Chapter 3: New Features Issued Since Server Express 1.0

This chapter describes features introduced in releases since Server Express 1.0. Each release includes all the features introduced in previous releases.

Server Express 1.1

This section describes features that were introduced in Server Express 1.1.

Portable .idy Files

Animator information files (.idy files) created by Server Express are portable to Net Express and Mainframe Express, enabling you to debug your application using these development environments. If you port an .idy file, you must port its associated .int file. You cannot port an .idy file with any other type of executable file for debugging in another environment.

FaultFinder Enhancements

FaultFinder has been enhanced. You can now start FaultFinder from the command line, and from within a program using the library routine CBL_FFND_REPORT. You can also now take a snapshot of a program's source code, and its compiled characteristics, before shipping the program to your end-users, using the FaultFinder Listing Generator. This can help you analyze a FaultFinder report. The FaultFinder Listing Generator provides information in the form of a detailed listing file.

See the chapter FaultFinder in your Utilities Guide for information on FaultFinder.

Scan64 Utility

Scan64 helps you migrate applications from 32-bit to 64-bit COBOL systems. If you have developed COBOL programs using the Server Express 32-bit development environment that you want to migrate to the Server Express 64-bit development environment, you should run Scan64 before compiling and running them with the 64-bit system development environment. In particular, Scan64 enables you to detect and correct pointer violations before migrating your COBOL source code to 64-bit COBOL systems.

See the chapter Scan64 in your Utilities Guide for information on the Scan64 utility.

COBOL BS2000 Dialect

You can set the DIALECT Compiler directive to BS2000 or BS2000-OFFLOAD, which enables you to rehost Siemens BS2000 COBOL mainframe applications on your UNIX system. See the chapter Siemens BS2000 COBOL Syntax Support in your Language Reference for more information. For information on the DIALECT directive, see the topic DIALECT.

Server Express 2.0

Server Express enables you to develop 64-bit applications. If you install Server Express 2.0 on a 64-bit UNIX system, you can choose whether to develop programs using a 32-bit or 64-bit development system. The tools available to you are the same whichever development system you are using, and are the same as those supplied with Server Express 1.x.

Working Modes

When you install Server Express 2.0 on a 64-bit UNIX system, you will be asked to select a default working mode. A working mode defines whether you use the 32-bit or 64-bit development system. You can change the working mode, either on a system-wide basis or on a user basis. For details on setting and changing working modes, see the chapter Working in 32-bit and 64-bit Modes in your User's Guide.

Migrating Applications to 64-bit Systems

You can migrate a program from a 32-bit development system to the 64-bit development system. If a program does not use pointers or a user-defined File Control Description (FCD), you can create a 64-bit version of the program by using the P64 Compiler directive and recompiling it using the 64-bit development system. For information on the P64 Compiler directive, topic P64.

If a program does contain pointers, and/or user-defined FCDs, you might have to make changes to your program. For information see the chapter Creating 64-bit Programs in your Program Development book. You can locate pointers in your programs using the Scan64 utility, which is described in the chapter Scan64 in your Utilities Guide.

FCD3 Format

In Server Express 2.0, the format of the File Control Description (FCD) has been changed from FCD2 to FCD3. Only FCD3 format can be used in 64-bit compilations. Both FCD2 and FCD3 format can be used in 32-bit compilations. To aid conversion of programs which use the FCD directly, you can use:

• The copyfile XFHFCD.CPY, which has been changed to define an FCD3 record if the program is compiled with the P64 directive. If the program is not compiled with the P64 directive xfhfcd2.cpy, as previously, defines an FCD2 record. The FCD3 record is directly and unconditionally defined in the file xfhfcd3.cpy and the FCD2 record is directly and unconditionally defined in the file xfhfcd2.cpy.
• Conditional compilation extension (for example, using the statements $IF FCD3 SET and $IF NOFCD3 SET) to determine if the program is being compiled with the directive FCD3 set or not. This way source code can be single-sourced for Server Express 32-bit (FCD2/FCD3) and Server Express 64-bit (FCD3) compilations.

For more information, see the section File and FCD Handling in the chapter Creating 64-bit Programs in your Program Development book.

Library Routine Prototypes

Server Express 2.0 provides prototypes for the Server Express library routines. Prototypes help to ensure that the library routines run correctly on a 64-bit system. See the chapter Creating 64-bit Programs in your Program Development book, for an introduction to the library routine prototypes. The documentation of the system library routines in all Server Express books now shows the prototyped data items. For information on the use of prototypes with the library routines, see the section Using the Library Routine Type Definitions and Call Prototypes in the Library Routines.

If the use of prototypes is new to you, there is a discussion of call prototyping in the section Call Prototypes in the chapter Calling Programs in your Program Development book.

Header-to-COPY Utility

The Header-to-COPY utility provides the new command line option (-G) that enables you to group command line options as a named group. The -a and -e command line options provide new parameters to enable working in 64-bit mode.

See the chapter Header-to-COPY Utility in your Program Development book for more information.

Server Express 2.0.10

Server Express 2.0.10 provides the following new features:

• The ability to use Java and COBOL programs together
• A change from License Key Folders to License Key Cards

Support for the Object Request Broker technology has been removed from Server Express 2.0.10, and therefore the ORB User's Guide is no longer included in the documentation.

Java and COBOL

You can use Java and COBOL components together in a distributed computing environment. There are two models for using Java and COBOL together:

• The procedural model. With this model, a Java module can call a procedural COBOL module, and a procedural COBOL module can also access Java objects and classes through the use of the Java Native Interface (JNI).
• The object model. With this model, an Object COBOL module can call a Java module, and a Java module can call an Object COBOL module; also a COBOL class can be used as an Enterprise JavaBean.

For detailed information Java and COBOL book.

Licensing

Your license key for Server Express is printed on a license key card, not a license key folder. In other respects licensing remains the same.

For detailed information on licensing, see your Development System Licensing Guide.

Server Express 2.0.11

Server Express 2.0.11 provides the following new features:

• Improvements to Java/COBOL interoperability
• Scalability improvements to Client/Server Binding
• Up-to-date Samba software; this is included with Server Express and intended for use with Net Express
• The ability to use your own routines for handling C-ISAM files

Java and COBOL

Server Express 2.0.11 includes the following improvements to Java/COBOL interoperability:

• There is a choice of Java Virtual Machines (JVMs) on some platforms.
• JVM Version 1.3 is available on some platforms
• You can use the DataType interface class to pass complex data structures between COBOL and Java
• Updates to parameters passed BY REFERENCE are reflected in the calling program

For detailed information on using Java and COBOL together, see your Java and COBOL book.

Client/Server Binding

Server Express 2.0.11 provides fully scalable communications support using Client/Server Binding. It is now possible to use Client/Server Binding with AAI (Application to Application Interface).

For detailed information on Client/Server Binding, see the chapter Client/Server Binding in your Communications book.

Samba

Server Express 2.0.11 includes the latest version of Samba, third-party software that facilitates the networking of UNIX workstations and PCs.

C-ISAM File Handling

Server Express 2.0.11 enables you to use your own routines for handling C-ISAM files.

For detailed information on using your own routines see the chapter C-ISAM Files in your File Handling book.

Server Express 2.0.11 Service Pack 1

Server Express 2.0.11 Service Pack 1 provides the following new features:

• An update to remote and cross-session debugging that enables you to debug a sequence of programs in one session
• Improvements to Rebuild
• Improvements to File Handler

Remote and Cross-session Debugging

Server Express 2.0.11 Service Pack 1 provides debugging enhancements that enable you to debug a sequence of programs in one session.

You can use Net Express and Server Express together to debug a sequence of UNIX programs in one Net Express debugging session. This is known as advanced remote debugging and it is particularly valuable for debugging transactions running in a UNIX transaction server.

You can control cross-session debugging at a finer level enabling you to turn debugging on and off within one debugging session.

To make use of these enhanced debugging facilities you need to insert calls to two new library routines in your code, CBL_DEBUG_START and CBL_DEBUG_STOP.

For further details see the chapter Debugging Methods in your Debugging Guide.

Rebuild

Server Express 2.0.11 Service Pack 1 includes improvements to the Rebuild utility that enable it to run faster. For details see the chapter Rebuild in your File Handling book.

File Handler

Server Express 2.0.11 Service Pack 1 includes the following File Handler improvements:

• The search order for the File Handler configuration file extfh.cfg has been changed.
• The default setting for the configuration option READSEMA is now OFF.

For details see the chapter File Handler Configuration in your File Handling book.

Server Express 2.2

Server Express 2.2 provides the following new features:

• Improved support for ACUCOBOL windowing syntax
• New library routines for finding directories and files
• Update to ODBC drivers supported
• New version of the OPT Compiler directive
• New option of the ARITHMETIC Compiler directive

Support for NSAPI has been removed from Server Express 2.2.

The titles of several of the Server Express books have been changed. The following table lists the books affected, with their old and new titles:

ACUCOBOL Windowing Syntax

Server Express 2.2 includes the following extensions to our support for ACUCOBOL windowing syntax:

• You can now include the clause BEFORE TIME in Format 5 ACCEPT statements
• You can use COL as an alternative to COLUMN in the statements DISPLAY WINDOW, DISPLAY BOX AND DISPLAY LINE
• You can use the following clauses in DISPLAY WINDOW:
  • SHADOW
  • WITH NO SCROLL (documentary only)
  • WITH NO WRAP (documentary only)

For details see the chapter ACUCOBOL Windowing Syntax in your Character User Interfaces book.

Library Routines for Directory Searching

Server Express 2.2 includes the following new library routines for searching for directories and files:

• CBL_DIR_SCAN_BEGIN
• CBL_DIR_SCAN_READ
• CBL_DIR_SCAN_END

For details see the topic File and Filename Routines.

Update to ODBC Drivers

The ODBC drivers were removed at Server Express 2.2 Service Pack 1.

OPT Compiler Directive

The OPT Compiler directive is now available in two versions, one for use on Intel x86 platforms and one for use on non-Intel x86 platforms.

For details see the topics OPT Intel x86 Platforms and OPT Non-Intel x86 Platforms.

ARITHMETIC Compiler Directive

The ARITHMETIC Compiler directive has a new option, TRUNC20, which enables you to obtain a type of truncation of intermediate results similar to the truncation obtainable with earlier products.

For details see the topic ARITHMETIC.

Server Express 4.0

Server Express 4.0 provides the following new features:

• Web Services
• COBOL/J2EE interoperability
• Micro Focus Enterprise Server
• COBOL/XML support
• SQL Option
• ISO 2002 COBOL support
• Profiler enhancement
• Documentation changes

Web Services

Server Express enables the development and deployment of COBOL Web services. Without requiring any third party components or additional programming, a Server Express COBOL component can be transformed into a Web service, which then delivers existing business logic for use and reuse in ebusiness applications. You can use Server Express to create, consume and deploy a Web service entirely in COBOL, as follows:

• The Interface Mapping Toolkit enables you to expose an existing COBOL interface as a Web service. You take a Linkage Section in COBOL and map it and narrow it to form an appropriate interface for a Web service for each function of the COBOL program.
• Enterprise Server enables the deployment of COBOL Web services created with the Interface Mapping Toolkit without requiring any third party technology.
• The Web service client generator can create a COBOL client not only for COBOL Web services created with the Interface Mapping Toolkit but also for Java or other standards-based Web services.

For details see your Getting Started book, your Web Services and COBOL book, and your Enterprise Server documentation.

COBOL/ J2EE Interoperability

COBOL/ Java interoperability has been possible in Server Express for some time. This is now enhanced with the Interface Mapping Toolkit which generates an EJB that maps onto existing COBOL. The mapping and the COBOL are then deployed within Enterprise Server. The EJB is deployed to a J2EE application server together with a Micro Focus resource adapter, which is constructed according to the J2EE Connector 1.0 specification. The resource adapters provide full connection and transaction with the J2EE application server such as BEA WebLogic and IBM WebSphere.

For details see your Interface Mapping Tutorials book, your Java and COBOL book and your Enterprise Server documentation.

Micro Focus Enterprise Server

Enterprise Server enables the deployment of COBOL Web services and COBOL/J2EE applications, and provides a scalable COBOL server as a managed execution environment for high volume transactional COBOL applications.

For details see your Enterprise Server documentation.

COBOL/ XML Support

New syntax has been introduced into the COBOL language to handle XML document processing without the need to manually call XML Sax and DOM APIs. Micro Focus COBOL/XML support includes:

• The extension of COBOL file handling syntax such as the COBOL READ and WRITE verbs to support the creation, updating and parsing of dynamic XML content within a COBOL-oriented approach.
• Mapping tools to define and edit a mapping between an XML schema and COBOL record structure.
• Implementation of the XML-PARSE statement to consume XML documents in a IBM mainframe-compatible way.

For details see your XML Tutorials book and your XML Input/Output book.

SQL Option

Server Express 4.0 includes SQL Option, a complete production-quality database system that is compatible with IBM's DB2.

For details see your SQL Option documentation.

ISO 2002 COBOL Support

Server Express 4.0 adds support for many parts of the ISO 2002 COBOL standard including:

• ISO 2002 Object-oriented COBOL support delivering enhancements such as typed object references.
• Unicode support for global applications.

For details of the new ISO 2002 COBOL syntax see your Language Reference and your Object-oriented Programming with COBOL book. For details of the Unicode support see the chapter Internationalization Support in your Program Development book.

Profiler Enhancement

The COBOL Profiler utility provides an option to count time spent in a subprogram only against that program, rather than against both the subprogram and the main program. This is provided through the use of a new run-time tunable, profile_behavior.

For details see the chapter Profiler in your Utilities Guide.

Documentation Changes

The documentation has been enhanced to provide some separation of information into books, task help topics and reference help topics. This applies particularly to the documentation of the major new features in Server Express 4.0. All Compiler directives are described in reference help topics.

The Internet Applications book has been moved into the CGI-Based Applications book in the Programming folder.

The Application Server Licensing Guide has been renamed as the Deployment Licensing Management Guide.

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 1

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 1 provides the following new features:

• Improvements to Fileshare
• Improvements to Rebuild
• Improvements to file handling
• Library Routines for file handling modifications
• New functionality in the Interface Mapping Toolkit
• Changes to licensing for Enterprise Server

Fileshare

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 1 includes the following Fileshare improvements:

• A data tool called FSVIEW which enables you to view data and statistics produced by Fileshare and manage Fileshare servers remotely. FSVIEW is available as a command line facility and as an API. For details see the section FSVIEW in the chapter Advanced Operation in your Fileshare Guide.
• The ability to group user-IDs using the # character. For details see the section User-ID Groups in the chapter Security in your Fileshare Guide.

Rebuild

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 1 includes a New Rebuild option (-z) which instructs Rebuild to use a Fileshare server for file access. This option enables you to use some Rebuild options through Fileshare.

For details see the chapter Rebuild in your File Handling book.

File Handling

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 1 includes the following file handling improvements:

• New File Handler configuration option (LOG) for specifying whether any unusual file-related situations are noted in a log file for later examination.
• New File Handler configuration option (LOGFILENAME) for specifying the name of the log file.
• New File Handler configuration option (TRACEFILEEXTEND) for tracing to the end of the current trace file.

For details see the chapter File Handler Configuration in your File Handling book.

Library Routines for File Handling Modifications

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 1 includes includes the following new library routines for file handling modifications:

• MFFH_MODIFY_DISABLE
• MFFH_MODIFY_TRACE

For details see the topic File and Filename Routines.

Interface Mapping Toolkit

The Interface Mapping Toolkit now provides:

• An import and export facility. This enables you to move service mappings between Windows and UNIX, and between different UNIX platforms.
• The ability to map interface fields to data items that are the subjects of ANSI ACCEPT, ACCEPT FROM COMMAND-LINE and ANSI DISPLAY statements, and to the RETURN-CODE special register

Licensing in Enterprise Server

The licensing overdraft mechanism has been extended. Licensing is no longer restricted by a fixed percentage of overdraft units. Instead an overdraft is permitted on 10 separate days. When an overdaft has been used on 10 days, subsequent requests to use an overdraft are refused, and you are notified. However, you can still run applications, as long as there are enough installed license units so that an overdraft isn't required.

Licensing for Enterprise Server is now imposed more strictly. The Enterprise Server licenses are the same as before and you continue to install Enterprise Server licenses in the same way as before. When you try to run an application, the number of available licenses is checked. If there are no licenses and no overdraft available, your application does not run.

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 2

Server Express 4.0 Service Pack 2 provides the following new features:

• New tracing facility for the run-time system
• New facilities for memory management
• New functionality in the Interface Mapping Toolkit
• Improvements to the reliability and usability of Enterprise Server
• New facilities in Enterprise Server Mainframe Transaction Option
• Updates to licensing: removal of COBDIR separation for Application Server and Enterprise Server licensing; introduction of new license installation script

Consolidated Tracing Facility

The Consolidated Tracing Facility is a tracing infrastructure that enables you to obtain diagnostic information detailing the operation of the run-time system. For more information see the section Using the Consolidated Tracing Facility in the chapter Running in your User's Guide

Memory Management

New run-time tunables, memory_strategy and memory_free_check_size, and new library routines, CBL_MEM_STRATEGY and CBL_MEM_VALIDATE, provide alternative means of controlling how memory allocations and deallocations are managed. For more information see the topics Run-time Tunables and Memory Allocation Routines.

Interface Mapping Toolkit

The Interface Mapping Toolkit now provides:

• The ability to generate deployment descriptors automatically
• The ability to generate JSP clients for EJBs

For more information see the chapter Mapping a Java Interface and Using Resource Adapters in your Java and COBOL book.

Enterprise Server

Enterprise Server has been improved in the following ways:

• It now supports the Java Application Server from Oracle. For more information see the section EJBs and Resource Adapters in the chapter Deploying Interfaces in your Enterprise Server Configuration and Administration Guide.
• You can now have more than one communications process (formerly known as communications server) in an enterprise server, each containing a number of listeners. For more information see the section Number of Communications Processes in the chapter Configuration in your Enterprise Server Configuration and Administration Guide.
• The Edit Server facility on the Home page provides a number of tabbed pages,easing the task of maintaining your enterprise servers and the objects in them.

Enterprise Server Mainframe Transaction Option

Enterprise Server Mainframe Transaction Option provides the following new facilities:

• Web services and services called from EJBs can access CICS applications. For more information see the section Access to CICS Programs from Web Services and Services Called from EJBs in the chapter Legacy Extension with MTO in your Mainframe Transaction Option Configuration and Administration Guide.
• You can use a wide range of CICS Intersystem Communication facilities. For more information see the chapter Intersystem Communication in your Mainframe Transaction Option Configuration and Administration Guide.

Licensing Changes

Licensing has been improved in the following ways:

• There is a new script, mflicense, that provides access to both development and deployment licensing.
• A mechanism exists to convert Model 1 licenses to Model 2 licenses.
• All deployment licenses are shared between installations of Application Server or Enterprise Server, instead of being restricted to just one installation.

For more information see your Development System Licensing Guide and your Deployment Licensing Guide.

Documentation Changes

The Enterprise Server Deployment Guide has been removed. The material on automatic deployment from the Interface Mapping Toolkit has been absorbed into the Distributed Computing book and the material on manual deployment has been absorbed into the Enterprise Server Configuration and Administration Guide.

Server Express 5.0

Server Express 5.0 provides the following new features:

• Client/ server binding
• Documentation
• Enterprise Server debugging
• Java and J2EE support
• Web services

The following new CICS/JCL Support (MTO) features are added in this release:

• EZASOCKET support
• Inter System Communication (ISC) support
• JCL support

Client/ server binding

In addition to its traditional implementation (which remains unchanged) client/ server binding is now available within an Enterprise Server application as part of Micro Focus Server. When deployed in Enterprise Server, the 300 client limit for client/ server binding is removed.

Documentation

The Getting Started book is now much shorter and contains just the basic tutorials on using the product, to help you get up and running quickly. The tutorials that cover specific technologies or tools have been moved into the appropriate folder for each technology or tool. For example:

• The Interface Mapping tutorials are now in the Using Net Express > Interface Mapping folder of the Help for the Net Express IDE
• The XML and COBOL tutorials are now in the Programming > XML and COBOL folder

A new tutorial has been added to the Net Express IDE documentation for Creating a Service for a CICS Application.

The Distributed Computing tutorials have been updated and the book has been split, so that each part is now a book in its own right. There is one book for each technology as follows:

• CGI-based Applications
• Communications
• Java and COBOL
• Web Services and COBOL
• XML Input/Output

Enterprise Server debugging

Debugging support within Enterprise Server has been improved with dynamic attach/detach to a SEP, selective debug matching and remote debug capability. Tracing and diagnostics have also been enhanced in this release.

EZASOCKET support

Support is provided for the IBM EZASOCKET TCP/IP interface.

Inter System Communication (ISC) support

Improved support is provided for CICS Inter-Systems communication, enabling the integration of migrated CICS applications with those remaining on the mainframe.

Java and J2EE support

COBOL J2EE support has been updated to support J2EE 1.4 (EJB 2.1) and the latest J2EE application servers. See the Readme for details of the supported J2EE versions, J2EE application servers and J2SE run-time environments. The Interface Mapping Toolkit support that was first released by WebSync is included in this release both to build a test JSP client and to create and build the deployment descriptor required by a supported J2EE application server.

The ability to build Java beans has been added to the Interface Mapping Toolkit, enabling COBOL and Java integration without a J2EE application server.

JCL support

Support is provided within Enterprise Server for z/OS or VSE IBM Job Control Language scripts, enabling the migration of IBM mainframe batch applications without the need to convert the JCL to other scripting languages. JCL can then be deployed with Enterprise Server.

Web services

The Direct COBOL Web Services support within Enterprise Server has been enhanced to create and consume ‘doc literal’ style web services.

Server Express 5.1

For the new features in Server Express 5.1, see the readme.txt file, which is available in $COBDIR/docs.

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