Overview
The Prism Conversion System (Prism-CS™) is the best software product designed to automate the conversion of DOS/VSE, VSE/SP, VSE/ESA and z/VSE applications to MVS, OS/390 and z/OS. Prism-CS includes a set of integrated components to load and validate the application inventory, convert and compile programs, translate JCL streams, and transfer application data.
Prism-CS significantly reduces the time required to convert the applications by automating repetitive tasks, thereby allowing the team in charge of migrating a VSE data center to OS/390 or z/OS to concentrate on other migration activities, such as planning, training, system tests, and coordination.
Prism-CS is designed for the mass-conversion method to convert an entire VSE data center to MVS over a week-end.
With its advanced mass-processing capabilities, Prism-CS reduces the time it takes to complete a migration project, while relieving the applications staff from having to freeze (or track maintenance applied to) the applications during the course of the migration.
The design of Prism-CS encompasses a vast amount of experience accumulated on dozens of conversion projects since 1980, resulting in a state-of-the-art product, which is continuously and actively maintained and enhanced.
The extreme versatility of Prism-CS is demonstrated in a set of translated real-world job streams which include VSE JCL, in-line programs and utility steps, as well as the resulting MVS job streams, which were automatically generated by the JCL Translator. Due to its versatility, Prism-CS can handle a wide variety of situations that arise from the use of IBM and non-IBM software products within the VSE applications, and is currently ready to support the following:
- Cobol, Assembler, PL/I, RPG II, Fortran
- Easytrieve, Easytrieve-Plus,
Dylakor (DYL260, or Vision:Sixty and DYL280, or Vision:Results), QuikJob (Vision:Report),
Natural, CA-Earl, Mantis, Ideal, SAS
- VSE JCL, VSE/POWER JECL, EPIC JCL, SPRI
- VSE PROCs, POWER SLIs, most INCLUDEs
- CA-Dynam/D/T/FI, EPAT, EPIC, CA-System/Manager, DiskMaster/VSE, TapeMaster/VSE, ADAS, SYSB-II, PSAM
- SORT/MERGE utilities (CA, CSI, IBM, SYNCSORT), ICETOOL, CA-SRAM, CA-DART
- IDCAMS, DITTO, CLRDK, DRET
- DL/I, DB2, Datacom/DB, IDMS, Adabas, Total/Supra, Model 204
- APPC, MQSeries
- DrD, DUSP, Faver, Faver2, MaxBack, WDU, FCOPY, TSIDOFL, DATABACK, SelCopy, KwikKey, KwikLod
- MTPBATCH, IPCPBTCH, JCLBCICS, BEMT
- FTP, FTPBATCH, BSTTFTPC, NetView FTP, VSE2PDF, XCOM, Outbound, BIMFTRBC, INWMUTIL, LANRES, GENIOS, CFTUTIL
- KeyFast, KeyMaster and ODE
- Linkage-editor control statements
- VSE Conditional JCL, EPIC JMCL, CA-Driver, FAQS/PCS PCL/ECL, Software Pursuits PLF
- FAQS/PCS, CA-Scheduler, Zeke
- VSE Libraries, ICCF, VM/CMS, Librarian, Panvalet, VOLLIE
- MVT/VSE, EDOS/VSE
Prism-CS is designed for high-performance, low overhead and runs on any MVS/ESA, OS/390 or z/OS system. Once a sufficient level of tailoring has been applied, an average-size inventory can be completely processed in half a day, i.e. a complete set of programs, JCL and data files can be captured from the VSE environment, restored onto the MVS system, converted, and made available for testing in a matter of hours.
Since 2000, Prism-CS has helped dozens of VSE data centers migrate their applications smoothly to OS/390 and z/OS.
Components 
Prism-CS is made up of several sub-systems, fully integrated with each other:
Prism-CS also includes the ARCHIVER, COMPILES, PDSEDIT and PDSUTIL products. Other GSF Software Products may be bundled with Prism-CS for an additional fee.
Inventory Processing
Inventory Processing consists of:
- Input Formatters, a set of utility programs to load the contents of tapes created in VSE or VM/CMS into standard MVS Partitioned data sets.
- JCL Expansion creates an intermediate version of the VSE JCL in which all SLIs, PROCs and INCLUDE have been expanded. This greatly facilitates the analysis of the JCL streams and is a pre-requisite to Inventory Validation and JCL Translation.
- Inventory Validation analyzes the JCL, programs and CICS tables to find the relationships between the different objects and produces a set of reports that identify missing and unreferenced elements.
Language Conversion Programs
Language Conversion Programs (LCP) process VSE source programs written in COBOL, Assembler, PL/I, RPG II and several non-IBM languages, and automatically make syntax changes necessary to adapt the source code to the MVS version of the compiler. LCPs also create the program definition tables (PROGDEF) that are required to drive the JCL translation process.
Programs written in non-IBM languages (Easytrieve, Dylakor, QuikJob, CA-Earl, SAS, Natural, Mantis, Ideal) can be in-line (the source code is imbedded in the JCL), or off-line (the source code is stored in separate libraries). In both cases, non-IBM languages are processed by the same set of LCPs which make necessary changes to the source code and produce program definition tables for the JCL translator.
Mass Compiler
The Mass Compiler, COMPILES, is a software "robot" that controls the compilation of application programs and greatly speeds-up the process by eliminating most of the human and machine overhead which results from using more traditional compilation procedures. The mass-compiler is compatible with standard IBM compilers, as well as most HLLPI pre-processors (CICS, DLI, DB2, etc) and non-IBM languages.
JCL Translator
The JCL Translator, JCLTRANS, converts VSE JOB streams to their MVS equivalent, using tables created by other components, e.g. Language Conversion Programs (LCPs) or FXCLASS, the file classification utility. The JCL Translator converts JCL and JECL statements, utility steps and their control cards, as well as source statements for in-line programs such as Easytyrieve or Dyl280.
The versatility of the JCL Translator is demonstrated in a set of real-world job streams which include VSE JCL, in-line programs and utility steps, as well as the resulting MVS job streams, which were automatically generated by JCLTRANS.
The FXCLASS utility is an important auxiliary to JCLTRANS which assigns a class to every file in the inventory. File classes are used by FXCLASS plug-in modules to automatically calculate MVS attributes, such as data set name, number of generations, space or SMS classes.
Data Transfer
Prism-CS Data Transfer tools generate VSE & MVS JCL streams to transfer VSE application data to MVS for testing, as well as for the final cut-over. Data Transfer tools use tables created by the JCL Translation process which they combine with information from VSE disk and tape catalogs and VTOCs to automate the creation of the VSE and MVS data transfer streams.
Run-time Library
The Prism-CS Run-time Library is a set of optional programs that are sometimes needed to provide functions which are used in VSE programs or job streams, but have no exact equivalent in the MVS world, such as the // DATE card in the JCL or the COMRG and SEGMENT macro instructions in assembler programs.
Documentation
The Prism-CS documentation is a set of Web pages available to licensed users on the World-wide Web or on CD-ROM. Full access to the documentation pages requires a Web browser that supports the CSS2 Specification.
System Requirements
Programming Requirements
- Prism-CS runs in the MVS/ESA, OS/390, z/OS and z/OS.e environments. Prism-CS converts applications the same way, regardless of the environment.
- On an MVS/ESA system, Assembler H or the High-level Assembler must be available for customisation. The COBOL for OS/390 and VM V2R2 or the Enterprise COBOL compiler is required to write customisation exit routines, LCPs or plug-in modules in COBOL. The Enterprise PL/I compiler is required to write LCPs and plug-in modules in PL/I.
Machine Requirements
- Prism-CS components are very efficient and run in minutes with minimal CPU usage. An LPAR or VM guest on a low-end S/390 machine such as an MP3000 or a z/890 running z/OS.e is perfectly adequate to run Prism-CS.
- Prism-CS requires 20MB of DASD space for its installation. Additional DASD space is required to hold the equivalent of three copies of the source code inventory.
Distributors
Prism-CS is available world-wide. Pricing follows a tiered model, in which both the cost and duration of a license are based on the size of the conversion inventory.
To purchase a Prism-CS License or obtain additional information, please contact GSF Software which also offers a set of related consulting and professional services (see below) in conjunction with world-wide partners. In Japan, please contact K.K. Paradox.
Service Offerings
GSF Software offers a set of optional, fee-based services to help Prism-CS licensees make the most of the software product.
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Prism Conversion System™ 
