ESB – Everyone’s Silver Bullet?

Given its prominence in any discussions around SOA for several years, you might think that by now everyone has acquired an Enterprise Service Bus (ESB).  However, it is clear that there is still ongoing discussion about the need for an ESB, and questions still remain as to what exactly an ESB is.  Cloud computing seems to have renewed interest in the topic. In the same way that people asked “do I need an ESB to do SOA?”, we now have “do I need an ESB to do Cloud Computing?” (at least amongst those who recognize that Cloud Computing is largely service-based).

I sometimes think a better expansion of the abbreviation might be “Everyone’s Silver Bullet”, such is the perception that all you need to buy is an ESB and all your problems are solved.