How Migrating to COBOL 6 Improves Performance  

While Enterprise COBOL 6 was announced and released back in July 2017, it has been around for approximately 60 years now through the process of COBOL migration. The programming language that powers the global economy is constantly working on encountering migration programs to process and improve data at run time. 

While COBOL 4 highlighted document parsing validation, compiler message customization, and support for Java 5 and Java 6, companies are considering the move to 6. COBOL 6 offers new opportunities such as a new code generator, solutions, and much more to improve computing logistics in businesses everywhere. 

Why Migrate to COBOL 6?

Reduces CPU Utilization and Operational Costs 

CPU utilization refers to a computer’s usage of processing resources or the amount of work handled by a central processing unit. The technological architecture in COBOL 6 improves application performances with the latest advanced optimization technology, reducing CPU utilization and operational costs to power the CPU. COBOL 4.2 went EOS in April this year, meaning services were withdrawn. This makes the COBOL migration to the latest technology fundamental in performance.

Modernized Features 

COBOL migration to the latest technology is also designed to help applications in terms of modernizing features. Users of languages such as XML, JSON, and utf-8 can extend their application features to the web, cloud, and to mobile infrastructures. In turn, this modernizes and updates technological features for easier usage and application. 

Potential MSU Savings 

COBOL migration offers savings with MSU, a savings account that helps develop and establish financial security. For Enterprise COBOL compilers, there is the requirement of recompilation work as the Option ARCH must be changed during migration. The default value for COBOL compilers is a function of the operating system release. The updated value produced code for mainframe servers from older IBM Enterprises. It is now available as it has been long withdrawn from the marketplace. 

Risk Avoidance 

Clients cannot afford to be operating or filing through an unsupported compiler. COBOL migration to COBOL 6 ensures risk avoidance. With experience in working with several clients, COBOL compilers find risk avoidance to be the primary reason to migrate to COBOL 6. The new back-end components in COBOL 6 bring a new optimizer that updates the way machine code is generated. This is a major change whereas migrating to older enterprises of COBOL was difficult. 

What to Consider When Migrating 

There are two possible scenarios when migrating to COBOL 6: 

• Your program may experience, or update changes a COBOL 6 compiler can determine 
• A COBOL 6 compiler will only be able to determine possible program changes or updates during the run time due to data content that is handled differently in the latest versions of COBOL

Either way, clients can benefit all the same when planning for migration. 

How to Effectively Compile Several Programs 

It is important to ask how you can compile thousands of programs or possibly your entire COBOL portfolio. Challenges could arise if your impact assessment needs to be done across the board. Either way, challenges should be answered with automation. Most COBOL portfolios consist of hundreds or thousands of programs, even if your focus in COBOL migration is limited to mission-critical applications. 

How Automation Improves Performance

No matter how major automation efforts turn out, they should be based on the number of programs that are targeted during COBOL migration. While constructing or buying automation to assist in impact assessments seems like an overload of work on a small body of code, it promises little risk of errors in turn. This is one of the main goals and benefits of migrating to COBOL 6.

How Testing Improves Performance 

There is no need to develop a separate environment for testing when initiating the assessment phase in COBOL 6 migration. Compilers would note that it is possible to leverage programmed analysis in capturing several immigration challenges. Although, one significant issue that can be found and resolved in migrating to COBOL 6 is the presence of invalid data in numeric usage display data items within your business’ computing language. 

Learn More About COBOL Migration Assistance at Marble Computer  

According to IBM, if you are still on COBOL 4.2, you are encouraged to plan and start your migration to COBOL 6 as soon as possible. Here, at Marble Computer, we can assist in migration and find solutions to optimize your applications. Contact us today by calling (915) 845-0963 to learn more.