MTS-OTS bridge

What it is !

The main part of the MTS-OTS bridge is "TIPOTS", a CORBA-based implementation of the TIP protocol which maps the transaction messages between OTS and TIP. Used with the TIP implementation contained in Windows NT5 beta 2 and with a "non-transactional" COM/CORBA bridge, this makes it possible to have one atomic transaction that consistently commits or rollsback resources in both COM and CORBA domains.

The prototype was implemented as part of the ACTranS project by Technical University of Hamburg-Harburg, with Peter Furniss Consultants as sub-contractor. We successfully got transactions to span the two domains in January 1999, using a demonstration application in an e-commerce scenario - buying the components of a computer from different "stores", but not buying any of it unless all of it was available.

How it works

A brief explanation of transactional bridging and how TIPOTS works is on another page on this site,  There is more information in the ACTranS deliverable documents D2ac and D3aa, for which there are pdf versions on the ACTranS website.

Next steps - do you want to join us ?

We would very much like to progress TIPOTS towards real use, rather than just a prototype. We would very much like to hear from anyone who has a real application (or a more genuine demonstration application) that could use TIPOTS.

We would especially like to investigate the application of on-line transaction processing in e-commerce , in a project under the Information Technology Society call of the European Fifth Framework.  TIPOTS would be an available ingredient in this, not necessarily the main element. We are looking for partners in this (urgently).

Contact points

Prof Fritz Vogt - Vogt@kant.ti5.tu-harburg.de
Dr Peter Furniss - peter@furniss.co.uk (phone: +44 181 313 1833)



Peter Furniss
14 May 1999