IBM Introduces Improved Analysis Tools For Hybrid Cloud Applications

The updates are expected to accelerate the adoption of DevOps tools and solutions in organizations.

(Stock photo.)

(Stock photo.)

IBM has announced that it will be launching two new and upgraded DevOps analytics capabilities today, which include the IBM Application Discovery and Delivery Intelligence (ADDI) V6.0 as well as the new Analyze capability in IBM Wazi Developer V1.2. 

DevOps helps developers and operation teams build, test, deploy and monitor applications more efficiently and effectively. They rely on an integrated set of automated solutions to increase accuracy, collaboration and speed throughout the planning, testing and monitoring stages.

These new updates are expected to integrate IBM Z into the hybrid cloud DevOps pipeline, allowing IBM Z users to leverage faster and improved analytics applications through DevOps technologies. According to the company, they will also be working with German-based software provider ITP Software System GmbH to develop more DevOps modernization tools for IBM Z Hybrid Cloud. ITP will be licensing IBM Z HyperCube technology for the duration of the partnership.

Those who use IBM Z can expect the version 6.0 update for the ADDI tool to offer more granular insights with the help of IBM Wazi Analyze’s new analytics tool. The latter functions are a subset of the ADDI, capable of analyzing code as developers make any changes. It can now also be deployed as a set of containers, allowing users to run the analytics application on other platforms besides the mainframe. This means even non-Z developers can use the system and learn mainframe computing. Assembler support for the ADDI has also been improved to optimize the analysis of multi-level dynamic assembler macro calls. IBM has also added a new set of application programming interfaces (APIs) that are responsible for feeding data to a continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipeline.

The application of DevOps’ new practices and tools helps developers produce projects faster without additional challenges by automating key steps and improving operational efficiency and standardization.

IBM Wazi Analyze interface. (Image courtesy of IBM)

IBM Wazi Analyze interface. (Image courtesy of IBM)

The licensing partnership with ITP is in line with IBM’s goals of helping organizations modernize their systems through the integration of DevOps and cloud computing. 

Armin Kramer, a software engineer at DATEV eG says, “with these new capabilities, our developers will gain deeper access to z/OS application analysis – a critical component to enhance productivity when maintaining and developing code in a hybrid cloud environment.”

IBM has been working over recent years to introduce IT companies to DevOps best practices to establish mainframes as a distributed computing platform. The objective is to lower the costs and complexities of mainframe ownership by leveraging containers, Kubernetes and microservices. This can be achieved by minimizing the need for specialists who manage mainframe application environments and automating certain applications. Instead of specialists, IT generalists can manage distributed computing environments that could potentially be more valuable in the future as DevOps continues to enter mainframe operations.

While these processes have generally benefited from the ease of automation over recent years, the proliferation of DevOps and hybrid cloud technology presents an opportunity for scaling up infrastructure to better manage applications and mainframes.