Which software acts as an intermediary between different applications?

Middleware serves as a crucial intermediary layer that enables communication and data management between different applications, systems, or services. It allows diverse and often disparate software applications to interact seamlessly, facilitating processes like data exchange and service orchestration. Essentially, middleware can manage messaging, authentication, and other application integration tasks, which are essential for the operation of distributed systems.

This role is essential in modern computing environments, particularly when organizations need software applications to work together, even if they were built using different technologies or frameworks. Middleware also helps to simplify the development of applications by providing common services and capabilities that can be reused across various applications, thereby enhancing efficiency and productivity.

Operating systems, while they manage hardware resources and provide interfaces for applications, do not primarily focus on enabling communication between different applications. Similarly, application software is designed to perform specific tasks for users, and firmware refers to low-level software that provides control for the device's hardware.