# Getting started

The Eclipse BPEL Designer is based on WS-BPEL 2.0, and provides a way to create, edit, validate and deploy BPEL files to BPEL runtime platforms.

WS-BPEL 2.0 stands for Web Service Business Process Execution Language. Like EAI, BPEL is an XML-based language, but BPEL is more specific and targeted. BPEL is used by developers to join sometimes disparate functions into an integrated process, resulting in a seamless use of the Internet to conduct business transactions ranging from simple money exchanges to complex calculations and asset reallocation.

The table below lists the main features of the Eclipse BPEL Designer:

Feature | Benefit
--- | ---
WS-BPEL 2.0 support | The Eclipse BPEL project supports the most recent WS-BPEL 2.0 specifications.
Close integration with BPEL runtime platforms | For the moment, only Apache ODE and JBoss runtime platforms are supported. There are two methods to deploy BPEL files to JBoss BPEL runtime. The user can deploy a BPEL project as a whole and can deploy BPEL files in a JBoss ESB project to the JBoss BPEL runtime.
BPEL file editor | The editor can be used separately to edit a BPEL file.
BPEL file validator | The validator displays a list of BPEL file errors.