Application Modernization Can Reduce Mainframe TCO
By Shawna Rudd, Product Marketing Manager, Mainframe Management & Data Center Modernization Services
Companies looking to cut mainframe costs should re-evaluate their mainframe applications. Some apps 
Gartner recommends an Application Portfolio Management initiative (which should include an application portfolio analysis) to help pinpoint high-value, high-risk applications when prioritizing modernization initiatives. HP offers assessments to identify modernization opportunities for apps that will remain on the mainframe and those you want to move off.
We can help retire or replace mainframe apps, or re-factor (fine-tune) code to reduce costs. But, one of the most popular ways to reduce mainframe costs is to re-host (or migrate) one or more of your mainframe apps to a lower-cost platform. Not all apps can be easily re-hosted, though. Some apps are better candidates for re-hosting than others. We can help identify those apps that can be “lifted and shifted” to a lower-cost platform with minimal changes to data or code.
If re-hosting one or more mainframe applications interests you – there’s much to consider.
- What’s your motivation for re-hosting and is it the right thing to do from a business standpoint? What are the implications to your business, other systems, staff, etc.? How much time, effort and money will it really take to get the job done?
- HP experience says that COBOL workloads that run in CICS, IMS, DB2 or batch environments on the mainframe - ones that you're considering re-hosting -- could be good candidates for our standard re-hosting service. A quick re-host assessment is needed to determine feasibility.
Even IBM “right-fit” experts say that applications with compute-intensive workloads (i.e., homogeneous, predictable online transaction processing; applications requiring close proximity to distributed data; or single standalone workload with a single application function) are probably better suited to run on distributed platforms.
- HP modernization experts say that code quality, code ownership, non-IBM software products within the environment, and other factors can prevent applications from being re-hosted – even if you want to re-host them.
At the end of the day, there’s much to consider when trying determining whether or not a re-hosting effort is going to provide the expected benefits, cost savings, reliability and performance. Reality is, re-host projects often take longer and cost more than IT operations expect. For this reason, it’s wise to consider a partner who …
- Has helped hundreds of companies to achieve their re-host objectives
- Can objectively evaluate the feasibility of re-hosting a mainframe application
- Can help supply the people, products and expertise necessary to help make it happen
Consider these HP assessments to help identify mainframe cost reduction opportunities and develop or revise your current mainframe application modernization plans:
- Mainframe Application Rationalization Assessment
- Mainframe Modernization Opportunity Assessment
- Mainframe Modernization ReHost Services
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