An ECM solution might consist of multiple components to achieve the many  objectives of an enterprise. To build such a solution, you might install and  configure multiple products, integrate them together, and implement the solution  across these products and components.  There are many products in the IBM ECM portfolio that provide a variety of  functions and capabilities for an ECM solution. This book describes building a  generic ECM solution from end-to-end using these IBM ECM products.  This chapter provides a high-level description of the products involved in the  ECM solution. The installation, configuration, and integration of these products  were first performed on a traditional system. We implement the ECM solution  with multiple stages, each adding additional functionalities. The solution building  process is then repeated on IBM SoftLayer, the platform that we advise and  encourage you to use to build your ECM solution.  You do not need to install and implement all of the products described in this  solution. We select to integrate these IBM ECM products for our solution  because we want to highlight these products, and show how they can be  integrated together to provide the powerful functionalities that your business  might need. Based on your business requirements, you can selectively install,  configure, and integrate these products for your own ECM solution.  The solution-building process provided in this book serves as a learning  guideline for a proof of concept (PoC) and proof of technology environment. It is  beyond the scope of this book to provide a definitive guide for implementing a  production ECM solution.  IBM SoftLayer provides a high-performing cloud infrastructure. Data centers  around the world use IBM SoftLayer to run solutions and services. For more  information about IBM SoftLayer, refer to Chapter 3, “Building a cloud-based  ECM solution with IBM SoftLayer” on page 21. 2  Building IBM Enterprise Content Management Solutions From End to End 1.1 Introduction 1.2 IBM Softlayer