Update a Mainframe as a Modern Platform

When responding to those who say the mainframe is outdated  my knee-jerk response is to cite Linux on the mainframe. Sometimes I throw in the use of containers and even languages like Python or Node.js, but even these sound dated. 

SiliconANGLE has a much better answer by analyst Jason Bloomberg in his piece; How the mainframe became a surprising platform for innovation. What Bloomberg describes in the piece is how even more recent advances from a new generation of ISVs are updating the mainframe in new ways and with new capabilities.

Remember  the BUNCH, a collection of mainframe rivals, fell apart in the 1970s, IBM has had to carry the burden of mainframe innovation pretty much on its own with only occasional help from a few ISVs. The BUNCH, an acronym from the five surviving rivals at that time– Burroughs, UNIVAC, NCR, Control Data Corporation (CDC), and Honeywell–gradually gave up the chase. That a few have survived in some form this day is itselfa  marvel. A decade earlier, RCA and General Electric gave it a run. Along with the BUNCH they were referred collectively as the Seven Dwarfs.

So how does Bloomberg and  SiliconANGLE come off referring to the 50+year old mainframe as a modern platform for innovation? 

It actually starts with IBM and the cloud.  To open the door to innovation, “Big Blue has been rationalizing and lowering mainframe pricing over the last few years, bringing the platform into cost alignment with cloud alternatives”, Bloomberg writes.

But even more was needed. IBM began rolling out Wazi Developer for Red Hat CodeReady Workspaces, a cloud-native development experience for its venerable z/OS mainframe operating system. Wazi integrates into any enterprise-wide standard DevOps pipeline, giving developers a consistent and familiar development experience for IBM z/OS. “Wazi provides COBOL developers with exactly the same experience as Java or Node.js developers,” said Rosalind Radcliffe, chief architect for DevOps for z Systems. 

Bloomberg at SiliconAngle is digging deeper than just the familiar mainframe ISVs. He’s introducing new players with, surprise, new ideas.

Let’s not immediately reject familiar Z ISVs.  BMC Software Inc,which recently acquired Compuware, another mainframe ISV, has bolstered the  Z innovation story with DevOps-centricity across its customer base. “The mainframe is no longer behind the curtain. It has to be mainstream,” says April Hickel, vice president for Intelligent Z Optimization and Transformation at BMC. “The goal is to have the same DevOps pipeline for mainframe as the rest of development.”

Bloomberg is looking beyond familiar mainframe ISVs. For instance: GT Software addresses mainframe integration challenges by offering a secure abstraction layer between modern cloud applications and the mainframe. Furthermore, GT enables Z shops to generate APIs via a no-code, drag-and-drop interface to foster innovation. 

Another, Precisely Holdings, covered by DancingDinosaur last year, has a history of improving sorting algorithms on the mainframe.  Most recently it entered discussions with IBM to optimize its algorithms where the ‘bottlenecks in sorting occurred and how hardware can be used to accelerate that. 

 Model9 Ltd, another startup,  migrates data off the mainframe to either cloud or on-premises storage. The migrated data are in an encrypted, native binary format. Once at their destination, Model9 transforms the data as necessary for analytics or backup purposes.

This allows Model9 to replace tape or virtual tape for backup and restore, since it can return  native binaries to the mainframe if necessary. However, Bloomberg notes, supporting various analytical use cases off the mainframe is Model9’s primary purpose.

Another newcomer, VirtualZ Computing, redirects requests for mainframe applications to a single instance of that application in order to reduce licensing costs. But lowering costs is only part of the VirtualZ value proposition. “VirtualZ leaves data where it is,” said Vince Re, co-founder and chief technology officer of VirtualZ Computing. “That frees a customer to virtualize the application, letting it run wherever makes the most sense.

Will these revitalize the mainframe? It’s a start and more will surely follow their success. The Z is here to stay.

DancingDinosaur is Alan Radding, a veteran information technology analyst, writer, and ghost-writer. Follow DancingDinosaur on Twitter, @mainframeblog. See more of his work at technologywriter.com.