Re: Call a rpg program from a node script running on an external windows or linux server

[Niels Liisberg <nli@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

The simple but also IMHO most convoluted solution is to wrap your code in a
SQL stored procedure and access it by ODBC or Mapepire.

The more modern approach is to think "separation of concerns" and create a
small service on the IBM i that handles the service request.

I notice Daniel Gross already proposed ILEastic/NoxDb—this is the approach
we are implementing and recommend. You have 100% control over the JSON
layout and can add extra parameters, headers, or security settings.

Regarding your concerns about production readiness:  The IceBreak project
stared some 25 year ago and runs core business for the biggest banks and
insurance companies in Europe. ILEastic and NoxDb were carved out from the
IceBreak core and made into open-source projects that also run at
Fortune-100 companies. I know more than 300 sites using the open-source
solution.

Btw - Daniel - the TLS support was just pulled in :)




On Wed, May 6, 2026 at 8:34 PM cesco via RPG400-L <
rpg400-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> You have plenty of options... UDTF, or good old stored procedure (just
> make a wrapper to the existing program, can return multiple result set,
> well proven etc.).
> Protocol from client ODBC, JDBC etc. mapepire (has a TS JS client) require
> to install the server on the i that it is a proxy then over jdbc itself.
> You can run also node on the ibm i itself if you require "no direct data
> on the wire" and serving pages there.
> I personally don't like too many json serialization and deserializations
> dances in vogue today due to dominance of the web layer for any problem
> (gimme hammer and nail scenario), but obviously you can also generate the
> json directly from the IBMi in case makes sense (with full control via say
> apache plus rpg stdout).
> Also session user aspects if important in your case, many I see around
> neglect this aspect (ie. I see many times a pool running under the same
> user proxing the web forgoing one important aspect of IBMi like full
> auditing, user appearing in journals etc. depends of course by the
> complexity of your case).
> ciao!
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Wednesday, May 6, 2026 at 12:01:41 PM GMT+2, Luca Giammattei <
> luca.giammattei@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> Hi everyone, I may soon find myself in the situation in question: a web
> app
> running on a Linux or Windows server needs to access data on the Power
> Server.
> Obviously, this involves structured information based on a well-defined
> and
> consolidated calculation in a business logic managed by three RPG programs
> that
> have been doing their job effectively for 20 years. The only change was
> made
> about twenty years ago, and a parameter was added to the programs that
> simply
> creates an PF-DTA object as an output file with this data to be later
> managed.
> So, back to the point: what's the best way to allow a Node.js script
> running on
> a Linux (or Windows) server to connect with a specific user to a Power
> Server on
> IBM i 7.3 or 7.5 and make a call pgm1(parm1); wait a few milliseconds for
> the
> execution time and then retrieve a database file? Has anyone had similar
> experiences? Perhaps encapsulate the pgm in an SQL function?
> Thanks in advance to anyone who can share their experiences.
> --
> This is the RPG programming on IBM i (RPG400-L) mailing list
> To post a message email: RPG400-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or change list options,
> visit: https://lists.midrange.com/mailman/listinfo/rpg400-l
> or email: RPG400-L-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Before posting, please take a moment to review the archives
> at https://archive.midrange.com/rpg400-l.
>
> Please contact support@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx for any subscription related
> questions.
>
> --
> This is the RPG programming on IBM i (RPG400-L) mailing list
> To post a message email: RPG400-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or change list options,
> visit: https://lists.midrange.com/mailman/listinfo/rpg400-l
> or email: RPG400-L-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Before posting, please take a moment to review the archives
> at https://archive.midrange.com/rpg400-l.
>
> Please contact support@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx for any subscription related
> questions.