InterApplication Bus (IAB)

OpenFin permits application interoperability that works similarly to a mobile OS. Each tool works hand-in-hand with every other application, whether it’s brand-new software or critical legacy tech. Sharing data happens organically, with fields populating in real time across multiple apps. Research, analytics, price feeds, chat, your order book, and more create a landscape of interwoven cross-functionality that enables you to spend more time executing and less time doing digital chores.

The OpenFin InterApplicationBus (IAB) is a secure desktop messaging system that supports a number of different interoperability strategies, including pub/sub and topic based messaging, direct connections between applications, and one-to-many connections.

FDC3 facilitates application providers ability to transform end-user workflows on the desktop while reducing development costs for integration. The standards are easy to implement and ensure your applications can communicate and scale within OpenFin. FDC3 is an industry wide solution for standardizing desktop application interoperability through common set up concepts and protocols.
The InterApplicationBus (IAB) and Channels API are the two types of ways your application can communicate with other OpenFin applications. By using the IAB, you can send and receive data and or events across your applications without leaving the desktop. This permits actions like auto-filling order books or auto-populating fields for spreadsheets or forms.

Publish a message to all OpenFin applications
Send a message to a specific application
Subscribe to and unsubscribe from topics

To learn more about the IAB, visit OpenFin's Interapplication Bus API Documentation.

When to use

The IAB is best for applications that require direct peer-to-peer communication. This method requires Clients to subscribe to a Provider, so a developer must have knowledge of what provider and topic to subscribe to when setting up the IAB.

The IAB is built into OpenFin architecture, so all that is required of the Provider or Client application is to call a method, such as the publish or send method, in their main.js file. This creates a topic and sends its associated message to the targeted audience.