TREETIP: Integrate Mainframe Data Sources In Your Big Data Initiatives

tcVISION supports a vast array of integration scenarios throughout the enterprise, providing easy and fast data migration for mainframe application modernization projects and enabling bi-directional data replication between mainframe, Linux, Unix and Windows platforms. This innovative technology offers comprehensive abilities to identify and capture changes occurring in mainframe and relational databases, then publish the required information to an impressive variety of targets, both on-premise and Cloud-based.

Analysts have observed that perhaps 80 percent of the world’s corporate data still resides on mainframes. So it’s no surprise that Bloor Research (http://www.bloorresearch.com/research/spotlight/big-data-and-the-mainframe/), notes that “it is necessary today to place the mainframe as a ‘first-class player’ in any enterprise Big Data strategy.”

In February 2017 we highlighted tcVISION’s support for replication to the leading NoSQL database MongoDB. MongoDB continues to increase in popularity as a back end for operational applications with real-time requirements.

tcVISION also supports analytics and “mainframe offload” Big Data use cases that generally leverage Hadoop HDFS and/or streaming data transport. With tcVISION, data from a wide variety of IBM mainframe data source can be quickly and easily replicated to Big Data targets, requiring minimal mainframe know-how and having minimal impact on the mainframe.

Boost the return on investment for your Big Data initiatives using tcVISION!

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Find out more about tcVISION — Enterprise ETL and Real-Time Data Replication Through Change Data Capture

tcVISION provides easy and fast data migration for mainframe application modernization projects and enables bi-directional data replication between mainframe, Linux, Unix and Windows platforms.

tcVISION acquires data in bulk or via change data capture methods, including in real time, from virtually any IBM mainframe data source (Software AG Adabas, IBM DB2, IBM VSAM, IBM IMS/DB, CA IDMS, CA Datacom, even sequential files), and transform and deliver to virtually any target. In addition, the same product can extract and replicate data from a variety of non-mainframe sources, including Adabas LUW, Oracle Database, Microsoft SQL Server, IBM DB2 LUW and DB2 BLU, IBM Informix, and PostgreSQL.

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Visit the Treehouse Software website for more information on tcVISION, or contact us to discuss your needs.

Modern Approach to Migration of Disparate Enterprise Data

by Joseph Brady, Marketing and Documentation Manager for Treehouse Software

I came across an article recently in the Data Migration Pro Journal, “Is it R.I.P for the Big-Bang Data Migration?” Given this site’s deep dive into data migration matters, I was intrigued with not only the title, but its resounding message being so closely connected to what Treehouse Software has been preaching for years: The traditional strategy of parallel migration between the host and the target may be failsafe (you can always go back to the original system) but with the vast amounts of data that are usually involved and myriad complications that can potentially delay or completely disrupt the operation, the endeavor usually risks a failed migration project.

Since the mid-1990s, Treehouse has dominated the ADABAS-to-RDBMS data migration and integration market, with its proven and powerful ETL, CDC, and real-time replication solutions. More recently, the addition of expanded capabilities enables migration and integration of virtually any mainframe database or data source. In short, we can connect your enterprise—from anything to anything.

The combined power of our technology resources and know-how reduces cost and mitigates risk in mainframe IT project initiatives, where data migration and integration complexity is often underestimated, yet critical to success.

Efficient, standards-based, and automated approaches such as those provided by Treehouse’s products can be implemented in a fraction of the time of, and much more cost-effectively and reliably than, manual efforts. Treehouse Software’s data migration, replication and integration solutions are intended for customers needing to access, integrate, replicate, and migrate data from Software AG’s ADABAS and other mainframe data sources. Such data sources often require migration or replication to relational database systems such as Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, IBM’s DB2, Teradata, and Sybase.

To extend its reach to mainframe data sources such as VSAM, IMS, CA-IDMS, CA-Datacom, DL/I, DB2, and even sequential files, Treehouse teams with B.O.S. Software Service und Vertrieb GmbH of Haar, Germany, to distribute and support B.O.S.’s tcVISION and tcACCESS, mainframe data replication and data access products. These offerings provide the ability to deliver anywhere-to-anywhere data replication and integration, as well as direct SQL-based access to non-relational mainframe data structures.

tcACCESS is a comprehensive software solution that enables two-way integration between IBM mainframe systems and client/server, Web and SOA technologies–without the need for mainframe knowledge or programming effort. tcACCESS is a proven platform that facilitates SQL-based integration of mainframe data sources and programs into open-systems and Windows applications using industry standards such as SQL, ODBC, JDBC, and .NET. SQL queries that access mainframe data can be easily created using drag and drop techniques—no programming required. The results of queries can be immediately presented and viewed (i.e., in Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, etc.). Direct ODBC or JDBC access to mainframe data from any client/server or Web application can be easily implemented; it is necessary only to assign the tcACCESS driver to the application.

The tcVISION solution focuses on CDC when transferring information between mainframe data sources and Windows or open-systems databases and applications. Through an innovative technology, changes occurring in any mainframe application data are tracked and captured, and then published to a variety of RDBMSs and other targets. tcVISION’s capture facilities detect changes in mainframe data sources without programming effort, and reduce the amount of data that must be transferred between systems to an absolute minimum. tcVISION guarantees transparent, efficient and auditable data transfer between sources and targets, and provides powerful routines to perform efficient, reliable bulk transfers of data with great success.

Treehouse can help your organization with tools and expertise for the riskiest and most-often overlooked parts of mainframe modernization and integration projects—the data migration and integration. Leveraging our products and services will eliminate reliance on your programming staff to write and maintain data extracts and middleware and enable deployment of powerful, robust and secure data migration and replication implementations.

Read our case studies and let us know how we can help you make your next migration project a sure-fire success.

A Data Replication Solution that Hits theTarget (and Source)

by Chris Rudolph, Senior Technical Representative for Treehouse Software and Joseph Brady, Marketing and Documentation Manager for Treehouse Software

Today’s IT organization is dealing with any number of challenges, including heterogeneous environments, legacy applications, high-availability information systems, data silos, increasing data volumes, and escalating costs. These factors make it imperative that IT departments find cost-effective solutions for enterprise-wide data management, preferably using intelligent data integration and efficient data synchronization.

Data exchange in a heterogeneous IT infrastructure means harmonization of different data formats and data models for data exchange solutions. Very often, this data exchange is a complex and tedious task that represents a major cost factor. Data exchange is also time-sensitive and critical, hence reliability and auditability of all data movements is important.

Since the mid-1990s, Treehouse Software has dominated the ADABAS-to-RDBMS data migration and integration market, with its proven and powerful ETL, CDC, and real-time replication solutions. The addition of two mainframe integration products: tcACCESS and tcVISION, enable the migration of virtually any mainframe database or data source in a cost-effective manner.

Enterprise data integration with tcACCESS provides a powerful integration platform (mainframe software, workstation software, middleware) for IBM mainframes, enabling transparent integration of mainframe data sources and programs into open-systems applications using industry standards like SQL, ODBC, JDBC, and .NET. A modular software solution, tcACCESS, comprises a base system that can either be implemented as a CICS transaction or as a VTAM application, and provides its own communication modules. The heart of the system is the tcACCESS SQL Engine, which allows access to mainframe data sources using SQL statements, and features:

• Bi-directional data-exchange across heterogeneous systems
• Direct data access across heterogeneous systems
• Data transformation for data analysis and exchange
• Relational access to legacy data and applications
• Data federation – heterogeneous data views
• Integration of mainframe files and DBMS structures
• Data federation between mainframe and Windows/Open Systems data

CDC Replication with tcVISION

tcVISION supports data exchange between mainframe-based systems like IMS/DB and DB2, between mainframe and open-systems servers like DB2 and Oracle, as well as within an open-systems environment (e.g., DB2 LUW to SQL Server or Oracle).

tcVISION’s unmatched array of CDC methods includes “Loopback Suppression” for bi-directional updates, ensuring data integrity and replication efficiency between the data sources and targets so that changes received from a source system and applied to the target are not unintentionally propagated back.

The Problems:

• Different data formats
• Different data models
• Large data volumes
• Limited batch window
• Extract programs are costly to run in a chargeback environment
• Requirement for up-to-date information

The Solution:

Moving/replicating data…

• as much as needed
• as little as possible
• as transparent as possible
• as flexible as possible
• as secure as possible
• using as little mainframe CPU as possible with tcVISION

tcVISION is a flexible data replication product that focuses on changed data from virtually any mainframe data source and transfers information between mainframe and workstations or open systems–in bulk, either through batch Changed Data Capture (CDC) or in real time. Mainframe data exchange processes are considerably simplified using tcVISION. The structure of the existing mainframe data is analyzed by special processors, and the data mapping information is presented in a user-friendly and transparent format – even for users with no mainframe knowledge–and captured in a metadata repository.

tcVISION’s unique “stage processing” architecture allows for most (and in some cases ALL) of the ETL  and CDC processing to be performed on a Windows, UNIX, or Linux platform. This is an especially attractive feature for  sites that are already at 100% utilization of their mainframe CPU, or have a chargeback system in place.

tcVISION’s Windows-based Control Board provides an easy-to-use facility to configure and administer the data flow. tcVISION provides a variety of interfaces to allow seamless integration with ETL or EAI solutions.

Case in Point: Mainframe Data Synchronization at Blum

Blum manufactures high-quality fittings systems for kitchens and home furnishings with production plants in Austria, Poland, Brazil and the USA.  Their myriad replication challenges included continuous and bi-directional data replication between headquarters and subsidiaries, uni-directional replications between the mainframe and the Oracle Data Warehouse.

The Problem:

• Phase-in of new applications required parallel processing

The Solution:

• Bidirectional, real-time synchronization of DB2 and DL/I databases across LPARs using tcVISION DBMS Extension
• Results:
• Applications can coexist indefinitely
• Projects gain needed flexibility
• Record types easily handled

To learn more about tcACCESS and tcVISION or read additional Case Studies here.