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Solution Consulting Director at PCCW
Real User
Good API integration and support from Lab Services, but migrating to this solution is complex
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature is the API integration."
  • "Migrating to this solution is complex and it would be helpful if they had a way to convert existing integrations."

What is our primary use case?

We are a solution provider and this is one of the products that we implement for our clients. Usually, they want to use this for consolidating the services. It is used to integrate their core insurance systems with the rest of the environment.

How has it helped my organization?

We try to enable this kind of service-oriented architecture (SOA) to assist our clients with consolidating all of their services.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is the API integration.

What needs improvement?

The integration is difficult to manage.

Migrating to this solution is complex and it would be helpful if they had a way to convert existing integrations.

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For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using IBM Integration Bus for more than three years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

From a scalability point of view, I think that this product is good.

I would say that it is good for an enterprise-level customer.

How are customer service and support?

We receive our technical support through an IBM partner in Taiwan. However, developing this kind of project required asking for assistance from the IBM Lab Services. Without Lab Services, our support would not have been as strong.

How was the initial setup?

Migrating to this solution is complicated and not simple to do if they already have API integration between systems.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also work with TIBCO and Oracle ESB solutions. We find that our customers have had a good experience with them and there is always a lot of interest in these two products.

What other advice do I have?

IBM Integration Bus is a good product and I would recommend it for enterprise customers.

I would rate this solution a six out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator
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IBM Integration Bus Developer at Telecom Egypt
Real User
Great stability, stream lined convergence of other products, and works well with critical projects, but the performance needs to be enhanced
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable thing is the loose coupling and making the change in only one stack of the ESB layer or the middleware layer."
  • "The performance needs to be enhanced when working with the Toolkit."

What is our primary use case?

It is used for the banking domain and telco. We use it for integration between vendors from core banking and the other channels, for example, buyers, CRM and codes.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable thing is the loose coupling and making the change in only one stack of the ESB layer or the middleware layer. This helps in big projects and when we have multiple channels calling back at the same time.

What needs improvement?

The Toolkit itself is based on Eclipse and Java, and it does not respond sometimes. When we are working on the Toolkit using or working on our PCs or remote desktop the program has issues with performance. The performance needs to be enhanced. More labs for developers who want to learn about this technology for trial. They may provide a trial version of App Connect or Toolkit to try it for themselves.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using IBM Integration Bus for the past five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is very stable and used by very large companies and banking in EMEA, or in Egypt and the Middle East. It is used in very stable projects and critical ones that have payment transactions, like wallets or through transactions, and internet banking.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is very scalable.  We have twenty different developer and administrator teams working with it.

How are customer service and support?

If we have to fix an installation or other support needed, an administrator opens a ticket with IBM and they support it, especially if it is in the license agreement with them. But, I am a developer, not related to technical support. From the community side, I would rate technical support a seven out of ten because IBM documentation is available over the internet and on other websites.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward and takes about one minute to deploy

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We have the enterprise edition, and it is licensed yearly. I do not know what the cost is.

What other advice do I have?

They can converge other products, ESB, or SOAR architecture. I may recommend IBM as a solution tool for a business if they are looking for a stable environment. They will find support on the community forum. I would rate IBM Integration Bus a seven out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Solution Engineer at Capgemini
Real User
Simple installation, beneficial for legacy systems, and good support
Pros and Cons
  • "I am into microservices using Java Spring Boot, but if we are using legacy systems, IBM Integration Bus is very good for them. They have their own computational logic called EC12, their own proprietary language. You can do any kind of complex logic and can implement other ESVs that I have seen."
  • "IBM Integration Bus can improve JSON Schema validations. We don't have any kind of nodes that can support that kind of validation. If we want to containerize it by means of the docker's containers in the clouds, we are not able to manage it very well."

What is our primary use case?

We are using IBM Integration Bus as a messaging solution for our customers. They have legacy systems. Some are MQ systems, file-based systems, app-based systems, and ERP systems. We place it in the middle of integrations. One system sends messages or communicates to another system written by us.

What is most valuable?

I am into microservices using Java Spring Boot, but if we are using legacy systems, IBM Integration Bus is very good for them. They have their own computational logic called EC12, their own proprietary language. You can do any kind of complex logic and can implement other ESVs that I have seen.

What needs improvement?

IBM Integration Bus can improve JSON Schema validations. We don't have any kind of nodes that can support that kind of validation. If we want to containerize it by means of the docker's containers in the clouds, we are not able to manage it very well.

In a future update, IBM Integration Bus could add better API management. It only supports Swagger at this time.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using IBM Integration Bus for approximately eight years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

IBM Integration Bus sometimes hangs but the IBM App Connect Enterprise successor version is a lot better.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

IBM Integration Bus scalability depends. The scalable of the on-premise version is difficult to scale. For example, if you're using the file processing that can be locked on the files and there is an increase in the number of threads there is some limit. The cloud version is not the same, by using a container, we can scale up to any extreme level. That kind of scalable is not there in the on-premise version.

We have 10 to 15 people using the solution.

How are customer service and support?

I never interacted with IBM for technical support. However, my clients have and they have had a good experience.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have not worked with other solutions similar to IBM Integration Bus.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of IBM Integration Bus version 7 was complex, but the 10 and 11 versions were not difficult. We are using IBM App Connect Enterprise, the successor version of the IBM Integration Bus. IBM Integration Bus no longer exists, but the installation was quite easy. This is a single-step installation. The installation can take approximately 15 to 20 minutes.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price of the IBM Integration Bus is expensive. If you compare the price to the cloud version you can purchase what you need but the on-premise version price is flat.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated other solutions.

What other advice do I have?

In the modern integrations in the EPAs world, IBM Integration Bus is not well fitted, because if we have legacy systems, it is fine, but if you want to manage the EPA, govern the EPA to allow people to choose the different platforms, such as the cloud platform, Mule CloudHub I would not recommend it. For the legacy integrations, I can recommend this solution.

I rate IBM Integration Bus an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
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Group CEO at Mmusi Group
Real User
Flexible, highly stable, quick technical support
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of the IBM Integration Bus are flexibility. It's also an alternative for integrating it with other projects, which we are not ready at this time to do, such as switching to tunnels. The tunnels would be used with other partners to make sure everything is secured."
  • "IBM Integration Bus could improve by having a more lightweight installation. Additionally, automation could improve."

What is our primary use case?

IBM Integration Bus can be deployed in many ways, such as on-premise, cloud, and hybrid. 

The current customer that we have wants to have a hybrid deployment. We're investigating how they can manage to do it. For the hybrid deployment, they will have an instance running in a docker image, or in an Amazon AWS. The heavy operations will be done by the on-premise version. Which is what we currently have.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of the IBM Integration Bus are flexibility. It's also an alternative for integrating it with other projects, which we are not ready at this time to do, such as switching to tunnels. The tunnels would be used with other partners to make sure everything is secured.

What needs improvement?

IBM Integration Bus could improve by having a more lightweight installation. Additionally, automation could improve.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using IBM Integration Bus for approximately 13 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

IBM Integration Bus is highly stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have approximately four clients using this solution.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is very good, they have a fast response.

How was the initial setup?

The installation of the IBM Integration Bus was straightforward. The time frame that it takes for the deployment depends on the environment the customer has. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The licensing model of IBM Integration Bus is good. It's a yearly subscription. However, the price is depending on the model that you choose. If it's a Cloud version, then you can pay per month or you can pay it annually upfront. There are three-year options available, but it depends on what deployment you have.

As more people are moving operations toward the Cloud. The Clouds are offering subscriptions. They will charge you based on what they're processing. Whereas the on-premise version, the vendors offer a perpetual license. It doesn't have those limitations that the subscriptions models have for the number of transactions. What most of the vendors are doing is they will more or less charge you for a small, medium, or large package based on the number of transactions and they will bill your account.

What other advice do I have?

IBM Integration Bus is a very good solution and they have come a long way with improvements over the years.

I rate IBM Integration Bus a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
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Bhushan Patil - PeerSpot reviewer
Director at Absys
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Enhancing error handling and monitoring for daily operations
Pros and Cons
  • "The error handling and monitoring functionalities of IBM Integration Bus are very good."
  • "IBM Integration Bus can improve by implementing no-code or drag-and-drop adapters development, similar to what is available in Red Hat."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for IBM Integration Bus is that it is rigid, scalable, and offers high availability with minimal to no data loss. We have developed services that utilize IBM MQ to transfer data. Our service is running every day at the airport.

What is most valuable?

The error handling and monitoring functionalities of IBM Integration Bus are very good. However, Red Hat offers better monitoring tools.

What needs improvement?

IBM Integration Bus can improve by implementing no-code or drag-and-drop adapters development, similar to what is available in Red Hat. Additionally, the monitoring features could be improved.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have experience working with IBM ESB for almost ten years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would rate the solution's stability at nine out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I would rate the solution's scalability at eight out of ten.

How are customer service and support?

The customer service and support can be rated as eight out of ten, and I find them to be good.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Before using IBM Integration Bus, we used various other solutions, including TIPCO. I don't remember all of them now.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of IBM Integration Bus was very difficult, especially during development. It was challenging to configure and install the solution on personal laptops or PCs when trying to download the free version for testing.

What about the implementation team?

We used a third party for the deployment. We used to develop on top of an Integration Bus, however, we did not do the startup installation or installation field ourselves.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing of IBM Integration Bus is very high, which is the biggest negative for us. It is one of the reasons why we opted for a different solution now.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend IBM Integration Bus because of its scalability and high stability.

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Architect at Baarez
Real User
Top 20
Has good message queue connector features
Pros and Cons
  • "The message queue, like, message queue connectors. Then they have a built in connectors for most of the systems, like SAP, oracle database, and this Civil connector is there. Of course, we have this SQL database connector So those built in connectors are there. For the almost most of the systems, we have built in connectors. And second thing is that it is a stateless Integration, so it doesn't maintain a state of the integration. Bus the Stitches Integration makes it very fast."
  • "The message queue connectors are the most valuable feature. They have built-in connectors for most of the systems, like SAP and Oracle Database."
  • "The password settings need improvement."

What is our primary use case?

I worked with Integration Bus for a UK-based insurance client and banking domain client. Our main use cases are for integrating different systems. We were involved in integrating their master data management domain.

What is most valuable?

The message queue connectors are the most valuable feature. They have built-in connectors for most of the systems, like SAP and Oracle Database.

What needs improvement?

The password settings need improvement. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Integration Bus for five years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is highly stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability is very high. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing of the solution is high. 

What other advice do I have?

Overall, I would rate the product a ten out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

IBM
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Mansoor Ivanovic Mohammed - PeerSpot reviewer
CDO - Data & AI at BDC
Real User
Flexible integration, application scaling, and helpful support
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of the IBM Integration Bus are the flexibility to easily integrate with other solutions, such as SAP or any other vendors."
  • "The cloud deployment of the IBM Integration Bus should be made easier."

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of the IBM Integration Bus are the flexibility to easily integrate with other solutions, such as SAP or any other vendors.

What needs improvement?

The cloud deployment of the IBM Integration Bus should be made easier.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using IBM Integration Bus for approximately six years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

IBM Integration Bus is stable. We have a lot of infrastructure running on it, and it has worked well. We have many application integrations that we used it for, and we did not have that many issues.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of the IBM Integration Bus is good because it can scale within the application. The whole application installation has some scalability, not only the server. It's easy to scale.

We have approximately 20 developers using this solution and we do not plan to increase the usage.

How are customer service and support?

I have used the support from IBM and they have a ticket priority system. For example, they assign priority to the ticket, such as P1, P2, and P3. P1 is the highest priority and P3 is the lowest. When we are assigned a P1 priority we have someone contact us directly from IBM.

I rate the support from IBM Integration Bus four out of five.

How was the initial setup?

IBM Integration Bus's initial setup is straightforward. They made it really simple to install everything. The process only took a few minutes.

What about the implementation team?

We did the implementation of the IBM Integration Bus in-house. We have two people for the maintenance and support of the solution.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

IBM Integration Bus solution is expensive and this is one of the reasons we are looking for an alternative, such as MuleSoft.

There are some additional pieces of software we need to purchase to do certain kinds of integrations, this should be included and we should not have to pay extra.

What other advice do I have?

My advice to others is this is a great solution if you can afford it.

I rate IBM Integration Bus an eight out of ten.

We are currently looking at other vendors, such as MuleSoft, to see what their offerings are.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Senior J2EE Developer at DataServe
Real User
Top 10
Used internally to integrate isolated solutions and manage traffic overload
Pros and Cons
  • "The Aspera feature for high-speed transfer is highly effective."
  • "I believe there is room for improvement in the pricing structure to make it more accessible."

What is our primary use case?

We use IBM Integration Bus with IBM DataPower for IT integration. It’s the most used and essential component. For data security and governance, we use it with HiSphere. It’s also integrated with Outlook for handling video files.

What is most valuable?

The Aspera feature for high-speed transfer is highly effective. For DataPower, we use it to export our servers and integrate with government sectors. It's also used internally to integrate isolated solutions and manage traffic overload.

What needs improvement?

IBM Integration Bus is a reliable solution that helps us handle performance challenges effectively. However, I believe there is room for improvement in the pricing structure to make it more accessible. As far as IBM Integration Bus is considered for other organizations, it has strong performance capabilities and integration features.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using IBM Integration Bus for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Integration Bus is quite stable, I would rate it at eight out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

In terms of scalability, it's a solid ten. IBM's technical support is good, I'd rate it at an eight.    

How was the initial setup?

The installation was manageable, although it required specific skills in the Open-Sec environment. It took us about two weeks to install and configure everything, depending on the environment complexity and the number of servers. Currently, around thirteen technical users are working with IBM Integration Bus in our organization.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, I recommend IBM Integration Bus with a rating of nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
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Buyer's Guide
Download our free IBM Integration Bus Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: November 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free IBM Integration Bus Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.