Glossary · System coordination, integration and orchestration
Interface handshake
Also known as: interface acknowledgment sequence
German: Schnittstellen-Handshake
In system integration, an interface handshake is a handshake defined as part of a specific interface between two systems, specifying the request, acknowledgment and completion signals or messages that both sides must exchange for a given interaction.
- System integration
In one sentence
An interface handshake is the handshake agreed for a specific interface, defining the request, acknowledgment and completion steps.
Example
The interface between MES and line controller specifies an order-download handshake: order sent, order acknowledged, order accepted or rejected with reason code.
How it applies
- Engineering: For each interaction across an interface, define the handshake explicitly: which side starts, which signals or messages follow, the timeouts and the result codes. Reuse one handshake pattern across interfaces where possible.
- Commissioning: Test each interface handshake against the partner's real implementation. Mismatched assumptions, such as one side expecting a reset of the acknowledgment and the other not, surface only in integration.
- Documentation: Include a sequence diagram per handshake in the Interface definition and use the same step names in diagnostics. When interfaces are delivered by different suppliers, the handshake description is often the part most in need of clear wording.
Interface handshake vs. handshake
“Handshake” is the general principle. An interface handshake is the concrete, agreed instance of that principle for one interaction on one interface.