ZIS

Definition: A Zone Integration Server (ZIS) is software that controls communication between agents. Its primary responsibility is to route messages, control access, and enforce security in the zone.

What This Means: The Zone Integration Server (ZIS) manages the communication and security with a SIF zone. It is the ZIS that keeps track of which application agents are participating within the zone. The ZIS knows which SIF events get published by the various agents, and which agents subscribe (receive) those event objects. The ZIS is not a database — it is the messaging system through which data pass. If an agent is temporarily unreachable, the ZIS will hold the message and keep trying to pass it along until the agent comes back on line. It is the ZIS that implements that “guaranteed delivery” functionality of SIF.

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