SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR META-DATA DRIVEN, SEMI-AUTOMATED GENERATION OF WEB SERVICES BASED ON EXISTING APPLICATIONS

Techniques for reusing logic implemented in an existing software application such that the logic can be exposed as a Web service or in any other service-oriented context. In one set of embodiments, a design-time technique is provided that comprises, inter alia, receiving program code for an existing software application, generating metadata based on the program code, and customizing the metadata to align with an intended Web service. Artifacts for the Web service are then generated based on the customized metadata. In another set of embodiments, a run-time technique is provided that comprises, inter alia, receiving a payload representing an invocation of a Web service operation of the generated Web service, processing the payload, and, based on the processing, causing the existing software application to execute an operation in response to the invocation of the Web service operation.