IBM brings new cloud application services to z/OS mainframes

IBM continues to evolve the services that will keep its z/OS mainframes at the heart of the growing enterprise cloud-application development.

Big Blue has rolled out two new services—IBM Z and Cloud Modernization Stack 2022, and Wazi as-a-Service—that will let customers more easily develop and test mainframe applications as-a-service in a public cloud environment.

IBM Z and Cloud Modernization Stack 2022.1.1 offers industry-standard tools to modernize z/OS applications on a pay-per-use basis. For example, the service includes support for features including:

• z/OS Connect, which utilizes a JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) interface to tie into and link with existing applications to make Z applications and data part of a hybrid cloud strategy.
• z/OS Cloud Broker, which integrates z/OS-based services and resources into Red Hat OpenShift, which can let organizations create, modernize, deploy, and manage applications, data, and infrastructure.
• Developer support for IBM Wazi, the cloud-native development environment. A Wazi Sandbox lets developers build and test z/OS application components in a virtualized, containerized, self-service, personal sandbox running on Red Hat OpenShift that runs on x86 hardware.
• Wazi Code that lets customers utilize their integrated development environment such as VS Code, Red Hat CodeReady Workspaces, or Eclipse, to edit, build, and debug applications. It includes interactive access to z/OS systems and integrates with modern source code management systems such as GitHub and GitLab.
• Wazi Analyze, a tool for discovering the relationships between the components of enterprise z/OS applications and determining the impact of changes on other system components.

The stack is the first set of capabilities offered through the recently announced IBM Z and Cloud Modernization Center which offers tools, training, resources, and ecosystem partners to help IBM Z clients accelerate the modernization of mainframe applications, data, and processes to work with hybrid-cloud architectures.

IBM calls the center a digital front door that includes collaboration with IBM Consulting and global services, and technology partners.

IBM said it plans to deliver IBM Wazi as-a-Service (Wazi aaS), tying together z/OS capabilities and IBM Cloud to provide on-demand access to z/OS for developing and testing applications.

“This provides z/OS developers with the agility of a public cloud development environment with the ability to use a variable amount of resources, and pay-as-you-go, matching burst and business demand,” IBM stated. “Consistent with the regulated workloads of many IBM Z clients today, IBM Wazi aaS will enable self-provisioning of a z/OS Virtual Server Instance on IBM Z in a logically isolated, highly secured private space running in IBM Cloud.”