skilled analysts who understand all the ins and outs of the solution. You don't get that on the other side, and that's where the value lies.

What I understand from the finance team is that IBM is expensive. Besides, the real cost is not in the license. It's in the deployment because of the skills input.

We sometimes get stuck in the managed energy of the integration. Some staff come from different countries, and sometimes there's a language barrier. It's not always a hundred percent clear what's required, and then there are too many options within the framework that can go wrong. The solution then requires a systems specialist to pull the process straight again. The downside is the specific knowledge required to do that. And when, as an analyst, you have an overview of the process and ask, "Why is it stuck?" And then you need to dig into details when the system should unequivocally tell you where the problem is. Is it the function? Is it debugging? And when guys tell me that the XYZ programming team hasn't delivered, I should instantly be able to see in the system what the issue is. However, once the solution is set up, it's solid.

I rate IBM Integration Bus an eight out of ten. I've just done a comparative analysis. Regarding capability, the IBM Integration Bus is an eight or a nine.

Most of my clients operate on-prem. The installation is not easy enough with the setup and everything behind it. Off-prem on the cloud is much better for us, and the libraries are much bigger. But it doesn't have the granularity that IBM offers.

We use IBM Integration Bus to communicate with existing systems like COBOL. We utilize COBOL copybooks, which we need to transform for downstream systems. We create schemas and leverage the COBOL capabilities to convert messages to the target systems. This is one example of our integration use case.

IBM Integration Bus integrates with various applications and systems.

We have many external customers who call our Integration Bus using the SOA WSDL. We expose WSDL to external systems, allowing them to share inputs with the Integration Bus. 

In turn, the Integration Bus integrates with additional third-party and external systems. So, it acts as a middle layer between source and target systems.

IBM Integration Bus has been effective in facilitating our messaging and service-oriented architecture (SOA) or bus architecture. 

So, we're already utilizing it to transform the data from the source it's sending. It converts the data from the format the source sends it into the format the destination system requires. So we are transforming the messages, which are required by the destination system; that's the one way. 

Another way we are routing the messages to the different destinations is based on the source and the payloads they are giving. So we are reading that payload and, based on that, targeting the task. So, we are transforming the same message to the different destinations. That's another way.

IBM Integration Bus's built-in nodes significantly simplified our integration tasks. Almost all of our solutions have benefited from the built-in nodes. Each node has its own specific functions, making them incredibly valuable for various development tasks.

Transforming the messages is a valuable feature for me. 

All the message transformations, conditional routing, and simple data movements are already built-in. 

Additionally, there are some powerful conditional processing capabilities. These features, especially conditional routing and complex data mapping, are crucial for handling multiple complex integrations.

The graphical mapper makes transformations much easier. For simple one-to-one mappings, the source and target can be directly connected, saving developers time.

Performance can be an issue sometimes. The tool occasionally crashes due to memory-related problems. We've reported these issues to IBM, and they are actively working on improving the tooling experience.

It would be great to see better memory management to avoid these crashes.

I have been using this solution for five years now. I use v10. 

I had no issues with stability. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten. 

We haven't encountered any issues with volume or performance based on our testing. While we are still developing these applications, we are confident in the solution's ability to handle high volumes.

I would rate the scalability a nine out of ten.  

I would rate my experience with the initial setup a nine out of ten, with ten being easy. 

It's very easy to set up. It typically takes less than an hour.

Two people were involved. One is the administrator, who has the necessary permissions and installs the product. 

The other is the integration developer, who defines the integration flows, steps, and profiles. 

One person could be from IBM support, while the other would be from the Windows or Linux administration team.

The product requires ongoing maintenance. However, the people required for the maintenance depend on the project. In my organization, we have five to ten based on our projects.

Overall, I would rate the solution a nine out of ten.

I primarily use IBM Integration Bus to integrate core banking and card management systems.

IBM Integration Bus's best feature is integration.

IBM Integration Bus isn't particularly user-friendly and has a big learning curve. In the next release, IBM Integration Bus should support microservice architecture.

IBM Integration Bus is very stable.

IBM Integration Bus is scalable.

I previously used TIBCO and webMethods.

The initial setup was complex; deployment took around a month, while implementation took around four months.

We have seen a decent ROI from IBM Integration Bus.

IBM Integration Bus is expensive.

I wouldn't recommend IBM Integration Bus to other users because of its high learning curve, and I'd rate it seven out of ten.

The product helps us develop integration applications. It also enables communication between applications from different environments.

The features I have found most valuable in this solution are transformation and routing.

IBM Integration Bus doesn’t provide some features that MuleSoft provides. These features should be added to the solution.

The product does not provide API management. We have to use a separate tool called API Connect for our needs. It would be good if IBM could combine these tools.

I have been using the solution for the past nine years.

I rate the stability an eight out of ten.

The people in our organization who faced scalability issues deployed the product on the cloud, where they could make it scalable. I rate the scalability an eight out of ten.

I have spoken with the support team about a couple of issues. They were really helpful, and the response was very fast.

Positive

The initial setup is straightforward. We did not face any challenges.

It took us a couple of minutes to deploy the product. We deployed the solution with our in-house team. A team of two to three administrators usually monitors the product in the production environment.

I am using the latest version of the solution. We use Jenkins to deploy the applications we build on IBM Integration Bus. My organization is one of the largest IT service providers, with hundreds of customers across the globe.

We depend on IBM for patches when there are some issues in the production environment. I am a developer, and I work in solution development. I have worked with multiple organizations for multiple accounts. I would recommend the solution to others. IBM Integration Bus is a leading product.

Overall, I rate the product an eight out of ten.

Typically, when engaging in application integration, especially when receiving data through an integration gateway, the common practice involves routing or transforming the message. This process aims to enrich the data before forwarding it to other downstream systems, and we utilize IBM Integration Bus for it.

It offers easy adaptability, allowing for seamless modifications. With versatile nodes, it facilitates effortless connections with other integration components. The platform supports diverse functionalities such as making web service calls, conducting file transfers, and interacting with databases. Additionally, it accommodates synchronous communication, addressing a variety of technical implementation needs. It effectively replaces the effort involved in such coding tasks.

It can be implemented as an enterprise service bus to seamlessly connect all applications within your enterprise. This tool serves as a bridge, ensuring a smooth flow of data across all applications, regardless of their formats or communication protocols. By leveraging its features, you can efficiently manage and facilitate communication between various applications in your enterprise ecosystem.

It would be beneficial for it to function more as an iPaaS, with the runtime available in the cloud, potentially on platforms like AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. This approach enables broader accessibility, allowing more users to leverage the service.

I have been using it for more than nine years.

It exhibits high stability, consistently performing well in the majority of environments. Any disruptions typically arise only when there are issues with the underlying infrastructure supporting the Integration Bus.

While I can't provide specific user numbers, we have numerous clients across the globe who rely on IBM Integration Bus to meet their business needs. If you aim to enhance the scalability of your integration application developed in IBM Integration Bus, there are specific options and features you can utilize. This enables you to scale up your applications effectively, allowing them to handle a higher volume of requests from various sources.

I am confident that we would receive a prompt response from IBM whenever we encounter any technical issues or require technical support.

The initial setup was relatively straightforward and not overly challenging. Establishing the required environment to run the IBM Integration Bus was a simple process. All that was needed was some server space to install and bring up the runtime environment.

A common practice is the implementation of CI, CD, and DevOps tools. These tools automate the deployment process seamlessly. Whenever code changes are made and pushed, the configured DevOps tools take over, ensuring an automated deployment without the need for manual intervention. This streamlined approach enhances efficiency and minimizes manual efforts during the deployment phase. Maintenance for IBM Integration Bus is well-established. As part of routine maintenance, regular fixes are provided for the product, contributing to the overall stability. Daily monitoring of IBM Integration Bus objects is a crucial aspect of maintenance. We maintain a dedicated team that monitors these objects 24/7, both on-site and offshore. This continuous vigilance ensures that any potential issues are promptly identified and addressed, minimizing any impact on business operations.

I find it to be a highly regarded solution. If you are considering the implementation of an Enterprise Service Bus, this product emerges as a robust and effective solution for your business needs. Overall, I would rate it eight out of ten.

We used the solution for opening new accounts for a banking system. Our client used some old techniques and didn’t have an integration layer. I created an account opening application for our client.

IBM Integration Bus is a very strong tool. It helps in integrating the front-end and back-end systems.

We have to stop the integration server to start the debugging process. The debugging mechanism of other products is better than that of IBM.

I have been using the solution for six months.

I did not face any issues with the solution’s stability.

The solution is scalable.

The initial setup is easy, but the database is quite heavy for the local DC. It was also a little bit complex to connect to some databases.

The deployment of the solution is very easy. We just add the integration server and drag and drop the services to the integration server. We deployed the solution in-house. We do not face any trouble in the maintenance of the product.

I am a system integrator. In Software AG, debugging does not intervene with any other process. I also use Software AG webMethods and TIBCO. Software AG webMethods is the best product because it is very easy to develop and flexible. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.