The Role the Object Request Broker plays within the context of CORBA

Question: What role does the Object Request Broker play within the context of CORBA? The Object Request Broker (ORB) plays a central role in the Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA). The ORB is responsible for enabling communication and data exchange between distributed objects in a CORBA system. The ORB acts as a middleware layer that sits between the client and server applications, providing a standard interface for remote method invocation and object sharing. When a client application needs to invoke a method on a remote object, it sends a request to the ORB. The ORB then locates the appropriate server application and sends the request to the server. The ORB also handles other tasks related to distributed object communication, such as data marshalling and unmarshalling, object activation and deactivation, and transaction management. It provides a layer of abstraction that enables client and server applications to interact with each other in a platform-independent manner.
The ORB is a key component of the CORBA architecture, providing a standard mechanism for distributed object communication that can be used across different programming languages, platforms, and systems. The ORB allows developers to build distributed applications using a modular, component-based approach, where objects can be shared and reused across different applications and systems. In summary, the Object Request Broker (ORB) plays a crucial role in the CORBA architecture, enabling communication and data exchange between distributed objects in a standardized, platform-independent manner. The ORB provides a layer of abstraction that simplifies the development of distributed applications and allows for greater interoperability between different systems and applications.