Glossary · IT & systems
Middleware
The intermediate layer that lets systems talk to each other.
Middleware is the intermediate layer that lets systems talk to each other. It is software that sits between your other programs and translates and passes on messages from one to another. You rarely see it directly, but it makes sure the rest works together.
The comparison with an interpreter holds. Two systems each speak their own language, and the middleware makes sure they understand each other anyway. Without that layer, every connection would need a separate, custom-built bridge between each pair of systems.
For a growing business with many systems, an intermediate layer can keep the whole thing manageable. All connections then run through one place instead of through a tangle of direct links that nobody can keep track of any more.
