Mainframe Mainframe (mainframe)

Are used for a hosting of commercial databases, transaction processing and accomplishment of the complex applications requiring unsurpassed indicators on stability, integrity, security and degree of readiness. Mainframes freely support thousands of at the same time executed input-output transactions, service users on a global scale and process up to one billion transactions a day.

2020: Upgrade it is impossible to leave

In the spring of 2020 the research agency Coleman Parkes held online poll of Mainframe Modernization Business Barometer Report of 400 people working at the European and American enterprises with the minimum annual turnover in $1 billion. Worked at these enterprises from 1 to 9 mainframes (on average in the company 4 such computers worked)^[1].

Middle age is mainframe — 17 years (machines worked for 8% "absolutely new", 10 years are younger; 64% of mainframes were in a system from 10 to 20 years, 28% — from 20 to 30 years).

During the research of analytics Coleman Parkes found out the relation of respondents to replacement of mainframes by more modern systems and for what reasons such projects came to an end unsuccessfully.

According to the report, despite a difficult economic situation of the last years, the level of upgrade of corporate systems in the world is rather high. So, for the last three years respondents updated 96% of CRM systems, 97% of ERP, 96% of the systems of sale and marketing. 34% of respondents said that upgrade helped business to accelerate digital transformation, 33% — to react to market changes quicker. Improvement of customer relations became result of 30% of programs of upgrade.

For 2020 plans for updating are practically in all companies. 60% of respondents believe that otherwise they will lag behind competitors, 33% — that replacement of legacy systems will allow their company to react more quickly to market changes, 34% said that such upgrade will accelerate projects of digital transformation.

Many of them want to replace a linking of mainframes/COBOL with more modern program and hardware. Most often the IT systems consider outdated in HR departments (36%), they are followed by operating rooms (29%) and financial (23%). At the same time, wonderfully, among the top management there are differences of opinion on need of upgrade of financial systems. A third of operational heads consider that these solutions need upgrade, among, apparently, the chief financial officers of such point of view who are terribly interested in this process adhere to only 15%. In a research the conclusion is drawn that financiers understand importance of a problem worse though it is possible to assume that but they understand better in what upgrade manages.

Expressed 98% of respondents the need to replace legacy applications with cloud.

However the mentioned ERP-and the CRM system are well-known industrial solutions with which implementation vendors or consultants can help. With applications it is harder and harder for mainframes, they often "self-written", closely, and not always it is clear, interact with other legacy business systems (often self-written too), and risks at making changes in an IT landscape of the enterprise are significantly higher.

Therefore not process of replacement of mainframes takes place in all companies smoothly. 74%, nearly three quarters of respondents, said that they began the program of upgrade, but could not complete it. Two basic reasons of failures — fear of changes and a lack of financing. Which is also often connected with unwillingness to select money for an action, dangerous to business of the company.

As a result of only 12% of IT managers said that in a funding plan of projects of upgrade the management completely supports them, and 56% said that financing is interfered by fear of changes.

At the same time heads of higher rank get more substantial support: 53% of Chief information officers and 42% of chief financial officers say that top management of their companies entirely for updating of IT systems.

However, on some questions and among directors there is no consent: nearly a half (48%) of "financiers" believe that the main factor which should be considered at a time estimate which will be occupied by the program of upgrade, this number of the mainframes involved in process. Among Chief information officers such only a third. Moreover, among IT employees of different levels there are discrepancies in estimates of importance of some aspects of upgrade. 36% of IT architects and 41% of IT managers consider that automatic conversion of the code of outdated programs will save a lot of time. Among Chief information officers only 9% hold such opinion.

On the one hand, it is possible to assume (as it was made by analysts of Coleman Parkes) that Chief information officers "came off the earth" and forgot what is manual transfer of the code. With another, the operating and chief financial officers who are practically guaranteed not understanding problems of porting of applications, also for automation (26% and 31% respectively). Therefore, it is possible to assume that Chief information officers, actually, simply imagine a work progress better and have more fair idea of that how many behind automatic means then it is necessary to clean manually.

Thus, there are enough difficulties with transition to new technologies, however and on mainframes to remain as respondents believe, dangerously. Among effects of preserving of the status quo most of respondents indicated complexity of integration of legacy systems with modern technologies. Difficulties with set of suitable specialists became the second in frequency answer.

You do not hurry to bury them

Though in a century of cloud computing mainframes are considered by many as something outdated, however not everything is so unambiguous. For example, affirms as a research of BMC "New Wave of Success of Mainframes" company (2019) that these computers are capable to meet constantly changing requirements of business of times of digital transformation. Three key factors of success of mainframes which select in BMC — the high level of flexibility and ability to integrate; existence of means of predictive automation and also management tools risks in the field of security. Therefore many clients continue to use this platform and among young specialists growth of interest in these "dinosaurs" is visible.

According to this report, most of respondents (93%) trust in platform perspectives — now it has highest "trust level" since 2013, and consider that mainframes will support much more in comparison with last years of new workloads (52%), and 59% of heads are sure of opportunities of mainframes as platforms for business growth (against 51% in 2018).

Therefore as analysts believe, the market of mainframes grows and will grow in the nearest future, though modest rates, for 3-5% a year by different estimates. Let's tell, Orbis Research gives the forecast for 2.7%: with 4771.6 in 2019 to $5316.2 million in the 2025th. Despite growth of cloud computing, these computers there are an integral part of IT infrastructure of many organizations, including, such world famous as Visa, WalMart and Citigroup.

2019: 93% of specialists consider that load of mainframes will grow

On December 4, 2019 the DIS Group company reported that BMC Software, one of decision makers for management of IT, conducted survey about problems and perspectives of mainframes. More than 1100 heads of the companies and IT specialists participated in poll. Respondents save confidence in the high potential of development of mainframes and advantage of their upgrade. And modern mainframes continue to conform to constantly changing requirements of business, despite digital transformation.

93% of specialists consider that load of mainframes will grow. 59% – that this growth will be caused by transfer on mainframes of accomplishment of the arising tasks in addition to current.

Also respondents told about the priorities of work with mainframes, main for themselves. Both for heads, and for IT specialists the main priority – cost reduction (declared 61% and 68% it respectively). As well those, and others noted importance of compliance to requirements of regulators, information security supports (cybersecurity), availability of applications and carrying out upgrade.

The attention to information security is not casual. 77% of respondents said that they faced incidents in the field of cybersecurity or threats of such incidents. 92% of respondents told that at them there takes place audit in this area each two years.

In Russia and the CIS one of distributors of BMC Software is the DIS Group company.

Information security and cost reduction – the major priorities and for the Russian companies. For this reason close attention is paid to that, funds for IT infrastructure and services are how effectively spent. The companies aim to use the resources to the maximum, to increase safety of interaction and inside, and with external partners. On this background it is especially important to use IT management tools. They should consider all features of modern business and allow to optimize costs for information technologies in the long term, specifies Pavel Likhnitsky, the CEO of DIS Group

In order that mainframes remained reliable, available and safe, updating of technologies and processes of work is necessary. In this sense high potential at tools and processes of AIOps. 52% of respondents use tools and processes of AIOps during the work with mainframes.

2017: An incentive for replacement of mainframes

Implementation of artificial intelligence (Artificial Intelligence, AI), machine learning and Internet of Things (Internet of Things, IoT) requires from the companies to unroll quicker new services and to process data therefore in 2018 to the companies, still using mainframes, it will be necessary to decide what next to do with these outdated computers. The developer of the system software TmaxSoft company considers that mainframes prevent implementation of AI, machine learning and IoT, and as a result of their owners it is difficult to sustain the growing competition during an era of digital transformation of business.

Andrey Reva, the chief executive of the Russian department of TmaxSoft company, so explains a situation: "Digital technologies changed a basis of business models therefore today they are extremely unstable and the companies need to rebuild completely the work and to react flexibly to changes in the markets already not only for improvement of competitiveness, but for the survival. The main problem at the companies which still use mainframes is an impossibility to seamlessly integrate new technologies without which it is impossible to adapt to constantly changing situation in the market".

Gartner predicts that AI together with IoT within several next years will cardinally change all markets, and those companies which the first on the websites will implement support of visual and voice search, by 2021 will increase the sales return via the Internet by 30%. Also Garter foretells that in 2020 95% of all new electronics will use IoT.

"Legacy technologies which were developed last century often slow down entry into the market and interfere with implementations of innovations, turning start of new services and response to actions of competitors into very difficult and long process. Outdated mainframes not only require huge maintenance expenses, but also are often incompatible with the modern software, best in the class. Mainframes have some more serious minuses, including dependence on one supplier and the growing deficit of specialists which can service these legacy computers", - Reva emphasized.

2012

As showed survey of fall of 2012 of the British information technology specialists conducted by CA Technologies company in corporate environment mainframes are still considered as strategically important part of information infrastructure. So considers 72% from 623 survey participants. At the same time 37% from them the year and a half plans in the next increase in expenses on purchases of the software for mainframes. Especially specialists note a role of mainframes in the cloud systems, processing of large volumes of data and mobile technologies. 42% of respondents believe that mainframes will be the strategic platform for the cloud systems, and 65% already implemented or are going to implement on mainframes of a management tool mobile devices.

Despite importance of mainframes, over two thirds of respondents noted deficit of specialists in this sphere. Some organizations experience difficulties with selection of the employees having experience with complex systems based on mainframes and with respect thereto look for the specialists understanding at the same time mainframes and distributed architectures. The vast majority of respondents plans implementation of the hybrid systems.

2009

According to European Commission, in 2009 the volume of the world market of mainframes and operating systems to them was €8.5 billion from which €3 billion were the share of Europe.

The largest suppliers

IBM

You See Also

• The directory Supercomputers (systems and projects) on TAdviser
• Supercomputers of Russia and CIS
• Rating of supercomputers of Russia and CIS of Top50
• Supercomputers in China
• Quantum computer
• Server platforms
• AI supercomputers

Notes