ATERAS DB-Shuttle Automated Conversion Tool Understands over 90 Languages and Dialects

For over 20 years, ATERAS (www.ateras.com) has supported global enterprises, offering state-of-the-art services by modernizing legacy systems to the most current IT environments. Their patent-pending DB-Shuttle™ automation technology provides comprehensive assessments of IT environments and fully automated conversions for migration of mission-critical applications and databases, either mainframe-to-mainframe or to newer platforms like .NET.

According to Cindy Howard, executive vice president, conversion solutions, “DB-Shuttle offers a complete, automated method to protect legacy assets, reduce maintenance costs, provide agility and flexibility and enable SOA of business-critical applications.”

WFS: What’s your core competency?

CH: Our ability to provide 100% automation to the conversion process reduces risk, shortens the timeline for modernization, and lowers the cost of the conversion. We minimize manual intervention during the conversion process while maximizing the resulting application’s performance, ease of enhancement and extendibility.

WFS: Tell us about the migration you handled for Progressive Insurance.

CH: It was the conversion of their mission-critical nationwide core claims system. Progressive’s goal was to eliminate IDMS and the fourth-generation language called ADS/Online from their claims IT application without disrupting their claims-related activities – they did two million transactions a day – or impacting the end-user environment – they had 10,000 users. The contract was signed in June 2005 and went live May 2006. The conversion included four million lines of code, 600 online screens, 1200-plus batch programs and retained 100% of Progressive’s business rules.

WFS: DB-Shuttle: Is it truly automated? How many languages does it support?

CH: It is. Currently DB-Shuttle understands over 90 languages and dialects. Its design as an ‘any language to any language’ converter ensures that there’s no limit on the number of database types or application languages it can learn to convert or generate. To date, its relational conversion engine has generated the DDL for more than 200 relational databases, including DDL for Oracle, SQL Server and DB2.

WFS: Do the parameter options vary for each relational database type?

CH: Yes, but the resulting logical relational structures and table/column definitions are the same, regardless of the database type.

WFS: How many phases does the ATERAS Conversion Process have?

CH: Three. Assessment, database and data conversion and application conversion. The assessment phase ensures the conversion scope and areas of concentration are isolated and well defined prior to starting the conversion effort. The second phase includes generation of new relational-database structures designed to provide the same traversal performance capabilities as the former database, and includes generation of the extract programs for converting the data itself. The third phase occurs simultaneously with phase two and includes all re-naming of components and generation of new software.

WFS: How important is assessment?

CH: Software assessment is a complete research and analysis project that outlines all mainframe application and database conversion candidates. Components are classified and listed in detail. Notes are attached to components requiring special attention during the conversion process. All application components are inventoried, classified by language, and cross-referenced. Missing components are collected and added to the inventory. Duplicate components residing in multiple customer repositor ies are eliminated from the inventory. The assessment results in a complete understanding of the processing environment. DB-Shuttle conducts the assessment, counting, categorizing and pointing out any areas of concentration.

WFS: What benefits can firms expect?

CH: We ensure complete migration of mission-critical apps and databases in a timely, cost-effective, low-risk manner. There are no system-level software hooks, no black-box processing, no additional execution overhead, no changes from the end-user perspective, and no license fees. Moreover, our solutions are turnkey including 100% automated assessment and conversion with no required code freeze, 100% functionally equivalent applications and databases, and 100% retention of business rules.

WFS: Impressive.

CH: Clients think so…