Providing a modular gateway architecture which isolates attributes of the client and server systems into independent components

A method of communicating a request from a requester to an end server wherein the requester is coupled to a server and a number of communications programs are coupled to an end server, a first module being coupled to the server and each one of a number of second modules being coupled to a corresponding one of the number of communications programs, the end server processing the request and returning a result in response to the request, comprising the steps of:

• a. calling a first initialize function to initialize the first module and load a one of the number of second modules corresponding to a one of the number of communications programs to communicate with the end server;
• b. calling a second initialize function to initialize the one of the number of second modules;
• c. sending a request from the requester to the first module;
• d. calling a first process request function from the first module to format the request received from the requester so that the request can be sent to said one of the number of second modules;
• e. calling a second process request function from said first process request function to send the request to said one of the number of second modules, said second process request function formatting the request received from said first module so that said one of the number of second modules can send the request to said one of the number of communication programs;
• f. sending the request to said one of the number of communication programs so that the end server can process the request;
• g. processing the request;
• h. returning the result in response to the request from the end server to said one of the number of communication programs so that said one of the number of second modules can receive the result;
• i. sending the result from said one of the number of communication programs to said one of the number of second modules;
• j. formatting the result by said second process request function so that the result can be returned to the first module;
• k. sensing the result from said one of the number of second modules to the first module;
• l. formatting the result by said first process request function so that the result can be returned to the requester;
• m. sending the result from the first module to the requester;
• n. calling a first cleanup function once the requester has been removed, said first cleanup function terminating the first module;
• and
• o. calling a second cleanup function from the first cleanup function, said second cleanup function terminating said one of the number of second modules.