SOAP Benefits

I've got some java code thats installed on a WebSphere server as a Web Service & I'm calling it from another application (written in LotusScript) via an HTTP POST. One of the parameters of the message is an XML file & this file carries the bulk of the data. Because XML is involved & the java code is installled as a web service, we're wondering if we should make this a SOAP message & wrap it up as a 'proper' web service architecture.

Will this give us any benefits, or does our crrent set up already constitute a web service?
The two sides of the application both sit within the same organisation.
The two applications know about each other, and theres no real reason for the calling application to look up the web service via a registry as far as I can see.
Would SOAP give us eg. useful added security or deployment flexibility, or is it just an unnecessary overhead in this situation?

Thanks in advance,
Louise

If you are not going to be making this a publicly exposed interface, I can't see any reason to add another layer of complexity with a SOAP wrapper.
Do you have real security concerns? Is it ever likely to be made a public interface?
Bill

Hi Bill,
Thanks for the quick response.
No, I don't have big security concerns - the calling app is mine & the web service handling it, though written by a third party, is installed on our own server & theres no reason for it to ever be called externally.
... its just that we're in finance & that adds all that security paranoia baggage.
I guess if the web service were to be hosted by the third party company it'd make sense to use SOAP? ... also better decoupling if the interface ever changed?

Louise

For security paranoia, consider XML encryption and/or signatures. Both have standards you can find at the W3C web site.
Bill