Macro 4 and C-Net Systems are attending the GSE Nordic Region Conference in Oslo, Norway from 23rd – 25th May 2023

Time to meet in person again! The Nordic mainframe professionals. An exiting agenda has been presented by the GSE Nordic Steering Committee and the Working Groups, and we look forward to participate.

Macro 4’s Michelle Harris is speaking on Thursday 25th May at 10:30 session S407. Michelle currently manages R&D and support teams worldwide within Macro 4 and UNICOM.

Conference to be held in Oslo, Norway, at Thon Hotel Oslofjord in Sandvika, just outside Oslo city. 

Please join us, Macro 4 and C-Net Systems, at our booth at the conference. We are there to inform you about what we can do to help you to make your z/OS installation more cost effective.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Ulf Carlsson, C-Net Systems

After a few years of postponing this conference, it is finally time to meet in person again, the Nordic mainframe professionals. An exiting agenda has been presented by the GSE Nordic Steering Committee and the Working Groups, and we look forward to participate.

Please join us, Macro 4 and C-Net Systems, at our booth at the conference at the Scandic Infracity Hotel in Upplands Väsby just outside Stockholm City. We are there to inform you about what we can do to help you to make your installation more cost effective.

Looking forward to see you there!

Ulf Carlsson, C-Net Systems

Mainframe solutions will enable digital transformation on new IBM z15 

UNICOM® Global has today announced that its mainframe solutions are ready to support the new IBM z/OS V2.4 operating system, due for release on September 30, 2019 in addition to the new releases of COBOL and PL/I recently announced by IBM. This includes Macro 4’s z/OS solutions delivered in Nordic territory by C-Net Systems.

“These are exciting times, with IBM launching new versions of its flagship operating system and compilers and unveiling the z15 mainframe, which delivers innovations across security, data privacy and resilience, as well as hybrid cloud readiness,” said Larry Lawler, Chief Technology Officer at UNICOM Global.

UNICOM has been working with IBM to ensure that its products support all of these new releases so that customers can start benefiting from the latest technical innovations from day one.
IBM has stated that z/OS V2.4 will provide an agile, optimized and resilient platform that helps businesses to digitally transform. “This perfectly ties in with UNICOM’s own solutions which enable digital transformation and modernization of mainframe systems,” said Lawler.

“I am delighted to see so many enhancements coming to the z/OS operating system that encourage digital innovation,” continued Lawler, “from features that make it easier to develop containerized applications, build data analytics capabilities and manage cloud workloads, to those that strengthen security and availability. Also important are user experience and productivity improvements that reduce the level of specialist skills required to maintain z/OS.

“What makes this even better is that it follows hard on the heels of a raft of new functions in COBOL and PL/I that help enterprises to increase development efficiency and update applications to meet their evolving business needs.”

Mainframe integration of web, mobile, AI, chatbots, machine learning and analytics systems will be a key topic in the mainframe infrastructure session

Macro 4, a division of UNICOM® Global, will be discussing the role of the mainframe as an enabler for emerging technologies – as well as exploring how many of the same technologies will play a key role in modernizing the mainframe user experience – when the company participates at the GSE Nordic Region Conference in Aarhus, Denmark on June 11-13 with its Nordic partner C-Net Systems AB.

Neil Evans, Chief Technology Officer, EMEA, will explore how web, mobile, AI, chatbots, machine learning and analytics are being integrated with mainframe systems to help organizations improve user experience, maximize productivity and accelerate skills transfer. His presentation ‘the human face of the mainframe: using emerging technologies to foster greater technical collaboration’ will be in the mainframe infrastructure stream at 17:00 on June 11.

Diccon Grayling, Macro 4 Partner Manager said, “We’re looking forward to catching up with everyone at the annual GSE Nordic Region conference. It’s a great opportunity for the mainframe community in the Nordic region to come together to discuss exciting trends and developments that affect us all. We’ve got some really interesting new things to talk about including our vision of how emerging technologies will play a vital role in modernizing the mainframe user experience.”

Alongside the conference, Macro 4 and C-Net Systems will be exhibiting solutions for MFA (multi-factor authentication) and mainframe modernization. Visitors will be able to find out about the company’s mainframe modernization solutions including the new UNICOM® Universal Gateway: a web-enabled dashboard environment that makes it easy to access and interpret mainframe systems data, collaborate on problem resolution, and produce high quality management information.

Columbus DW 8.4 increases safeguards for sensitive personal data

Macro 4, a division of UNICOM® Global, has released a new version of its Columbus DW enterprise content management software that helps organizations to strengthen data protection and regulatory compliance. A new document redaction feature restricts access to sensitive personal information by automatically obscuring selected words or images on documents held in the Columbus DW system. To support compliance with regulations governing document processing, Columbus DW integrates with the blockchain to provide an additional trusted record of events such as how, when and by whom documents have been accessed, updated or deleted.

“Data privacy regulations such as the GDPR require you to put better safeguards in place to protect customer data, and to prove you’ve done it. Columbus DW 8.4 is designed to help you do exactly that,” said Jim Allum, Director, Commercial and Technical at Macro 4.

Also new in Columbus DW 8.4 comes support for cloud object storage. This feature enables organizations to reduce costs and increase storage flexibility by moving documents and other unstructured data into the cloud.

These enhancements will be followed in early 2019 by the introduction of a new Columbus mobile app that allows business users to work with documents securely on a smartphone or tablet.

Document redaction provides added protection for sensitive information

Columbus DW 8.4 enables organizations to prevent viewing of sensitive text or images using a variety of redaction methods which include the replacement of selected content with random characters, ‘X’s, black boxes, or blank space. The document itself can still be accessed for operational business use.
Redacted views can be applied to all users or to certain job roles or individuals.

“You can limit access to sensitive data to just those staff who actually need to view it as a legitimate part of their job, in line with the GDPR principle of data minimization,” said Allum. “Does a call center agent or accounts administrator really need to see information such as a person’s payment history or financial status when viewing bills or contracts, for example? If not then it’s best practice to redact it.”

A related capability is data anonymization. This is a process by which ‘live’ production data can be altered to create anonymous document samples for application testing. All original text can be replaced with random, but similar, characters to produce realistic documents for thorough testing, without exposing any real business data.

Blockchain integration delivers trusted audit facility

Columbus DW 8.4 integrates with the Hyperledger blockchain framework to provide an additional auditing mechanism for legal and regulatory compliance, as Allum explained:

“One of the core requirements of a legal archive is the ability to capture all the events happening around the documents you’re holding and to validate those events with the same level of integrity and security as the document itself,” said Allum. “For example, if customers exercise their ‘right to be forgotten’ under the GDPR you need a reliable record of the fact that you’ve deleted their data. Columbus DW gives you absolute proof that what should happen has actually happened by recording it on the blockchain.”

Columbus DW 8.3 introduced the capability to record document-related events using the same tamper-evident hashing mechanism as the blockchain, with the option to trigger business processes or email notifications when events occur. Columbus DW 8.4 builds on this functionality by enabling the same record to be committed to the blockchain to independently verify that the information has not been tampered with.

“By cross-checking the hashes stored locally, in the Columbus tamper-evident audit log, with the hashes recorded on the tamper-evident blockchain, it is possible to prove conclusively that nothing has been changed,” added Allum.

Cloud object storage increases affordability and flexibility

Columbus DW customers can now store documents and other unstructured content on cloud object storage. Columbus DW 8.4 supports OpenStack Swift, IBM Cloud Object Storage, and Amazon S3.

“Cloud object storage is relatively low cost and provides greater flexibility because it is very easy to scale as your requirements grow,” said Allum. “We’re giving our customers access to these benefits while ensuring very fast search speeds for users by storing document indexes locally in Columbus DW.”

Customers can choose to ‘mix and match’ storage destinations, for example by moving certain documents to the cloud while keeping others locally.

Both private on premises and public cloud storage is supported.

About Columbus DW

The Columbus DW enterprise content management software helps organizations manage the diverse documents and data that business processes and customer communications depend on. Enterprise content can be shared via email, the web, social media and instant messaging without the cost and disruption associated with changing core business systems. Columbus DW manages information throughout its lifecycle and ensures timely deletion at end of life to meet regulatory archiving obligations, while analysis capabilities deliver business insights.

Columbus DW is a core component of the Columbus enterprise information management suite.

Tubes for z/OS is fully enabled for MFA, and comes with real-time Splunk reporting for monitoring application access

Crawley, UK, July 25, 2018 – Macro 4, a division of UNICOM® Global, has launched a new version of the Tubes for z/OS session management software that enables enterprises to quickly roll out IBM’s multi-factor authentication system for z/OS as they bid to make access to mainframe applications more secure.

Tubes for z/OS 7.8 has a new multi-factor authentication capability which provides a simple way for organizations to introduce additional security tests or ‘factors’, such as a randomized PIN or a fingerprint scan, to strengthen mainframe access security.

According to Keith Banham, Mainframe R&D Manager at Macro 4, improving security is a growing priority as modernization initiatives are exposing mainframe applications to new threats:
“Mainframe applications are becoming much more connected to the outside world, with users logging on from outside the data center on mobile devices. That’s great for digital business but this increased openness also provides more opportunities for hackers, so you need to strengthen your defenses.

“Tighter regulatory controls such as the GDPR are also raising the bar for security. Companies need to demonstrate that they’re using advanced access mechanisms such as multi-factor authentication to safeguard data privacy and security.

“There’s widespread recognition that the old single factor static password authentication system is no longer fit for purpose. In a poll of mainframe users we conducted last year, 67 per cent agreed that MFA is an important additional security measure.”

The Tubes session manager controls user access to all of an organization’s mainframe applications through a single sign-on, so rolling out MFA through Tubes saves effort and reduces risk as no additional systems changes are required, explained Banham:

“Many organizations will be running numerous applications on the mainframe, so trying to implement the new MFA system on each one individually – involving separately configuring and testing every application – would be a massive challenge. If they use a session manager such as Tubes to control end-user access to applications, then they only need to configure MFA in one place – Tubes – and the job’s done.

”Some older applications don’t support MFA at all, so more systems changes are needed to make them compatible. And do you really want to risk touching those old systems? With Tubes you’re talking about a few minutes’ work rather than weeks or months of effort.”

Introducing MFA through the Tubes session manager also minimizes the impact on users as it avoids the inconvenience of re-authenticating every time they log on to a different application, said Banham:
“Say you work with several mainframe applications and for each one you have to get a new access code from your mobile phone or pinpad every time you log on. The time all adds up and it can be frustrating, as well as reducing productivity. The beauty of using a session manager such as Tubes is that users need to go through the MFA authentication process only once and they are then automatically logged into any of the applications they are authorized to use.”

The Tubes software provides additional capabilities to make the introduction of MFA a more user-friendly experience. Help and guidance or reminder messages about the new authentication process can be easily added to the Tubes login screen, helping to reduce end-user frustration and wasted time as well as potentially reducing calls to the helpdesk.

The new version of Tubes also supports real-time management reporting through Splunk, allowing systems administrators to monitor and analyze application access from an easy-to-understand graphical dashboard. For example, information such as the patterns of access to specific applications can be used to identify suspicious online behavior, and response time data can be analyzed to assist capacity planning and performance management. Tubes management reporting also supports all leading business intelligence and reporting tools, including TIBCO JasperReports and Oracle Business Intelligence.

Tubes is a leading session management solution that provides secure, user-friendly access to mainframe applications. From a single sign-on, users can log in to all the applications they are authorized to access and switch easily from one application session to another, with no loss of context. An optional browser interface offers a way to instantly web enable mainframe applications; users are no longer tied to a computer running a terminal emulator and can access their applications from any PC or mobile device.

Due to its advanced functionality, Tubes dominates the session management replacement market and provides a fast and straightforward migration path for discontinued session managers such as IBM Session Manager.

The comprehensive session management capabilities of Tubes for z/OS 7.8 are also available in UNICOM’s latest offering, the Universal Gateway (UniGW®). UniGW® is a management dashboard designed to provide real-time insights into operational business performance.

Splunk application access reporting for Tubes for zOS

InSync® includes support for Splunk reporting and enhanced features for test data generation and anonymization

Crawley, UK, July 10, 2018 – Macro 4, a division of UNICOM® Global, has introduced a new release of InSync®, the data management and manipulation solution for IBM Z. InSync 6.9 includes enhanced features to help mainframe users improve data governance as they seek to embrace stricter data privacy regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

To make it easy for companies to track and analyze all data manipulation activities in test and production environments, the new release supports real-time management reporting through Splunk, with easy-to-understand graphical dashboards. InSync management reporting also supports all leading business intelligence and reporting tools, including TIBCO JasperReports and Oracle Business Intelligence.

“InSync’s new reporting features enable companies to keep a close watch over which data sets are being handled, by which technicians, and to monitor the processes that are being applied to them,” explained Keith Banham, Mainframe Development Manager at Macro 4. “For example, are data privacy processes being correctly applied, such as the anonymization of personal data from the production environment before it is used in software testing by development teams?”

Where production data has to be anonymized, for example in application testing or when diagnosing data errors, InSync provides a data privacy function that allows the IT department to centrally define and administer how data sets from Db2, z/OS and now IMS databases are disguised. This ensures that every time someone accesses the data it is automatically disguised according to pre-defined rules.

In InSync 6.9 individual developers now also have the flexibility to define their own rules to disguise data when working on extracts from files that include sensitive data such as personal details.
A new bulk data creation facility within InSync allows development teams to generate sample test data easily and quickly without the need to create records from scratch or to copy production data. From a single data record the software can create multiple new records for testing purposes, using randomization or specific rules, which saves time and supports data privacy:

“If you have to do it manually, generating usable test data is often a long and laborious process that slows down software development,” said Keith Banham. “InSync can generate thousands of unique test records from a single record in just a few seconds – something that could take days if done manually.”

InSync is a comprehensive and cost effective data management and manipulation solution for IBM Z data sources including Db2, IMS, WebSphere MQ and other z/OS files. It is part of Macro 4’s integrated suite for mainframe fault analysis and testing.

InSync management reporting through Splunk

The new solution teams Macro 4’s Columbus software with IBM Watson Analytics and IBM Cloud Object Storage

Macro 4, a division of UNICOM global, is partnering with IBM to offer a joint legacy application decommissioning solution that enables organizations to retire legacy applications while keeping the data alive and available to IBM Watson Analytics to mine for business insights. The data is moved to Columbus, Macro 4’s secure content repository, either in the cloud or on premise, from where it remains accessible to end users for operational reasons such as answering customer queries.

”Legacy applications are a huge challenge for many organizations. Old technology is potentially non-compliant, and a security risk. Legacy apps divert resources away from innovation and can be costly to maintain. At the same time, they lock away important data that could provide valuable business intelligence,” said Darren Jack, Professional Services Manager at Macro 4, which is a long-standing IBM Business Partner.

”Gartner predicted that between 2016 and 2020 IT organizations would decommission more than three times the number of applications they did between 2000 and 2016, and we’re also seeing an increase on the ground. Technology upheaval caused by digital transformation and the drive to rationalize IT to support GDPR compliance are both contributory factors,” said Darren Jack.

The new joint legacy application decommissioning solution ensures business continuity by retaining legacy data in its original context and making it easy for end users to access, from a web interface and mobile app.

Macro 4’s professional services team follows a structured process to identify all legacy information that will be required going forward, for compliance, operational reasons or analysis. Visual layouts are then designed; these can either replicate the original application screens or be enhanced to improve usability. Once the data has been transferred to the Columbus content repository the original legacy applications are retired.

Data from all decommissioned applications is stored and managed centrally, providing a single source of legacy information that can be analyzed by IBM Watson Analytics, which uses artificial intelligence to extract deep business insights. IBM Watson Analytics is designed to sweep through vast quantities of data, making it well suited to analyzing many years of historical data generated by legacy applications.

”Legacy application decommissioning doesn’t mean getting rid of data – far from it,” said Jonathan Clark, Business Development Manager at Macro 4. ”It just means moving it to a specialist content repository where it’s easier to manage, quicker to access, and cheaper to run. Many of the organizations we work with have multiple legacy applications, so the cost savings are very significant.”

”In business intelligence terms, we see legacy data as being an important part of the total view of information available, frequently providing valuable insights. With IBM Watson Analytics, it is not a question of being told what insights you can derive from your data; instead the starting point is: what insights do you want?”

Macro 4’s Columbus content repository can be located on a server on premise, or in the cloud. The joint solution provides customers with the option of running Columbus on IBM Cloud Object Storage, which is a highly scalable cloud storage service, designed for durability, resilience and security. Moving data into the cloud offers the potential for additional savings compared with on-site storage.

Columbus has an integral information lifecycle management capability that allows organizations to apply retention rules to comply with regulatory data retention requirements and to ensure that data is deleted when it has no further useful purpose, in line with the GDPR principle of data minimization. Sensitive data can also be redacted for security or compliance reasons.
For more information about the joint legacy application decommissioning solution from Macro 4 and IBM, contact info@cnetsystems.com or call +46-(0)8-5560 5500.

About Macro 4 application decommissioning:
Macro 4 has over fifteen years’ experience in successfully delivery legacy application decommissioning projects of all sizes, providing a secure and cost-effective solution for retaining legacy data from any business application that needs to be retired.

New study: IT decision makers reveal why they feel forced to keep obsolete systems running just to keep the data accessible

Crawley, UK, 26 June: 89 per cent of IT decision makers in UK enterprises admit they are keeping old or legacy applications alive just to keep the historical data accessible, according to a new study. They recognize, however, that retaining these obsolete systems leaves businesses more open to security threats (87 per cent), and eats up resources that could be more productively used to support digital transformation (93 per cent).

The research, commissioned by Macro 4, a division of UNICOM® Global, questioned 100 IT decision makers in UK enterprises about the challenges associated with retiring (decommissioning) obsolete legacy applications and the problems of running them indefinitely on ‘life support’ solely to access historical data. The findings of the research are documented in a Macro 4 report, ‘Application decommissioning: the universal IT challenge’.

“It’s normal for IT applications to outlive their usefulness and be replaced by more modern systems. However, the original apps often hold valuable data that’s still needed by the business for operational reasons – such as responding to customer inquiries – or for compliance or business intelligence,” explains Jim Allum, Director, Commercial and Technical at Macro 4, which provides services and technology to help companies decommission their legacy applications.

That is why IT teams end up keeping old systems running, despite the business risks and costs of doing so, says Jim Allum: “Businesses can’t afford to lose access to all that data so they just keep the old applications on ‘life support’, which causes a lot of problems. Old systems are typically harder to fix when they go wrong, harder to keep secure, and cost more to support – that’s if you can find people with the right legacy skills.

“It creates a huge burden, especially where companies are running dozens or even hundreds of legacy applications – which is surprisingly common.”
One of the chief problems of keeping the aging systems running is related to security, as the research highlights. 87 per cent of the IT decision makers in the survey sample agree (55 per cent strongly agree)¹ that legacy applications on older operating systems are more vulnerable to security threats. At the same time, 82 per cent recognize that old or legacy systems are rarely compatible with modern security and authentication methods.

“On older systems some security vulnerabilities are harder – or even impossible – to resolve. If available at all, patches for new threats could be delayed because legacy apps are considered less of a priority,” says Jim Allum. “As legacy applications pre-date the latest security innovations there is a clear security risk to having a lot of legacy within your application portfolio.”

A related issue is compliance, with 84 per cent of the sample agreeing that on old/legacy applications it is harder to accurately track and control access to sensitive data in line with stricter data privacy regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Overall, 93 per cent of the IT decision makers questioned acknowledge that supporting legacy applications to keep data accessible ties up IT resources that could be better employed on digital transformation or other strategic activities. 90 per cent feel that it is often difficult integrating legacy systems with newer applications that may have been introduced as part of digital transformation.

“Legacy applications don’t just divert resources away from digital transformation; they are also a practical barrier to achieving it,” says Jim Allum. “Problems integrating aging systems with new applications mean you end up with silos of data, which makes it that much harder to create a seamless digital experience.”

When asked why businesses continue to keep obsolete applications running instead of decommissioning them and moving the data elsewhere, the survey respondents point to a number of challenges, including:

• “They feel it is too difficult to move the data somewhere else while keeping it easily accessible” (54 per cent)
• “Business users are resistant to getting rid of their old applications” (39 per cent)
• “They don’t always have the right in-house skills to retire/decommission applications” (32 per cent)
• “Lack of time” (32 per cent)
• “They are worried that if they move the data they will no longer meet their compliance obligations” (32 per cent)
• “Decommissioning/retiring applications is considered too risky in case of data loss” (30 per cent)
• “Lack of budget” (30 per cent)

Summarizing the overall findings, Jim Allum argues that enterprises should adopt a programmatic approach to decommissioning in order to address the legacy problem more effectively:
“Enterprise IT leaders are facing a universal set of problems caused by legacy systems, yet there is still inertia around getting decommissioning initiatives off the ground. Difficulties moving the data off legacy applications are cited as the number one challenge. Compliance, data integrity and resistance from business users are the other major considerations highlighted.

“It’s therefore important to manage the end of life process carefully, just like any other stage of the application lifecycle. You should aim to move the data away from obsolete applications and into a content repository where business users can continue to access it, so that the original application can be retired. At the same time you should adopt a repeatable decommissioning process that will work for any legacy application you choose to retire.

Finally, make sure that your new repository can keep the decommissioned data safe, secure and compliant – and is easy for businesspeople to use so it gains their acceptance.”
To view the full survey results, download Macro 4’s report, ‘Application decommissioning: the universal IT challenge’ from: www.macro4.com/legacy-survey.

¹Survey respondents were shown a series of statements and asked if they ‘strongly agree’, ‘somewhat agree’, ’somewhat disagree’, ’strongly disagree’ or ‘don’t know’. The survey results are displayed in full in the report: www.macro4.com/legacy-survey.

Web and mobile enablement, multi-factor authentication and GDPR compliance are key discussion topics

June 5, 2018 – Macro 4, a division of UNICOM® Global, will discuss strategies to simplify mainframe modernization when the company takes part in the GSE Nordics Conference on June 12–14 with its local partner, C-Net Systems.

Macro 4 will propose new ways to deliver web and mobile access to the mainframe, improve security and GDPR compliance, and modernize application development, all using the latest mainframe technologies.

Neil Evans, Macro 4’s Open Systems Research and Development Manager, will demonstrate how technologies such as Splunk, Blockchain and cognitive computing are changing the face of the mainframe in his session, ‘The latest emerging technologies: what mainframers need to know’, at 13:00 on June 13.

Macro 4’s Mainframe Research and Development Manager, Keith Banham, will examine the role of session management in enabling advanced security and regulatory compliance in his presentation, ‘Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) – Why, what and how – part of a GDPR compliance strategy’, at 11:15 on June 13.

“The GSE Nordic Region Conference is an ideal forum for mainframe users to come together and find out what’s new,” said Diccon Grayling, Macro 4 Partner Manager. “Modernization remains a key challenge, and it’s a major focus for Macro 4’s mainframe software products. For example, we’re using real-time Splunk reporting to help our customers monitor how data privacy processes are being applied – such as the anonymization of personal data – and to produce management information in a way that is more interactive and easier to understand.”

Macro 4 and C-Net Systems will be exhibiting solutions for mainframe modernization and application lifecycle management alongside the conference. Delegates are also invited to take part in a session management survey and will have the chance to win a Sonos® Play:1 speaker.

We’re delighted that our colleagues at Macro 4, Neil Evans, Keith Banham and Diccon Grayling have been invited to present on two different subjects, The Latest Emerging Technologies and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), at the GSE Nordic Conference in Vilnius, Lithuania, June 12-14, a buzzing event for all things mainframe related.

Both presentations are being held on Wednesday 13 June and under the Mainframe Infrastructure Sessions track.

If you are interested in joining the conference or have a look at the agenda, please visit: http://gse-nordic.org/

We will also be exhibiting together, C-Net Systems and Macro 4. Looking forward to a great conference!

See you there!

SoftLanding Systems, the IBM i software division of UNICOM^® Global, has announced the release of new enterprise-class web interfaces for its application lifecycle management and helpdesk solutions, TURNOVER^® for iSeries and EXPRESSDESK^® for iSeries. The new interfaces are intuitive, easy to use, and feature a fully responsive touch-screen design, giving users the flexibility and productivity benefits of switching seamlessly between their desktop, tablet or smartphone devices.

The new mobile-friendly interface for SoftLanding’s TURNOVER application lifecycle management solution is designed for anyone responsible for reviewing and approving the promotion of software changes.

More on TURNOVER, please visit:   https://www.softlanding.com/products/turnover-iseries-v100/