I'm trying to figure out exactly what an ESB is and how it is implemented. I understand that it is a bus that providers and consumers plug in to so that they can communicate.
Does an ESB consist of several servers and a provider/consumer can connect to any of them? If so, are all these ESB servers interconnected? Do they all provide access to the same contracts? Does something like websphere run on all these servers?
I'm confused and need some clarification.