A Metadatabase-supported shell for distributed processing and systems integration

Advances in computer networking and the globalization of economy have forced enterprises to adopt a distributed structure, particularly for their information systems. It is important to provide enterprises with integration tools which consolidate the information available in these distributed systems. We refer to such systems as Distributed Enterprise Information Systems (DEIS). A number of integration approaches can be found in the literature which achieve interoperability at the application level via an integrated schema or a common manipulation language. Other systems, such as ERPs, realize integration by imposing a central data model and uniform business processes. All these approaches are imposing certain logical data structure or even physical database to the local systems, which demand changes at the local level. In this paper, we describe the detailed architecture of a Metadatabase-supported shell enabling DEIS. Taking advantage of metadata, the approach presented guaranties flexibility, scalability, while preserving local autonomy.