Architecture

The mNOW! Mobile Framework^® builds upon the Microsoft technology stack, leveraging the power of the world’s leading operating systems, frameworks and products such as Windows and Windows Mobile, the .NET Framework (2.0 & 3.0), Internet Information Server 6.0, and SQL Server 2005 to provide a robust, intuitive infrastructure and toolset for extending mission critical back-office systems to the mobile workforce.

Through leading technologies such as Windows Communication Foundation and Windows Workflow Foundation, mNOW! provides an enterprise-grade server infrastructure capable of supporting small companies or departments with deployments of tens of users, up to global deployments with thousands of mobile users.  The mNOW! Communications Server acts as the communications hub for the mNOW! Mobile Framework.  Based upon Microsoft Windows Communication Foundation - Microsoft’s implementation of the industry standard Web Services 2.0 specification - it provides secure, reliable communications between the different modules of the framework and is designed to accommodate all deployment scenarios from small local deployments to large mission critical deployments that require enterprise scalability, high availability and redundancy.   The mNOW! Integration Engine provides sophisticated Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) capabilities to the mNOW! Mobile Framework.   Built upon Microsoft .NET and Microsoft Windows Workflow, the Integration Engine routes inbound and outbound payloads between remote devices and Service Oriented Architecture (SOA)-based Integration Services.  Its configurable orchestration process supports robust auditing, error handling, and notification capabilities to ensure that enterprise data is never lost.

The mNOW! Application Design Tool^® and Command Center provide the tools necessary to quickly and efficiently design, deploy, manage and evolve enterprise mobile solutions beyond the lifetime of current business needs, hardware and technologies.  The mNOW! Application Design Tool (ADT) module is a state-of-the-art mobile design and configuration environment used to create, modify, and grow all mobile applications throughout the enterprise. The ADT is a GUI-based WYSIWYG toolset that leverages an easy-to-learn scripting language and utilizes an intuitive drag and drop approach for mobile application design and development for all mNOW!-based enterprise mobile applications.   The mNOW! Command Center is the primary administrative interface for the mNOW! Mobile Framework.  Through it, administrators can visually monitor the status and health of their mobile solutions; organize, manage, and monitor their mobile device community; centrally view and control remote devices; build, provision and monitor deployment packages; and view, publish and print a variety of key reports. 

mNOW! GO provides a corresponding device infrastructure that supports a broad variety of stationary and mobile devices ranging from desktops and workstations to laptops, tablets and PDAs (including most ruggedized handhelds) – virtually any device running a Windows or Windows Mobile (excluding Smart Phone) -based operating system, regardless of display size or resolution.  A high-performance Runtime Engine processes XML@R (XML at Runtime) application scripts to provide rich, highly functional end-user applications across all supported platforms.  A separate Communications Agent interacts automatically with the Communications Server to provide Right-Time (real time when connected to the network, store & forward when not) access to the central server and back-end systems.  Lastly, the Extensibility API enables mNOW!-based applications to interact with 3rd party applications and/or device drivers, enabling seamless integration with other applications and unique device features and peripherals.