In SQL Server 2005, we added support for native XML Web services to the database engine. This feature is designed around well-known standards such as SOAP 1.2, WSDL 1.1, and HTTP. Basing the solution on standards enables interoperability and outreach in the heterogeneous environments common to most enterprises. The new infrastructure added to SQL Server 2005 greatly facilitates exposing Web services directly out of the server, in that having the native SOAP stack built into the database engine obviates the need for a middle-tier process (such as IIS) for this purpose. It also enables SQL Server to participate as a component in service-oriented architectures, as services provide the glue in these new architectures. Native XML Web services allow you to both expose stored procedures as Web services and execute ad hoc T-SQL statements against the database server. In essence we have created a new access mechanism to SQL Server based on SOAP that provides much the same functionality currently available via the Tabular Data Stream (TDS) proprietary binary protocol.