FUSE ESB 4.0 Preview Release FAQ

Added by Coco Jaenicke, last edited by Coco Jaenicke on Jul 23, 2008

What are you launching?

As of July 21st, three things are available:

  • "FUSE ESB 4.0 Preview":/products/enterprise-servicemix-4-0-preview on the IONA community Web site
  • FUSE Early Access Program is available to users who register to download this Preview
  • "FUSE HQ":/products/fuse-hq can now be downloaded and evaluated for 90 days by non-subscribers

What exactly is FUSE ESB 4.0 Preview?

FUSE ESB is an enterprise version of Apache ServiceMix - the  most popular standards-based open source ESB.  FUSE ESB 4.0 continues to provide support for widely adopted integration standards like JBI 1.0 and JMS while also ensuring support for the latest emerging standards like OSGi and JBI 2.0.   The new FUSE ESB 4.0 provides a single platform that makes it easy for developers to implement the integration patterns they need with the programming models that they are most comfortable with.  

Due to significant interest in the ServiceMix 4.0 capabilities which are not yet available as a full Apache release, we are releasing a Preview Release of FUSE ESB 4.0 on July 21st built using the Apache ServiceMix 4.0 source code.  This Preview Release provides a certified, tested, easy-to-install open source product and enables users to get early access to the features developed in the ServiceMix 4.0 community at Apache.    The Preview Release of FUSE ESB 4.0 will soon be followed by a Generally Available (GA) release of FUSE ESB 4.0 on September 8th.

The Fuse ESB Preview Release is being integrated and tested with FUSE Message Broker 5.1 (enterprise Apache ActiveMQ), FUSE Services Framework 2.1 (enteprise Apache CXF), and FUSE Mediation Router 1.4 (enterprise Apache Camel), and Apache Felix 1.0.4.

Why is it called a Preview?

We wanted to provide a Preview because we believe the product is ready for developer training and initial pilot projects, but the product needs some additional development and testing before it should be used in mission-critical production environments.  We also want to get early user feedback to ensure that FUSE ESB 4.0 best meets user needs.  

Can users purchase support for FUSE ESB 4.0 Preview?

Absolutely.  Developer and Production "Support":/enterprise-support/support-offerings is available at the same price as our current FUSE ESB support offerings.  We also have "consulting":/enterprise-support/consulting and "training":/enterprise-support/training offerings available.  

What type of tools are available?

Initially a shell console and a browser-based shell console is available for configuration and deployment of FUSE ESB 4.0.  In August we will be releasing a preview of the FUSE Integration Editor which will provide graphical tooling for the creation, debugging, and deployment of integration patterns.  We are also planning to release a centralized provisioning platform for FUSE ESB in the future.

Does FUSE HQ work with FUSE ESB? 

FUSE HQ works with FUSE ESB 3.x, and we will be releasing a new plug-in for FUSE ESB 4.0 in the future. 

What is new in FUSE ESB 4.0?

The use of the OSGi deployment model is the major new addition to FUSE ESB 4.0.

How easy is it to move from FUSE ESB 3.x to FUSE ESB 4.0?

It is very straightforward to move.  There is a migration guide that details considerations when making this transition.  Users can set-up phone calls to discuss migration issues as part of the FUSE Early Access Program.  Users can also ask questions in the FUSE "forums":/forums.  

Can FUSE ESB 3.x and FUSE ESB 4.0 interoperate? 

Yes.  We would be happy to discuss your particular situation as part of the FUSE Early Access Program.

Will FUSE ESB 3.x continue to be developed/maintained?

Yes.  We will continue to do monthly patch releases and have a FUSE ESB 3.4 release planned for December 2008.

What Artix plug-ins work with FUSE, and will Artix Security/Orchestration/RegRepo/High Availability work with FUSE?   

The top priority Artix plug-ins that are currently being developed and tested to work on FUSE are the management and transport plug-ins.  Specifically, the MQSeries bridge, for example, is important to many ActiveMQ users.  We will be providing a roadmap for additional plug-ins in the future.  We do plan to have additional Artix plug-ins tested on FUSE over time, and we will be providing a roadmap for additional plug-ins in the future.  

Will FUSE ESB and the other components run on Java 1.4? 

No, there were significant updates to Java between Java 4 and Java 5.  The current FUSE products can run on Java 5 or Java 6.

Is FUSE ESB a superset of all FUSE products?

FUSE ESB incorporates the fundamental capabilities of each of the FUSE components, i.e. FUSE Services Framework for SOAP/ws-*, FUSE Mediation Router for routing/enterprise integration patterns, and FUSE Message Broker for JMS messaging infrastructure.  Depending on the use cases required, users may need to download additional components from the various FUSE products that is described in the product documentation.   For example, some of the tooling for FUSE Services Framework is not included in FUSE ESB but it can be easily downloaded and added if needed.

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