Features Added in Enterprise Server 4.0

Application Server JCA Support for Enterprise Server

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This release includes the following enhancements:

• COBOL Resource Adapters now support WebSphere 9.0 and WebLogic 12.2.1.
• Tomcat 7.0 support for servlet generation with J2SEBeans.
• NullSearch utility - for COBOL resource adapters, this new utility provides assistance in locating NULL fields in mappings passed to Enterprise Server. When a large number of arguments is provided in the parameters passed to Enterprise Server, it is difficult to locate NULL fields, which are not allowed. The NullSearch utility isolates NULL fields, so the Java application can be corrected.

Data File Tools

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It is now possible to export any filtered results. When filtering a data file, you can use the results to create a new data file - click Search > Export Results when a filter is applied to save the filtered records to a new file. You can:

• Save the filtered records to a new file.
• Save the records that match the specified filter (such as customer information or orders).
• Download a subset of the data from a remote file.
• Save a small portion of the data for testing purposes.

Database Connectors

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Docker

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This release provides support to enable you to run your COBOL and PL/I applications in Docker containers, taking advantage of the many benefits offered by the Docker platform such as portability, performance, agility, isolation, and scalability.

Enterprise Server

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The following enhancements have been made to Enterprise Server:

• Conversation filtering - the Enterprise Server Communications Process (MFCS) can now restrict access to listeners by client address. You can specify any permitted or forbidden addresses either by IP address, network mask, or domain name, and use wildcards. Filters can be applied to individual listeners, communications processes, or to entire regions. More specific filter rules override any general ones.

• The Enterprise Server Security Facility now starts throttling Verify requests when it receives more than 100 requests per second.

  This can be used to limit the effectiveness of denial-of-service and brute force attacks. You can configure the value where throttling occurs. See Verify Request Throttling for more information.

• (Technology Preview only) Support for adding, deleting, and modifying XA resources in a live Enterprise Server region.

  It is now possible to add, edit, or delete XA resources while an enterprise server instance is running. Any changes made come into effect after any in-flight transactions have completed. The ability to make these changes in a live environment comes under the control of the existing enterprise server permissions.

• XA-compliant Resources (XARs) - this release provides enhanced CTF tracing that allows more flexible reporting of warnings and errors on the RM switch module level.

• A new Communications Server resource class - enables you to control the access to the Enterprise Server Console Log and Communications Server Log when external security is in effect for an enterprise server region; see Resource Classes for Communications Server for more information.

• Improved catalog availability - there is now an improved resilience to temporary communication issues with the catalog and error reporting enabling a region to stay active if a region has multiple catalogs defined and one of the catalogs is not available.

• Enhanced SSL/TLS certificate support - for communications with TLS (formerly SSL), additional certificate and key file formats are supported. Servers may now be configured with both an RSA and an ECC key and certificate.
• Enhanced SSL/TLS cipher configuration - for communications with TLS (formerly SSL), the permitted cipher suites and their preferred order can now be configured. The minimum size of Diffie-Hellman groups for DH key exchange can also be configured. The defaults have been made more secure.

• The Historical Statistics Facility (HSF) now enables you to write user-defined data to the records produced within a .csv file. Use the ES_WRITE_CUSTOM_HSF or ESCSTHSF library routines within your COBOL programs to define the custom data, and use the ES_HSF_CFG environment variable to configure up to five custom fields in the generated record.
• You can also use the ES_HSF_CFG environment variable to configure the number of CICSF, TSQ, and TDQ fields that are written to the record.

File Handler

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This release provides the following enhancements:

• The DFSORT and SYNCSORT emulations now support the NULLOFL parameter of the OUTFIL statement.
• The ASCIISOSI configuration option is now available. It adds the required SOSI characters to the relevant EBCDIC DBCS character strings in order for them to be displayed or written out correctly.

HCO for DB2 LUW

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This release includes the following new features:

• Support for CHARSET EBCDIC COBOL stored procedures
• Seamless integration with DB2 LUW SBCS databases, providing various EBCDIC collation sequences
• 64-bit HCO command-line tools are now available across all supported platforms
• HCO DCLGEN enhancements that provide more copybook generation options

IMS support

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This release introduces the following new features:

• The IMS Database Forward Recovery feature has been updated to provide point-in-time forward recovery that enables you to recover all database transactions completed up to a specified point in time, including date and time of day.
• Support for export and import of IMS-configured enterprise server regions through Server Explorer.
• Support for the same IMS user ID to be signed on to multiple LUs simultaneously by using the ES_IMS_SINGLE environment variable and optionally the ES_LTERM_PREFIX environment variable.
  Note: This is a technology preview feature only. It is being made available to allow you to test and provide feedback on this new capability; however, this feature is not intended for production use and it is not supported as such.

JCL support

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This release introduces the following new features and enhancements:

• Micro Focus FTP utility - you can now configure MFFTP to not process trailing blank spaces for a GET command, by setting the new control variable MFFTP_PROCESS_TRAILS_ONGET=FALSE and setting the LOCSTAT value TRAILINGBLANKS=FALSE.
• A new API has been introduced - MVSSPLPB - that enables you to search all job information held in the JES spool control files. It is more comprehensive that the existing MVSCASPB API, and should instead be used for all new spool enquiries.
• A number of new environment variables have been introduced that enable you to configure the JES startup behavior with regards to opening user catalog files. You can configure JES to open user catalog files only when they are required (and not during system startup), and you can configure JES to retry opening a catalog file that has failed to open. These changes increase the resilience of the JES system, as you can mitigate against JES startup failures if the user catalog files are not readily available whilst the region starts.
• The public catalog API, MVSCATPB, has been enhanced to better report on file errors when opening catalog files. The following new functions have been added to mfpubcat.cpy: GCFS, GNFS, STNI, GCFE, and GNFE. See Functions for more information.

Mainframe Access

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The installation process has been changed as follows:

• A single installer for both Mainframe Access and the Mainframe Access z/Server support is provided.
• There is now only one XML configuration file for Mainframe Access. There is also a new configuration utility that guides you through the configuration process.
• Specify your own JES console character - it is now possible to configure the Mainframe Access installation to use a different JES console character instead of the default ("$"). To achieve this, use the new JES_CONCHAR configuration parameter.

Enhancements are available in the following areas:

Managed COBOL

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Deploying JVM COBOL to an Application Server:

• Running JVM COBOL under WebSphere 9.0 and WebLogic 12.2.1 is now supported.

OpenESQL

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This release provides the following new features:

• Support for SQL Server 2017.
• The SQL(TRANSACTION) compiler directive has been enhanced to clearly define transaction boundaries.
• A new SQL(NOWHERECURRENT) compiler directive that allows you to define updateable cursors that do not do positioned updates or deletes with PostgreSQL or MySQL.
• Larger communication area (PID) that accommodates longer plan and program names.
• SQL(OPTIMIZECURSORS) has been enhanced for consistent and better cursor performance across all OpenESQL backends.

Platform support

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Note the following changes in platform support for this release:

• Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 are no longer supported for developing applications. They are still supported for deployment.

PL/I support

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PL/I compiler and Run-Time System enhancements:

• Support for the following built-in functions - CHARVAL(), COMPARE(), CURRENTSIZE(), EDIT(), PICSPEC(), SOURCEFILE() and SOURCELINE().
• Support for additional DATETIME() format strings.
• Support for the FLUSH FILE(*), ITERATE, and RESIGNAL statement.
• Support for the XMLOMIT and XMOLATTR attributes on variable declarations.
• Support for the MARGINI compiler option.
• Support for the SIZE and STRINGSIZE prefix conditions.
• Improved support for the repeat factor on arrays of AREA variables.
• Improved pointer arithmetic on 64-bit platforms.
• Where necessary, MFPLX now recognizes selected *PROCESS statements and passes them to the appropriate preprocessors.

PL/I macro preprocessor:

• The Micro Focus macro preprocessor now provides a new default behavior that mimics IBM's RESCAN(ASIS) behavior. In addition, a new option, rescan_upper, has been introduced to enable you to optionally mimic IBM's RESCAN(UPPER) behavior.

Improvements in compatibility with IBM's Macro Preprocessor:

• Allows OTHER as an acceptable abbreviation for OTHERWISE on a macro SELECT statement.
• Supports the SCAN/NOSCAN option on declaration of macro variables.
• Implements the NOSCAN option on ANSWER statements.
• The %NOTE message format has been modified to match IBM's behavior.
• The SYSVERSION built-in function has been modified to always return a value of 22 bytes in length (space padded, if necessary).
• Relaxed diagnostics for scenarios where Enterprise Developer is generating a warning message and IBM does not.

(Technical Preview) Interaction with COBOL AMODE and 370 Assembler programs (Windows 32-bit only):

• A new compiler option is available which enables Open PL/I to interact with 370 Assembler, and with COBOL programs compiled with AMODE. See the product help for the current limitations to this support.