We have been very busy the last couple of years working with BizTalk clients due to recent end of support dates for older BizTalk Servers. Specifically, BizTalk 2010 extended support having ended in January 2021 and BizTalk 2013 extended support ending in July 2023.
For the multitude of organisations using BizTalk, there is a lot of work to do in keeping secure with regular modernisations and the planning for the likely eventual move to the cloud and Azure Integration Services.
We thought we’d highlight a couple recent such projects for you.
Modernising Aging BizTalk Servers
This British car company has 3 three BizTalk environments (2006, 2009 and 2016). BizTalk 2016 is in use for all BAU applications, but all other applications were still on older versions requiring migration to BizTalk Server 2016.
Our BizTalk team first reviewed the code of these old servers and migrated to Visual Studio 2015. A few of the applications code did not align with PROD and a few of the applications’ code was complexly missing.
We decompiled DLLs, regenerated the code and migrated to the latest version of Visual Studio. Then introduced the new deployment method using the BizTalk Deployment Framework.
Completion of a Large BizTalk Integration Project
We recently achieved the milestone of the close-out of three major BizTalk integrations with a global aerospace company. Here we look at the details of one of these integrations.
We were engaged to set up the BizTalk system which included the SQL Servers for Development, Test and Production. As well as a complete implementation guide detailing the setup of each environment for the client.
First, BizTalk was used to replace a legacy ESB system. It was then extended to connect further third party and internal systems to SAP.
An initial development was done connecting their backend SAP system with a third-party system that dealt with Orders and Delivery Notes. SAP IDoc messages were retrieved in BizTalk, mapped to the XML format required by the third-party system. And then sent via AS2 to the third-party system. XML messages sent from the third-party system via AS2 were also passed into BizTalk and mapped to IDoc messages for the SAP system to consume.
Deployment of the developed application was done using the BizTalk Deployment Framework. The development was fully documented and the client’s development personnel trained on the support of BizTalk and the developed application.
With these phases complete, that wraps up our 9-month integration project. Going forward, the client will continue to support their applications in-house, knowing they can use the Transparity Ballard Chalmers consultants at any point required – as our flexible services are designed.
Ballard Chalmers and BizTalk Integration
We are one of a handful of BizTalk Server development experts in the UK, with decades of experience integrating enterprise systems with BizTalk. We provide skilled flexible services as you can see here. Aiding our client with full projects or resourcing, short-term consultancy and ongoing support.
You can see more about our BizTalk experience or check out these case studies:
