X-2E Modernize. What s Inside

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1 Automated Conversion of CA 2E (SYNON) Applications to Java using Fresche Solutions What s Inside A description of, the heart of the X-Analysis CA 2E Modernization Module. works directly from the Synon model to automatically convert your application to Java.

2 CA 2E (Synon) applications can easily be converted to Java or RPG Free using X-2E Modernize : The complete, automated solution for conversion to Java or RPG Free Since its introduction, CA 2E (Synon) has become the most successful 4GL tool on the IBM i platform. The CA 2E development environment combines a rich and precise model of designs and specifications with powerful code generation capabilities. Even with this powerful set of features, many companies now face real pressure to modernize their business applications beyond the scope and capability of what CA 2E can oer. The challenge is to move forward without discarding decades of investment in design, evolution and fine tuning stored in the CA 2E model. Fresche s is the solution Modernize for modernizing any CA 2E application. automatically re-factors and generates an MVC Web application using OO methods in Java or RPG Free (Flex & Silverlight UI soon to be added). Fresche s takes advantage of CA 2E application architecture to automatically convert applications. Since CA 2E forces users to organize code into screen designs, action diagrams, business logic and database components, uses this internal 2E model to extract design information in a structure that maps cleanly into a modern MVC/OO/RESTful architecture. Some Highlights: Creates MVC Design Model from recovered interactive program designs in CA 2E Model Screens/Functions Data Layer/Internal Routines Business logic/action Diagrams Generates MVC code from recovered CA 2E designs as RPGLE-Free, Java JSF/Angular JS, Hibernate, Spring, DAO Modernize DDL Database Web UI as: Angular JS JSF ASPx 5250/OA Re-Usable Modules as Free Format RPG & SQLLE Event Driven, Business Logic Modules as Free Format RPG Works over user-defined application areas or individual programs Compares Original and Recovered code Transforms RPG batch logic into Java or RPGLE-Free Analysis Data Model Diagrams Data Flows DDL/XML/UML Screen Designs & Data Mapping Screen Actions Business Rules Graphical Documentation & Impact Analysis Business Rules Analysis & Graphical Structure Charts Creates Hibernate configuration files and JPA package from recovered relational model Fully automates and integrates documentation with X-Analysis CA 2E Entities & Relationships Functions Internal Routines Action Diagrams Creates platform-independent UI/View- Controller meta-data (functions) from 2E Functions Builds Java data migration package from legacy data model Fresche Solutions:

3 Design Recovery: The basis for modernization Whatever the approach to modernization, design recovery is the first step. With this understanding, developers can quickly identify the business rules and reusable designs embedded in core business processes. They can also restructure code, remove dead code and create reusable components that can be enabled as services within a service-oriented architecture (SOA) or any modern application architecture. Design Recovery is very valuable for documentation and application support purposes, but the real benefits come when the recovered design can be used to Recovered Design Extracted Functions/UI Refactored Action Diagrams or Business Logic Data Model modernize or re-develop a system. Reusing existing designs programmatically can provide a dramatic productivity gain in rebuilding an application. Documentation X-Analysis Word/Open Oice/Excel Current Java RPG Free UML XML DDL Potential LANSA Oracle ADF Silverlight Why start from the CA 2E (Synon) Model? It is only possible to convert CA 2E (Synon) applications by working from the CA 2E model into the target architecture and code. Conversion processes that attempt to translate the 2E-generated RPG code will result in volumes of unnecessary, unrecognizable and unmaintainable code. In automated reengineering projects, the 2E information (and not the RPG) is parsed by to recover knowledge chunks and reassemble them into a new system. Several reasons why you should not attempt to directly convert the 2E-generated RPG code: You will be converting approximately 10 times more code The new code will not follow a modern architecture design No one will recognize the new code and it will be extremely diicult to maintain You are likely to have diiculty with scaling and performance Generating from the RPG is not a viable long term investment Fresche Solutions:

4 Modernization Process The X-2E modernization process includes two stages: Component Generation and Application Generation. COMPONENT GENERATION The Component Generation stage includes: 1. Database Modernization; 2. Business Logic Rebuild; 3. UI/Print Functions. Components are summarized at right, and described below. 1. Database Modernization The data model for an application as deduced by X-2E can be used to modernize the database and database access as well as provide valuable information for analysis and documentation. Once you have a modernized database, you gain a number of advantages: Database Modernization Business Logic Rebuild UI/Print Functions DDS to DDL Conversion Data Quality Analysis ORM Framework Gen-(Hibernate) OO VO layer with Web service wrapper Re-factor into event-driven model OO mapping Business rules database Business Logic Model generated as Java, RPG Free Web Service Layer Screen formats/layouts/fields/files/attributes Screen actions flow ORM mapped to UI Conditional field/ui/flow logic Openness/Standards compliance: Using industry-standard SQL means that many dierent tools and applications on multiple platforms can easily access and use your modernized database. Data Integrity: Journaling is available for SQL access just as it has always Portability: Because the database is defined in purely SQL terms rather than in been for file-based access. Constraints and referential integrity can be a proprietary file format, it becomes portable i.e., it is now viable to consider implemented directly at the database level where they are unavoidable moving the database to another platform. rather than at the program level. Database triggers allow code to be run Improved performance: IBM s data retrieval eorts have been concentrated on SQL before or after records are added, updated or deleted, providing an easy way access rather than file-based access for many years. of enforcing compliance, audits, validations and applying business rules. Ability to use modern Object Relational Mapping (ORM) software such as Hibernate Database modernization also uses the advanced design extraction directly for rapid application development in Java and other modern languages. from the CA 2E model, making use of long field names, constraint logic and Reduced dependency on System i-specific skills such as DDS, which may lead to cost all relevant database abstractions, either kept on IBM i or migrated onto savings and reduced risk. other DBMS systems. Fresche Solutions:

5 Modernization Process - Cont d. 2. Business Logic Rebuild View the business rule summary at a glance After recovering the Data Model, the next step is to extract the logic that gives the application its particular characteristics. The generic term for such logic is Business Rules. The challenge is to extract or harvest these rules from the code. Once harvested, these rules need to be narrated and indexed, thus providing critical information for any analyst, architect or developer charged with rebuilding an older application. The task of harvesting business rules manually is a highly skilled, labor-intensive, and costly exercise for any organization. accomplishes this task by automatically scanning the RPG and COBOL programs and the 2E model programmatically. It then separates out rule code from the body of the application and identifies, indexes, narrates, and stores business rule logic code into a structured, usable repository. In the final part of the process, it supplies appropriate textual narratives to describe these harvested rules. Once the rules are derived, they can be viewed in summary form, as shown above at right. The business rule repository can then be used programmatically to generate new code (migrated logic - see at right). At the same time, the built-in documentation, which cross references where-used objects and annotates capabilities, may be used by new developers as the necessary input for re-specification exercises, whether for new applications or for modifications to the current system. Generate new code from the business rule repository, or use the built-in documentation (including full cross-referencing and annotated capabilities) to create new specs. Fresche Solutions:

6 Modernization Process - Cont d. 3. UI/Print Functions The screens of a legacy application are a classic example where the design is useful in a modernization context, and the code is not. The sheer number of screens in a mature application presents a logistical problem in recreating them manually. lets you see what the original screen looked like without having to run the application, which is a great time saver for people not involved with the original application. View individual screens without running the application View the code at any time Design new screens in a GUI designer Fresche Solutions:

7 Modernization Process - Cont d. 3. UI/Print Functions - Cont d. Screen designs of Synon applications are not just about look and feel; there are attributes and embedded logic that are relevant no matter what technology is used to implement them in a modernized system. Among these attributes are: Formats/Layouts - Some screens may benefit from amalgamation or redesign, but table edits and non-transaction type screens will largely remain the same, even if not identical in layout. Actions - Whether from sub-file options, command keys, or default enter actions, these often represent an important part of the usefulness of an application design. The mechanisms used to oer or invoke these calls may change, but where they go logically and what parameters they pass will largely remain consistent. Rebuilding the UI extracts User Interface design information as described above and stores it as metadata in the X-2E repository. This is used as reference documentation for rebuilding UIs manually or for programmatically regenerating new View and Controller artifacts in the new technology. X-Analysis currently generates a JSF / Facelets UI version or a newer AngularJS UI with RESTful Web Services. The design metadata can also be used to generate new interfaces. Fields/Files/Attributes - What fields are on what screens, and where the data comes from is a requirement in any system development. Attributes of a field can also help determine what type of controls might be used in a modern UI. For example, a Boolean type might be implemented with a check box, a date with a date prompt. Again, these are simple enough to edit in modern IDEs, but the volume associated with any large application modernization can make this work prohibitive. Data Model Mapping - Validations and prompting mechanisms that ensure referential integrity in Synon applications can also be vital to extract. This is both to implement referential integrity and to provide design information for building modern prompt or selection controls such as drop-downs or lists. Why AngularJS? The oldest and most mature of all JS MVC frameworks, AngularJS is managed by Google and is best suited for thick client business Web applications. It is built around best design principles and supports scalability, maintainability and modularization. Fresche Solutions: Summary screen laid out in grid pattern

8 Modernization Process - Cont d. APPLICATION GENERATION The modernized Web application based on MVC architecture can be generated after all the components are available. generates the sort of application that would have been written by hand by a professional application architect and team of coders without losing the essence of the original design or functional value. This is all done automatically into the IDEs of the language chosen by the user during generation. The new application is easier to enhance and maintain, and as such naturally attracts a wider, more-readily available resource pool for future development and maintenance. Rebuilding the UI - Cont d. helps you generate screens in the format that fits your workflow. 2E Model Function Action Diagrams Data Model X-2E Repository Extracted Functions Refactored Action Diagrams Explicit Data Model View Controller Extracted Business Logic Class ORM Generic Data Base I/O Classes Modern Database Fresche Solutions: Edit pop-up window

9 Modern and Maintainable Code Base Because converts code by first converting the 2E model to RPG in an MVC/OO/RESTful pattern, this intermediate code can also be viewed and compared to aid in understanding how the conversion took place. The Java code is then generated from the intermediate code as MVC JEE JSF / AngularJS, Spring/Hibernate application code base using modern coding standards for optimum maintainability. Characteristics of the converted code MVC design pattern Model-View-Controller, as in a Model layer of components that contains business logic, a View layer that contains the outward presentation, and a Controller layer that handles events in the other layers and directs process flow. lets you easily compare RPG and converted code side-by-side Object Orientation organization of code into objects (classes), and those classes containing functions. The functions are either callable from other classes, or protected so they can only be called from within their own class. RESTful interaction the most important point about REST is that server components have no inherent knowledge of session state. Session information that needs to be preserved between work flow activities (screens) is preserved and represented from client-side memory, or via session management functions within the application server software. Fresche Solutions:

10 At A Glance... Fresche Solutions: X-2E Modernize The complete, automated solution for conversion to Java or RPG Free. Summary of Functionality California: 9245 Laguna Springs Drive, Suite 200 Elk Grove, CA, Massachusetts: 124 Grove St., Franklin, MA 02038, USA Canada/Corporate Oice: 995 Wellington, Suite 200 Montreal, CAN, H3C 1V3 British Columbia: th St. Sidney, BC CAN, V8L 2Y7 India: Atrauli, Gaurabagh, P.O. Gudumba, Kursi Road, Lucknow , UP, INDIA Australia: 9/622 Ferntree Gully Road Wheelers Hill VIC 3150, Australia Creates MVC Design Model from recovered interactive program designs in CA 2E Model Screens/Functions Data Layer/Internal Routines Compares Original and Recovered code Transforms RPG batch logic into Java or RPGLE-Free Creates Hibernate configuration files and JPA package from recovered relational model Business logic/action Diagrams Fully automates and integrates documentation with X-Analysis Generates MVC code from recovered CA 2E designs as RPGLE-Free, Java JSF/AngularJS, Hibernate, Spring, DAO Creates Platform independent UI/View-Controller meta-data (functions) from 2E Functions Works over user defined application areas or individual programs Builds Java data migration package from legacy data model Fresche Solutions:

11 About Fresche Solutions As a leading expert in IBM i management and modernization, Fresche Solutions helps enterprise organizations transform their business to improve financial performance, increase market competitiveness, remove risk and add business value. Our team of experts has successfully completed hundreds of transformation projects within the most complex enterprise environments, helping organizations future-proof their business by modernizing their business processes, technologies, infrastructure, and methodologies. Committed to 100 percent customer satisfaction, Fresche s services and solutions span the complete IBM i modernization spectrum from concept to maintenance, and include Discovery Services, Modernization Solutions, and Application Management Services & Transformation. For more information about our company, visit us on the Web at X-Analysis Professional is the foundation of the full X-Analysis toolset, a suite of productivity tools for your IBM i applications. Following is a brief description of the other modules in the suite: X-Analysis Professional: The foundation tool, with all of the basic functionality. CA 2E Analysis: Everything required to analyze and document CA 2E applications. Application Process Mapping: Business rule and relational data model extraction and documentation of application processes and flows. Application Modernization: RPG, COBOL and CA 2E (Synon) automatically converted to Java. Audit, Quality and Change Management: Auditing of core application functionality - including design, quality and complexity - to identify and change problematic areas in the application. Database Modernization: Automated conversion of DDS to DDL, including creation of constraints, long field names and views. Data and Test Management: Analysis of data quality; data archiving, data subsetting and data masking. Test data automation and management. Open Systems Analysis: Cross-referencing and documentation of Java, C#, PHP, VB/VB.NET and PowerBuilder. How to get on board: X-Analysis products are available as a complete package or as individual modules. At Fresche Solutions, we work closely with you to assess your needs and recommend the best solutions. To get started, contact us using the information below: Fresche Solutions: info@freschesolutions.com (US, Can) (Belgium, France Germany, UK) CA-2E-modernization-EN