EOSC Architecture and Interoperability Framework

The EOSC Architecture and Interoperability Framework coordination and governance seeks to ensure that interoperability is built, encouraged and maintained with structure, fairness and transparency.

Achieving interoperability is essential in order to federate services, integrate data and enable interoperation with applications or workflows for analysis, storage and processing. The EOSC Interoperability Framework (EOSC IF) provides the procedures and services required to support a flexible framework of standards and guidelines that facilitate the interoperability and composability of EOSC resources in the EOSC-Exchange via the EOSC-Core. The overall EOSC architecture should be overseen by an independent Architecture Board.

Proposals are expected to cover the following activities:

• Provide structure to manage, update, circulate and promote the EOSC Interoperability Framework and guidelines to support and enable interoperability within EOSC. Such a governance structure should include:
  • A high-level body that has the oversight and the responsibility for the EOSC IF, is formally responsible for endorsing new and/or deprecating guidelines into the EOSC IF.
  • Independent sub-groups that can assess that requests for inclusion into the EOSC IF are compliant with a minimum set of requirements namely: maturity, community uptake, the existence of a group that maintains the item that has been proposed for inclusions and some governing model that allows for its evolution.
• Coordinate the establishment of IFs and the making of existing IFs available through a library/repository, support the dialogue on establishing IFs. The EOSC Interoperability Framework governance should define:
  • A process for submitting, consulting and accepting guidelines/other frameworks.
  • A structured proposal template and library providing information about the EOSC IF and guidelines.
  • Community consultation to achieve ratification.
  • A registry/repository for accepted guidelines and frameworks, where artefacts will be curated using an agreed EOSC profile.
  • Publicity, documentation and training about EOSC IF.
• Support communities in making their IFs available through EOSC IF library.
• Provide organizational framework for establishing an independent, multi-stakeholder Architecture Board that can collect feedback and recommendations from the stakeholders, oversee and advice the EOSC MVE[[Managed Services for the European Open Science Cloud platform - CNECT/LUX/2022/CD/0023]] deployment and operation.
• Define processes and guidelines to enable EOSC Core delivery and to ensure openness of EOSC so that it can adapt with the evolving requirements of the EOSC stakeholders.

The activities should demonstrate alignment with those of the EOSC Partnership and the EOSC MVE platform operators. Proposals should involve and be driven by one or more representatives of the relevant actors of the field, in particular those directly involved in the EOSC Partnership.

Activities should be aligned with those of the scientific communities, many of which have already their interoperability practices in place. The Architecture Board should work in close cooperation with the EOSC MVE platform operators and act as advisory function to the architecture deployment.

The beneficiaries are expected to work closely with the national Competence Centres, liaise with the EOSC Association working groups and task forces producing interoperable specifications and align to relevant community governance (e.g. RDA, IETF, Science Clusters, etc.), to ensure that a sustainable governance framework is adopted that collaborates with the other relevant bodies in the field.