Re: IBM i 6.1 and 405CD -- BPCS-L

Thanks for all the replies. Looks like there are some programs we cannot have source code for and thus will be stuck at V5R4.

I think Infor pitched around $80,000 for the software upgrades/etc. We never really got down to brass tacks on the other costs. It was heartening that they would "upgrade" the customer since they had been off maintenance for so long but my guess is that they were hoping to earn back some revenue with consulting. Too bad SSA/Infor delivered so little value for so long that caused them to drop maintenance. Taking customers for granted never pays.....

So, right now, here is where we are:

1. Buy a new box and begin modernization work on BPCS using PHP. The current (new) staff is very familiar with PHP development on i and doing it side by side would allow them the luxury of delivering new applications as they can. The big issue is replicating the business logic of the large applications. Putting a new front end on a data maintenance application is relatively easy. Recreating the business logic in RPG is the tough part. They have source so it might be possible. Big project though....

2. Buy a new "Solution Edition" IBM i running LX/BPCS. So, rather than buying an "upgrade" just approach them as a new install. There is some "solutions" pricing out there for LX on i and it may be cheaper (don't know) than upgrading. Then they could migrate data/application a module at a time side by side.

The good news is that this is an i shop and will always be an i shop for the foreseeable future. It may not always be a BPCS shop, but they want to stay on i for all the right reasons.

Pete Helgren
Value Added Software, Inc
www.asaap.com
www.opensource4i.com

On 12/3/2010 4:00 PM, Pete Helgren wrote:

Already talked to infor. The asking price is a bit too much in this
economy (says management...).

That is just the point. We own the source, the objects should be
observable or recompile to make it so (except for those 61 exceptions)
. There isn't anything inherent in IBM i 6.1 that would fundamentally
change the way the programs or DB would work. Just seems like it
should be relatively straightforward.

Just wondering if there was anyone like us running heavily customized,
not on support for a decade, 405CD. Sounds like nobody on the list has
made *that* jump. We still may try it. The box is an old 270.
Maintenance is going up, yada, yada, so we'd like to move to a new box,
but 6.1 is the lowest supported OS version for a newer box.

Thanks.

Pete Helgren
Value Added Software, Inc
www.asaap.com
www.opensource4i.com

On 12/3/2010 2:12 PM, Bill wrote:

On 12/03/10 7:41 AM, Pete Helgren wrote:

Has anyone on 405CD upgraded to IBM i 6.1? ANZOBJCVN shows BPCS has 61
objects that may have issues and none of them have source (which is
interesting). We were thinking about recompiling the objects that lacked
observability but we may have other issues. Just curious if anyone
successfully made the jump and if so, how it was accomplished.

Pete,

You will need to get in touch with Infor for pricing to obtain the
recompiled objects.

Bill