A White Paper
How to Execute AS 400
Applications in the
Cloud
A Methodology for AS/400 Cloud
Computing
This paper is a discussion of how to
execute AS 400 applications in the
Cloud. The approach behind this paper
is to explain how to execute AS/400
DB2 400 applications in a Cloud
environment without having to rewrite
the code or buy expensive IBM
upgrades to existing hardware.
OVERVIEW
Software companies and end users
developed on the IBM AS 400 platform
because it offered a number of
advantages – database capabilities at
the machine level, stability, wide
acceptance and excellent support from
IBM. Today, we see a major push by
end-users and ISV’s to extend
applications by providing Cloud access.
Rewriting business critical applications
in order to achieve Cloud-based
execution of applications is neither
practical nor justifiable. An approach is
needed which enables applications to
adapt to rapid business and technology
changes. Many companies wish to
deploy their AS 400 applications to the
Cloud. Users wish to access their
applications from tablets or smart
phones and don’t wish to have local
software on their devices. This access
most be provided using a sophisticated
Graphical User Interface (GUI) that is
Last Update: April 2011
intuitive and not menu-driven. This
paper will explain how these objectives
can be achieved.
This white paper will discuss how to
deploy AS 400 RPG or COBOL
applications to the Cloud. Additionally,
these newly cloud-enabled applications
will have a similar look to Apple iPad
applications or Microsoft Outlook-based
applications. The plan outlined here will
not require programming or code
changes.
AS 400 applications whether they are
written in RPG or COBOL use a data
stream named 5250. In this paper we
outline how to use toolsets from Infinite,
namely Infinite Cloud to quickly deploy
AS 400 host-based applications to the
cloud and to provide very fast access
via tablets (iPad) or smartphones
(iPhone). When these applications are
deployed to the Cloud from their AS 400
hosts they will automatically become
graphical via several templates that will
provide an iPad or Outlook look and feel
to them.
The code can reside on the AS 400 as it
did before and requires no additional
hardware or a version upgrade (IE: i OS
version 5 to i OS version 6). Infinite
Cloud is designed to take existing AS
400 applications and deploy them to the
Cloud graphically without having to
change hardware or make code
changes at all.
The Infinite cloud family is Eclipsebased and can be accessed from .NET,
Java, Android, or Apple-based devices.
It is designed to provide high throughput with platform flexibility.
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In order to accomplish the goals
discussed earlier in this paper, the AS
400 code that is to be Cloud deployed
can exist as it does today on its existing
IBM AS/400, iSeries, System i or simply
i. It can also be deployed using
migration tools from Infinite.
To illustrate what infinite Cloud can do
we will look at how infinite Cloud deals
with deploying an AS/400 application to
execute via the Cloud.
Infinite has developed a family of
products named Infinite Cloud. As part
of this product family, there are several
products that provide for the deployment
of AS/400 applications to the Cloud,
make them graphical, and integrate
them with other applications like SAP,
Siebel or Outlook This is a 64-bit
environment.
The Challenge
This approach uses what you already
have; proven AS 400 code and
resources, and allows you to execute
functionally rich applications to the
cloud, graphically.
Using infinite Cloud end-users can
combine all the ‘competitive edge’
benefits of the Cloud with the power and
stability of their RPG or COBOL
applications. Since the underlying code
is the original, the skills required to
maintain the core logic remain the
same. In fact, this process maintains
source code integrity and simply allows
it to be distributed via the Cloud
For AS/400 ISV’s infinite i provides a
way to access thousands of new sales
prospects, without taking years to
rewrite applications. ISV’s can maintain
the same source code and continue
development on the IBM i OS (if they
desire) and can deploy those programs
via the Cloud as a service or can
provide private cloud access to their
existing clients on their hardware.
Last Update: April 2011
Presented with the challenge of
deploying an AS/400 application to the
Cloud, the problem that first comes to
mind is that of the proprietary nature of
the data stream; how to find a way of
deploying AS 400 screens in 5250 to
ASCII devices without changing the
protocol. Of course, there are terminal
emulation products, but they are slow,
don’t provide an adequate GUI and can’t
integrate with other applications. The
second matter that comes up is how to
create a 21st century look and feel for
green screen applications.
Green
screen applications are sequential,
menu-driven and text based.
The
standard AS/400 screen display green
characters against a black background.
The users must enter menu commands
through a series of screens in order to
utilize the applications.
Today, Cloud-based applications using
a Windows or IPAD UI see a graphical
and very intuitive interface that will take
users wherever they wish to go in the
system without having to follow a
proscribed menu script.
Previous
iterations of GUI products for AS/400
applications have largely ignored the
menu driven nature of these screens.
They made them a different color and
allowed certain fields to use mouse
clicks instead of keyboard entries and
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they probably deployed them via
browser. In the 21st century, that just
isn’t enough.
Infinite
Cloud
deploys
AS/400
applications to
industry standard
middleware like JBoss, WebSphere or
WebLogic and they are then fully
accessible via browser.
It then uses
standardized templates to display
graphical screens that don’t require
customization
(but can
still be
customized) and automatically provide a
more intuitive workflow by recognizing
menus and streamlining them.
In this paper we examine the significant
changes to green screen non-cloud
applicatons:
Cloud Deployment
Middle Tier integration
Graphical User Interface
And other service functions, to
see how infinite Cloud enhances
standard
AS/400
screen
architecture.
We will then look at the process
by which an AS/400 application is
deployed to the Cloud.
1. Cloud Deployment
Infinite Cloud is developed on a
communication layer that deploys
the AS/400 data stream (5250) to an
asynchronous ASCII stream and
then launches the stream using open
source middleware like Red Hat’s
JBoss or proprietary middleware like
Oracle Fusion or IBM WebSphere.
The
otherwise
host-based
applications are now Cloud launched
Last Update: April 2011
and browser accessible. There are
many programs that provide single
threaded access to host-based
applications but they are generally
slow and expensive. Infinite Cloud is
64-bit, multi threaded and very fast.
Infinite Cloud is easy to deploy and
provides lightning fast browser
access to AS/400 applications. It
can be used in green screen for
access only or with GUI tools that
are built into the product.
2. Middle Tier Integration
Infinite Cloud deploys and launches
from open source middleware like
Red Hat JBoss. Since it is written in
Eclipse and launches on JBoss it
can easily plug in to other Eclipsebased or JBoss based applications
or modules. It can also plug into
such industry standards as SAP Net
Weaver, IBM WebSphere or nearly
any other Cloud-based application or
service.
This means that interfaces and
integration don’t require writing code.
Merely integrating an existing plug in
can provide real time access to third
party services or applications. This
opens AS/400 applications to a world
of accessible information without
having to write new interfaces or
creating new API’s.
3. Graphical User Interface
AS/400 GUI products have usually
meant difficult and expensive
implementations to create screens
that were slow, buggy and not so
nice to look at. They also generally
followed
the
old
menu-driven
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workflow of the underlying green
screens. Infinite Cloud provides very
fast Microsoft or Apple-like screens
that don’t require a lot of
customization and can automatically
change menu driven screens into
cloud-based intuitive workflow. The
graphical looks of the existing green
screens are produced by a very
sophisticated dynamic read of the
AS/400 data stream. A series of outof-the-box templates read and
deploy screens very quickly.
The new screens are designed to
incorporate elements from MS
Outlook and Google. And appear
Last Update: April 2011
like native Cloud-based screens that
are native browser developed.
Conclusion
AS/400 screens can now be easily
and inexpensively deployed in the
Cloud like applications that are
natively browser-based. They can
be graphical and can be integrated
with other cloud-based systems
without coding.
This capability
st
provides 21 century access and
deployment for AS/400 applications,
but it also makes them more
attractive and the workflow more
functional.
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