Modernizing the DevOps pipeline w/ zAdviser Analytics, ISPW Git Integration & Advance Cross-platform CI/CD!

Compuware continues its quarterly delivery of innovative enhancements, products and solutions aimed at easing the task of efficiently leveraging and extending mainframe capabilities in today’s data centers. This time at center stage is the debut of Compuware zAdviser Analytics, utilization of enhanced machine learning in zAdviser, expanded Git integration for Compuware ISPW, and the availability of fully customizable post-implementation ISPW support services. 

In 1922, John Wanamaker, CEO of the very successful Wanamaker retail chain, lamented “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don't know which half”.  A problem that until fairly recently applied to virtually every budgeted enterprise operating department, including IT and data services.

Today, enterprise digitization is leveraging existing and emerging technologies combined with automated data analytics to void that lament. We have Compuware’s continuing stream of product integrations, new service offerings and partnerships focused on the DevOps pipeline. The latest enhancements will help managers to pinpoint where to focus and allocate scarce IT resources 

What’s the issue? What’s needed? 

Compuware solutions have been focused on resolving day-to-day challenges that IT  managers and their staffs have been trying to eliminate for years. Tight budgets and delivery timelines have long delayed, even stalled efforts to update obsolete code, revise/refactor inefficient code, remove bottlenecks, etc. The result is an ever larger “technical debt” that imposes a debilitating tax on IT performance, efficiency and quality which frustrates managers and DevOps staff. 

Valuable staff time is consumed attempting to identify weak code, inefficiencies and obsolete workflows. Manual efforts to identify what code/apps must be rewritten/refactored to improve reliability, speed, etc.,  or to determine where to focus efforts to get maximum payback and operational improvement, play havoc with operational productivity and efficiency.   

Compuware’s contribution

Compuware is making it easier for data center staff to leverage sophisticated data analytics, automated AI and machine learning to help to identify specific procedures and apps that negatively impact developer and operation performance. Their primary focus has been and is  on the mainframe. Their solutions strive to improve the quality, velocity and productivity of mainframe operations. The results, in fact, contribute mightily to that end. However, they also end up positively affecting the total data center. More on that later.

With this release some new capabilities included are:

•  Compuware zAdviser’s[1] enhanced analytics – uses Compuware ISPW data to identify the programs that are most regressed, most fallbacks, most checked out so IT teams know where to focus their efforts; 
• Expanded ISPW integration[2] with Git – facilitates enterprise-wide adoption of standardized source code management practices; 
• ISPW Sentry Services[3] – brings for-fee fully customizable access to expert technical resources that will assist enterprise teams increase proficiency in ISPW administration, maintenance and upgrade procedures. 

Some additional details about specific areas. Expanded ISPW Git integration means that:  

• Developers with little mainframe experience can work confidently with mainframe source code;
• Changes in Git automatically synchronized back into the mainframe where ISPW’s automated build, deploy and fallback capabilities can be leveraged in a CI/CD pipeline;
•  Provides consistent visibility into diverse codebases and eases the process of managing code throughout the enterprise;
• Standardizes CI/CD practices.

The newly available ISPW Sentry Services is a customized end-to-end offering that:

• Complements existing ISPW SCM Migration Services;
• Provides remote access to technical resources and proven best practices that support ISPW administration, maintenance and upgrades;
• Services designed to help customers ensure ISPW runs at peak performance at costs significantly lower than current administrative costs.

Of course, there is much more to the release. Topaz Workbench has a new editor for editing source code (supports COBOL, PL/I, JCL,  REXX, C, Assembler) and additional automated test enhancements that create a test case working from a Xpeditor debug session.

The Final Word

Nineteen quarters ago, Compuware began to “mainstream the mainframe”; with quarterly enhancements. They have delivered impressive results. Even better, they also made access easier and more transparent across platforms. Skilled mainframers are better able to do their jobs with the latest in IT technologies and tools. Non-mainframe skilled staff find it easier to discover and leverage mainframe capabilities using familiar tools.

By removing the barriers of platform unique tools and operational silos, enterprise IT, as well .as the business and service managers can concentrate on really important issues. That is, conceiving, designing, developing, implementing and delivering the services and apps that provide an extraordinary experience to clients and customers. The issue is not the platform per se. It is the optimal use of enterprise resources and technologies to delight, draw-in and retain customers. That is the basis of enterprise success.

Compuware’s efforts helped eliminate the barriers (technology and solutions) that separated mainframe staff from server staff. They solve long-running problems (process and operational) and annoyances that existed across platforms frustrating mainframe experts and newbies alike. It is now easier for DevOps staff to update and improve existing code, speed development and improve the quality, reliability and efficiency of DevOps.

One last note, IBM recently closed on the acquisition of Red Hat. Related to that was considerable emphasis on Linux on the mainframe. We’re curious how that may impact upcoming Compuware offerings.

We look forward to next quarter’s announcements, the 20^th consecutive one as they mainstream the mainframe. 

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[1] https://www.compuware.com/zadviser/

[2] https://www.compuware.com/integrations/

[3] https://www.compuware.com/ispw-services/

IBM acquires a Red Hat – ownership or partnership?

By Bill Moran

 

We reviewed the announcement of the completion of IBM’s acquisition of Red Hat via an all-cash ($34B) purchase of all outstanding shares. IBM now officially owns Red Hat. Previous Red Hat stock owners have no say on the company’s future direction. Unless, of course, they buy IBM stock. Even then, their influence will be minimal. Why are these even worth mentioning?

Well, both companies are emphasizing (and staking a lot on) this as a “partnership” and Red Hat operational “independence” not “ownership” as the basis for the future direction of both companies. No doubt with all the best intentions. Let’s examine some issues around this relationship.

A Board of Directors (BoD) is ultimately responsible to shareholders for running a company. The Board selects the CEO and should support his/her strategy for the company. We assume that IBM’s Board agrees with the announced strategy as jointly presented by IBM and Red Hat.

Red Hat preserves its operational independence with their deep commitment to open source products and development. Both companies agree on this.  IBM and Red Hat both view open source, hybrid cloud as the future of the enterprise data center.  Of particular interest,  Red Hat’s ability to partner with IBM competitor’s even against IBM, will continue. We fully expect that skeptical competitors will want to test this. We  do think IBM has a reasonably good chance of making this relationship work.

However, execution challenges abound, e.g. impact on sales reps & partners come immediately to mind. Management will need to proactively address such challenges. Both have already revealed some details[1] about partner relationships. Monitoring IBM’s stock prices will provide additional insight into the success (or not) of the relationship.

As long as the markets favor the partnership, it will continue as is. For instance, both believe only about 20% of enterprise customers have completed the move to a hybrid cloud. If, or rather when business conditions change significantly, say when 80% complete the transition, then the IBM partnership with a very independent Red Hat will be reexamined.  Other types of events may occur to drive relationship changes.  The IBM board and the IBM CEO at that time will determine when and what it will be. 

It is critical for Red Hat's credibility and  continued faster-than-market growth that it be vendor neutral, while effectively leveraging its relationship with IBM. We think they will pull this off for the immediate future.Having attracted some ex-IBM staff to senior positions, all of whom appear to have fit nicely into Red Hat's operations, the future looks promising. Whatever happens, we'll be observing and commenting.

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[1] https://www.arnnet.com.au/article/663898/red-hat-ibm-synergise-partner-programs-hybrid-cloud-focus/

and https://www.crn.com/news/cloud/ibm-and-red-hat-what-s-next-for-their-channel-programs

Good info and insight into China's trade negotiation strategy

An interesting and insightful article about on-going trade negotiations with China - something of particular importance to IT since product line inventory pipelines are connected to China....  https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2019/07/15/now-it-makes-sense-beijing-assigned-hardline-trade-handler-to-vice-premier-liu-he/

AT&T partnerships with both Microsoft & IBM – what’s up with that?

By Bill Moran

AT&T has announced major deals with IBM and Microsoft involving collaboration and built on using the respective partner’s clouds. These being Microsoft’s Azure cloud and IBM’s cloud with the popular Red Hat OpenShift platform. The current deal follows last year’s deal when AT&T purchased IBM’s Global Networking business for $5 billion. At first glance, this decision seems confused. Why two separate deals? Why not stick with a single partner? 

A little analysis reveals that AT&T may have made very good decisions. Before discussing this, know that the contract details are confidential. We have no privileged information. Therefore, we indulge in speculation mixed with historical knowledge and known facts. Therefore, some obvious questions must remain unanswered. 

Let’s look at the Microsoft deal first. The contract between AT&T Communications and Microsoft has AT&T switching most of its desktop users to Office 365 and Windows 10. With 260K+ employees (Q1 2018 AT&T), this is a massive project. 

By contrast, the IBM deal with AT&T Communications involves business applications. We suspect that many of these are Linux-based. There are references to the Red Hat platform as well as mentions to AT&T’s commitment to open source in general. We think that IBM’s experience with hybrid cloud in the data center is equally important to AT&T. 

Both Microsoft and IBM are talking about collaboration with AT&T around the arrival of 5G technology. Technology which is will significantly affect all three. Also, they all anticipate AI in various forms playing a role in that future. Finally, IBM will be including AT&T networking as a standard part of its offerings.

Now we begin speculating. First, we examine the potential benefits to each company. We assume that each of the companies has done its homework to convince themselves the deal will be profitable. Note that, historically such calculations are not always correct. Only time will reveal whether these expectations are met. With no details available about AT&T’s licensing costs for  Office 365, we must assume Microsoft is satisfied they will profit there.

Taking a closer look at AT&T.  In addition to any economic benefits, AT&T is clearly expecting help from its partners in solving important business & technical issues. Such help allows AT&T to focus its telecoms skilled resources on preparing for the challenges associated with 5G introduction. Without these deals AT&T would need to dedicate significant technical skills to IT data center tasks as well as desktop and data center cloud migrations. 

No details have been provided on how and what form IBM & Microsoft contributions to these projects will take. Will they staff projects, or just provide project management? Another more speculative benefit for AT&T results from the potential for collaboration with Microsoft & IBM on applying AI that results in competitive advantages.

Turning to IBM and Microsoft, both will benefit by growing the usage of their respective clouds. Microsoft is currently #2 in cloud suppliers (AWS is #1). The deal with AT&T could provide an important boost in enterprise acceptance and cloud market share. 

Any 5G experience gained by working with AT&T could yield expanded and improved service offerings by IBM and Microsoft. Both companies could benefit working with AT&T to speed innovation as they cooperate to leverage new AI applications. IBM can also point to this deal as additional justification for their ($34B) acquisition of Red Hat. 

AT&T benefits from its association with two highly competitive, technologically sophisticated partners eager to grow market share. The downside is that cooperative efforts get bogged down in details of cooperation vs. competition. 

These deals certainly have the potential of significantly benefiting all players. Things look and sound promising, more details are needed to assess the reality. We’ll be following closely to see and comment on progress.