Outbound messaging is part of the workflow rule functionality in Salesforce.com. Workflow rules watch for specified field changes and trigger automatic sending of an outbound message. Using the notifications() call in Salesforce.com, outbound messaging sends SOAP messages over HTTP or HTTPS to a designated endpoint when triggered by a workflow rule.

You can configure workflow rules in Salesforce.com so that it sends notifications when any changes are made to Salesforce objects. Once a workflow rule has been associated with an outbound message, a WSDL is created and is made available for download from the Salesforce.com user interface. This WSDL contains the endpoint URL for the recipient of the message and the information you want to include in the outbound message.

If you configure an outbound message, then whenever an event defined in the workflow rule is triggered, Salesforce.com sends an outbound message containing the values of the specified fields to your Integration Server. You create a web service descriptor in Integration Server using the WSDL generated at Salesforce.com to process the outbound notification message resulting from the workflow rule. For more information, see Receiving Outbound Messages from Salesforce.com and the webMethods Service Development Help for your release.

To ensure security, place your Integration Server behind an internal firewall and place a webMethods Enterprise Gateway in the DMZ to allow it to accept communications and process requests from Salesforce.com. For information related to setting up an Enterprise Gateway Server for processing Salesforce.com notifications, see Setting Up an Enterprise Gateway Server . For detailed information about using an Enterprise Gateway Server, see the webMethods Integration Server Administrator’s Guide for your release.