Boosting Mainframe DevOps Using Rational D&T
Key Points
- Mainframes offer unmatched scalability, security, and reliability for modern social, mobile, and analytics workloads, but companies now need faster software delivery through DevOps practices.
- System z development teams often face impediments such as cost concerns for automated testing, limited mainframe capacity, and resource contention when multiple teams share a single environment.
- IBM Rational Development & Test (RD&T) emulates z/OS on x86 hardware, providing a full‑function, cost‑effective sandbox that removes the need for physical mainframe hardware during development and testing.
- The emulation platform enables horizontal scaling, quicker prototyping, middleware verification, and employee training, leading to higher‑quality applications and reduced time‑to‑market.
- Fiducia IT AG’s new training program using RD&T boosted its pool of mainframe developers, with 40 % of trainees opting for mainframe development, demonstrating the tool’s impact on skill building and talent acquisition.
Full Transcript
# Boosting Mainframe DevOps Using Rational D&T **Source:** [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG0yy1Ymf6M](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG0yy1Ymf6M) **Duration:** 00:03:11 ## Summary - Mainframes offer unmatched scalability, security, and reliability for modern social, mobile, and analytics workloads, but companies now need faster software delivery through DevOps practices. - System z development teams often face impediments such as cost concerns for automated testing, limited mainframe capacity, and resource contention when multiple teams share a single environment. - IBM Rational Development & Test (RD&T) emulates z/OS on x86 hardware, providing a full‑function, cost‑effective sandbox that removes the need for physical mainframe hardware during development and testing. - The emulation platform enables horizontal scaling, quicker prototyping, middleware verification, and employee training, leading to higher‑quality applications and reduced time‑to‑market. - Fiducia IT AG’s new training program using RD&T boosted its pool of mainframe developers, with 40 % of trainees opting for mainframe development, demonstrating the tool’s impact on skill building and talent acquisition. ## Sections - [00:00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG0yy1Ymf6M&t=0s) **Mainframe DevOps with System z Emulation** - The passage explains that Rational Development and Test emulation lets development teams run z/OS software on x86 hardware, eliminating cost, capacity, and resource‑contention hurdles and enabling rapid, continuous development and testing for modern mainframe workloads. ## Full Transcript
with exceptional scalability
availability security and reliability
the mainframe is the perfect platform
for running the modern social mobile and
data analytics workloads that present
significant business opportunities for
companies worldwide however gaining
competitive advantage in these domains
also brings an exceptional need for
speed and software development this Need
for Speed coupled with an
ever-increasing population of discerning
end-users is driving development teams
to look to DevOps practices such as
continuous development and testing to
provide a rapid software delivery
feedback loop availability of sufficient
environments for development and test
activities is essential for achieving
this rapid feedback loop however for
System z development teams there are
typical impediments for example maybe
there is concern that additional costs
will be incurred if automated tests are
run for every development change or the
mainframe may be running at or near
capacity and development takes a
backseat to production workload or maybe
multiple teams have to share one elke
are often sequentially and projects
experienced delays and errors due to
resource contention rational development
and test environment for System z or Rd
and T can liberate development teams
from these and other typical constraints
Rd and T is System z emulation software
that enables actual z/os software to run
on x86 compatible hardware so that no
system z Hardware is needed for the
initial development and test activities
our DT comes with z/os kicks IMS db2
compilers and other z/os software so it
is functionally comparable to the
mainframe
this right size development sandbox can
eliminate typical bottlenecks by
enabling flexible horizontal scaling of
development and test activities this can
result in higher quality applications
quicker skill building and quicker
time to market other typical uses
include the investigation and
verification of new middleware software
for example version 2 version upgrades
prototyping new application
architectures demonstration of
application function and internal
employee education according to the
assistant to the CIO at fiducia
IT AG with its new host just do a
training program using the rational
software fiducia has dramatically
increased the pool of available
mainframe developers trainees can choose
which discipline they want to pursue
including development system management
etc but since we started the new
training program on the rational
application 40% of our trainees have
chosen to pursue mainframe development
so rapidly develop and test systems the
applications anytime anywhere by using
Rd & T to increase your development and
test availability and capacity
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