Application Migration Process

Host Compatibility Option for SQL Server (HCOSS) and OpenESQL provides features and tools that assist in migration of mainframe applications that use DB2 to applications that run on Windows and use SQL Server. HCOSS also includes tools that enable you to migrate DB2 databases.

You can use a combination of the following tools and features to achieve successful COBOL application migration, which includes building and binding an application:

HCOSS Assess Application Migration tool

Used to determine the best method of migration, and provides a conversion tool you can use to automatically convert your DB2 SQL code to SQL Server.

HCOSS Manage Connections tool

Used to create a connection to the SQL Server database.

HCOSS Manage Packages and Plans tool

Used to bind DBRM members into packages and plans, and to bind packages into plans. It also generates and saves BIND commands to bind script (.hcodsn) files you can execute using the DSN Bind utility.

DSN Bind utility

A free-standing Windows command-line utility used to achieve mainframe-like binding using a subset of the functionality of the mainframe DSN utility. This option is available if you do not create bind scripts that bind the application during the build process

HCOSS-specific OpenESQL SQL compiler directive options

Provide SQL syntax compatibility between DB2 and SQL and also provide binding functionality.

While you can choose from other methods of application migration using HCOSS, the basic and recommended process of COBOL and PL/I application migration includes:

1. Using the HCOSS Manage Connections tool, connect to your SQL Server database.
2. In Visual Studio, create a project based on the COBOL Native Console Application template.
3. Using the Assess Application Migration tool, determine the SQL conversion method that best fits your COBOL or PL/I source code.
4. Take appropriate steps to convert your source code, based on your selected conversion method. This could include using the Conversion tool to generate new source files containing T-SQL code, manually fixing your existing code based on the findings reported in the Assess Application Migration tool, or using HCOSS with or without the BIND option to convert the code based on the HCOSS DB2 to SQL Server Conversion mappings.
5. Add mainframe or converted COBOL or PL/I source code to the project.
6. Add appropriate SQL OpenESQL compiler directive options in the project properties.
7. Also in the project properties, add a post-build event that runs the DSN command and binds the application to the SQL Server database.
8. Build the application, automatically binding the application to the database.
9. Run the application.