For years I've convinced that MSSoap Toolkit was indispensable *on the server side* for answering Soap requests, and lately I've been searching on the web about how to keep using existent web-services without it, replacing it with something else.

On the client I know that web-services can be consumed using MSXML2.ServerXMLHTTP, but I'm talking about server side.

Today I've uninstalled the soap toolkit from a virtual Windows Server 2003 SP2, and for my annoyance, the web-services keep working, so... Can somebody explain what component is answering the soap requests and passing the parameters to the components?

-- Update ---
I'm testing this, and found that when I configure COM+ to use Soap (I've using this article: http://www.kehm.de/henrik/blog/files/a5019da836d29c3cee972f5f62b5a8bd-19.html), then every time I replace the component on COM+ console (test_service.dll), a new dll is generated on a .net framework directory, inside the Windows directory (test_serviceSoapLib.dll), then the .net platform is receiving the Soap message and is calling my VFP9 MTDLL component. Awesome!

So now I don't understand what part was playing the Soap Toolkit on the server, if it is not necessary for the web-service to function, and don't understand the DLL that .net generates automatically based on mine on VFP9.

Did anybody know that? It's something new to me, totally unexpected. Up to now I've believed that for .net answering soap messages, then a .net web-service was necessary.

Next week I'll try to reproduce this in a 2K12 virtual server (on which Soap Toolkit can't be installed), and if this works, I will report back.