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Automated Migration From Cobol To Java On Linux

Posted by timothy on from the so-kids-go-ahead-and-code-in-cobol dept.

Didier DURAND writes "Just published an article about our 100% automated migration from IBM mainframe with Cobol to Linux Java: we could convert of our own application (4 million lines of code) through the tools that we developed. Those tools are open-sourced under GPL for other companies to benefit from them. We save 3 millions euros / year after this migration!"

4 of 195 comments (clear)

  1. Re:"Automated" by nicolas.kassis · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Converting something that was unmaintainable due to lack of proper skils to something totally unmaintainable due to lack of readability is not a good trade off.

  2. Re:"Automated" by hamburgler007 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The right tool for the right job. Java is a perfectly acceptable programming language in many circumstances. The key is understanding what it is capable of and what its limitations are.

  3. Per slide 25 by Seakip18 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    All it appears to be doing is mapping COBOL line of code to Java Line of code, per Slide 25.

    This is more about being able to find someone who can read and write java. The code remains procedural, the COBOL programmers do the same stuff, just in Java now.

    Here's an example of the code that was spit out:

    sql("SELECT * FROM RS0403 WHERE CDPROJ=#1").into(vrs0403a.dvrs0403a).param(1, tuazone.tua_I_Cdproj)

    Not to dissuade, but in someways, they avoided doing a rewrite at all cost.

    Great if you want to get off legacy systems, but it's not going to magically improve your code base. GIGO rules still apply.

    --
    import system.cool.Sig;
  4. Re:I sense a modest disturbance in the job market. by realeyes · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Actually, a few hundred cobol coders announced their retirement, and a few dozen PHBs cried out in terror.

    My question is, "Do you also convert the CICS calls embedded in the code (and possibly 3270 terminal commands?!?) or is there a Java library to interface with CICS?" My experience with converters is that they follow the 90-10 rule, where they do great with 90% of the code, but that's the easiest, and could almost be done with global Find/Replace. The remaining 10% is why the conversion wasn't already done.

    Later . . . Jim