- Home
- OpCon and IBM i
OpCon and IBM i
Ready for Digital Business
IBM i is often described as a legacy system. In fact, it has strongly embedded virtualization, a technology independent layer and an open philosophy that includes ZEND, PHP, Node.JS, GIT and Python to name a few. In addition, IBM i has enviable reliability and a total cost of ownership that is lower than any other server/database combination. IBM i has continually evolved and embraced new technologies just like SMA Technologies, and both OpCon and IBM i have a strong and successful history. IBM i with OpCon is a perfect combination and should be at the heart of the business.
IBM i and OpCon
If businesses are using IBM i, then adding OpCon brings several new dimensions such as world-class automation, robotic process automation (RPA), integration with all systems and a single point of control. SMA Technologies has a mature and robust agent for IBM i that tightly integrates with OpCon. The agent supports advanced local automation solutions as well as full message management, dynamic variables, multi-step job scripting, operator replay and much more. The IBM i agent sends events back to the OpCon server and monitors all jobs. All this means is that a lights-out operation is easy with OpCon.
Robotic Process Automation
RPA is the ability to automate human actions. OpCon for IBM i includes an Operator Replay capability that is widely used to record and playback actions. Manual activities, such as entering orders or triggering day-end processing from a menu, can be automated easily in OpCon just as if the operator had executed it. With real-time adaptation using variables, the IBM i agent for OpCon imitates manual tasks which can be embedded in any OpCon workflow.
Meeting the needs of our clients
OpCon can solve serious challenges that hinder organization efficiency.
CHALLENGE
In-house developed routines
handling FTP and payments
became unstable and costly
A time-based IBM i nightly schedule
delayed online processing in
remote locations
Integrating IBM i, Windows, SQL
and VMWare tasks was a manual
process
SOLUTION
OpCon manages all workflows and
processes all FTP and payment
activity
OpCon event-driven workflows now
replace the time-based schedules
including IPL and backups
OpCon workflows integrate tasks
across all applications and servers
BENEFITS
Development is no longer involved
and errors that used to take at
least half a day to recover no longer
occur
The OpCon workflow’s time is
significantly less than the original
schedule, which allows the online
day to start on time
Manual intervention is no longer
required. Skills now center around
OpCon with workflow visualization
Multiply the Power of the Data Center
Beyond the cross-platform centralized solution, the power of OpCon is extended into many different operating systems with tools that are adapted to their unique capabilities. By integrating the workflows and dependencies together in a single, universal user interface, OpCon can manage even the most complex IT environments from a single point of control.
Conversion Framework
SMA Technologies has been in business for over four decades and has converted many different schedulers and automation tools during that time. Our automation experts have robust, efficient and highly automated techniques that enable us to assimilate all tasks with zero downtime and zero risk to the business. Converting to OpCon under our well-practiced framework will provide greater visibility and immediate benefits with a single point of control.
Operational Advantages
- Monitoring with recovery action
- Watch for jobs stuck with MSGW
- View IBM i job logs from OpCon
- Automate operator action with logging
- Passwords encrypted
- Easily rerun jobs with different parameters
- Advanced parallel processing reduces run time
- Step-level recovery/restart options
- Improved disaster recovery times and accuracy
- Centralized diagnosis from OpCon console
IBM i Agent Features
- Message management
- Spool file management
- Multi-step job scripting with step-level restart
- Operator replay (RPA)
- Job capture and tracking
- Automated report scanning
- File transfer automation
- Restricted mode automation
- Data capture with value testing/response
- Security and object authority management
- Automated software updates
- Automated distribution of configurations
- Dynamic Variables support all features
- Network-wide bidirectional data sharing
- Automated database maintenance
- Flexible File Arrival watchers
- Integration with IBM i Navigator monitors