Heirloom Computing

Leadership Excellence. Cloud Migration Visionary.

Heirloom Computing recognized as a pioneer for IBM Mainframe Modernization.

“Heirloom is setting new standards in cloud migration, earning Gary the prestigious title of Cloud Migration CEO of the Year 2024.”

Heirloom Computing Named a Leader in the ISG Provider Lens™ Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2025 Quadrant Report Copy

Heirloom® recognized as Leader for Mainframe Application Modernization Software.

Information Services Group (ISG), a well-known technology research and advisory firm renowned for its industry and technology expertise, has named Heirloom Computing a Leader in its Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2025 Quadrant Report.

“Heirloom Computing’s toolset offers rapid transformations with precise results. It has added GenAI capabilities to enhance speed and quality, delivering clean Java code that is easy to improve and maintain.” – Pedro L. Bicudo Maschio, Distinguished Analyst and Executive Advisor, ISG

Companies that receive the Leader award have a comprehensive product and service offering, a strong market presence, and an established competitive position. The product portfolios and competitive strategies of Leaders are strongly positioned to win business in the markets covered by the study. The Leaders also represent innovative strength and competitive stability.

Enterprises with IBM mainframes are increasingly looking to modernize their mainframe ecosystem. Increasing costs, decreasing skills, and a need to make application workloads more agile are driving the modernization wave. Heirloom migrates mainframe workloads using compiler-based refactoring to produce cloud-native applications that run on any platform.

Highlights from the report:

“Heirloom Computing offers a differentiated replatforming and refactoring technology renowned for its rapid processing of large code bases. It generates native Java applications that run on any cloud, enabling clients to retain source code in COBOL/PL1 or Java.”

Heirloom Computing Named as the IBM Mainframe Migration Solution Company of the Year by CIOReview

Heirloom® h/GENAI™ — Transforming Mainframes for a Future-Ready World.

“We put the reins [of IBM Mainframe Modernization] in the hands of our customers.” – Becky Etheridge, Chief Partner Officer

Heirloom Computing Named a Leader in the ISG Provider Lens™ Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2024 Quadrant Report

Heirloom® recognized as Leader for Mainframe Application Modernization Software.

Information Services Group (ISG), a well-known technology research and advisory firm renowned for its industry and technology expertise, has named Heirloom Computing a Leader in its Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2024 Quadrant Report.

“Heirloom has rapidly gained market share by offering a fast modernization option to handle large applications. It offers the flexibility to choose between replatforming or refactoring applications, offering clients greater control over their modernization journey.” – Pedro L. Bicudo Maschio, Distinguished Analyst and Executive Advisor, ISG

Companies that receive the Leader award have a comprehensive product and service offering, a strong market presence, and an established competitive position. The product portfolios and competitive strategies of Leaders are strongly positioned to win business in the markets covered by the study. The Leaders also represent innovative strength and competitive stability.

Enterprises with IBM mainframes are increasingly looking to modernize their mainframe ecosystem. Increasing costs, decreasing skills, and a need to make application workloads more agile are driving the modernization wave. Heirloom migrates mainframe workloads using compiler-based refactoring to produce cloud-native applications that run on any platform.

Highlights from the report:

“Heirloom Computing offers a differentiated replatforming and refactoring technology renowned for its rapid processing of large code bases. It generates native Java applications that run on any cloud, enabling clients to retain source code in COBOL/PL1 or Java.”

Heirloom Computing Named a Leader in the ISG Provider Lens™ Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2023 Quadrant Report

Heirloom® recognized as Leader for Mainframe Application Modernization Software.

Information Services Group (ISG), a well-known technology research and advisory firm renowned for its industry and technology expertise, has named Heirloom Computing a Leader in its Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2023 Quadrant Report.

“It is a pleasure to watch Heirloom’s outstanding growth and success in mainframe application modernization. The company has acquired a high reputation among leading system integrators, enabling it to work with large organizations and resolve complex modernization challenges.” – Pedro L. Bicudo Maschio, Distinguished Analyst and Executive Advisor, ISG

Companies that receive the Leader award have a comprehensive product and service offering, a strong market presence, and an established competitive position. The product portfolios and competitive strategies of Leaders are strongly positioned to win business in the markets covered by the study. The Leaders also represent innovative strength and competitive stability.

Enterprises with IBM mainframes are increasingly making the decision to exit the data-center business and modernize their infrastructure to the cloud in order to increase agility and dramatically cut costs. Heirloom migrates mainframe workloads using compiler-based refactoring to produce cloud-native applications that run on any cloud.

Highlights from the report:

“Heirloom is highly focused on performance, using compiling technology that transpiles legacy applications to Java. The company’s partnerships with hyperscalers and system integrators have enabled it to achieve better brand recognition and increased sales. It can handle large-scale applications.”

Heirloom Computing Named a Leader in the ISG Provider Lens™ Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2022 Quadrant Report

Heirloom® recognized as Leader for Mainframe Application Modernization Software.

Information Services Group (ISG), a well-known technology research and advisory firm renowned for its industry and technology expertise, has named Heirloom Computing a Leader in its Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2022 Quadrant Report.

“Heirloom has been capturing the attention of hyperscalers and systems integrator partners with its pragmatic solution for fast mainframe migrations to the cloud. With many success cases, the company is well positioned to capture a larger market share, globally” – Pedro Luís Bicudo Maschio, Distinguished Analyst and Executive Advisor, ISG

Companies that receive the Leader award have a comprehensive product and service offering, a strong market presence, and an established competitive position. The product portfolios and competitive strategies of Leaders are strongly positioned to win business in the markets covered by the study. The Leaders also represent innovative strength and competitive stability.

Enterprises with IBM mainframes are increasingly making the decision to exit the data-center business and modernize their infrastructure to the cloud in order to increase agility and dramatically cut costs. Heirloom replatforms mainframe workloads using compiler-based refactoring to produce cloud-native applications that run on any cloud.

Highlights from the report:

“Heirloom was named a Rising Star in 2021 and is a Leader in 2022. The company continues to grow and improve its relationship with cloud providers and system integrators. It offers rapid mainframe migrations converting legacy programming languages into Java which can run on any cloud.”

“Heirloom [replatforms and] refactors mainframe workloads to cloud-native applications that can scale horizontally on AWS and other clouds. The company offers a modern refactoring toolset that attracts system integrators and cloud providers’ attention because of its code refactoring speed and scalability.”

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Using RPA to migrate a Mainframe App to AWS Cloud in two minutes

Blurr is the fastest Autobot on the planet. We toyed (pun intended) with the idea of labeling Heirloom Computing’s use of robotic process automation (RPA) under the Blurr moniker but decided (sensibly, I think) that it would dilute our existing branding. Nonetheless, with a nod to the descendent of a Cybertronic racehorse, we’re excited to present what we believe is a stunning demonstration of how Heirloom® and Probe™ use RPA to orchestrate the entire process of taking a workload directly from an IBM Mainframe and migrating it to AWS, with one-click, in two-minutes.

So let me just spell that out – we’re going to directly connect to a mainframe end-point, and with one-click, in two-minutes we will collect the target application’s inventory, refactor the COBOL/CICS code to Java, migrate the VSAM data to an AWS RDS database, and deploy a working application to AWS Elastic Beanstalk.

Before I go on to outline how we achieved this, please watch the following 4-minute video demonstration – it’s worth it! Everything in this video is in real-time. The actual process itself, from start to finish, takes just 2m5s.

Heirloom’s core technology is compiler-based, which means it can accurately refactor (or transpile, if you prefer) millions of lines of COBOL and PL/1 code in minutes. And just like any other compiler, including the ones that run on the mainframe, you get exactly the results you coded for – no excuses. Heirloom’s Data Migration Toolkit handles the migration of mainframe datasets (such as VSAM, Sequential, DB/2 & IMS) to any JDBC compliant relational database, without needing to make any changes to the original application source code. These tasks, and many others, are scripted using the application-specific metadata extracted during inventory collection & analysis.

Does this orchestration work for every mainframe application? We’re not going to make that claim today. There are already too many other solutions in this arena that over-promise and under-deliver, even on the basic table-stakes requirement of replicating existing function & behavior.

However, our commitment to applying RPA for extreme levels of automation covering all aspects of migrating complex mainframe workloads, does define our roadmap at the highest level.

For our clients, compiler-based transformation augmented with RPA translates to the fastest lowest-risk project delivery, with an accelerated ROI.

To understand why leading companies in financial services, insurance, retail, healthcare, and government agencies, are embracing Heirloom, read how Venerable achieved escape velocity and saved $1M every month when replatforming their mainframe workloads as agile cloud-native Java applications on AWS, or how mainframe applications can scale horizontally with outstanding performance on highly-available cloud infrastructures like AWS Elastic Beanstalk.

Heirloom Computing Named a Leader in the ISG Provider Lens™ Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2021 Quadrant Report

Heirloom® recognized as Rising Star for Mainframe Modernization Software.

Information Services Group (ISG), a well-known technology research and advisory firm renowned for its industry and technology expertise, has named Heirloom Computing a Leader in its Mainframe Services & Solutions U.S. 2021 Quadrant Report.

Companies that receive the Rising Star award have a promising portfolio or the market experience to become a leader, including the required roadmap and adequate focus on key market trends and customer requirements. Rising Stars also have excellent management and understanding of the local market. This award is only given to vendors or service providers that have made significant progress toward their goals in the last 12 months and are expected to reach the Leader quadrant within the next 12 to 24 months due to their above-average impact and strength for innovation.

Enterprises with IBM mainframes are increasingly making the decision to exit the data-center business and modernize their infrastructure to the cloud in order to increase agility and dramatically cut costs. Heirloom replatforms mainframe workloads using compiler-based refactoring to produce cloud-native Java applications that run on any cloud.

“Heirloom toolset delivers fast and effective refactoring for large-scale mainframe modernizations and migrations to the cloud.”

“Heirloom refactors mainframe applications to cloud-native Java programs that can scale horizontally on AWS and other clouds. The company offers a modern refactoring toolset that attracts system integrators and cloud providers’ attention because of its code refactoring speed and scalability.”

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Execute a refactored IBM Mainframe Application on Multiple Clouds with Heirloom®

Heirloom replatforms and refactors online & batch mainframe workloads at compiler speed to cloud-native Java applications. During refactoring, it automatically makes those applications agile by exposing the primary business rules as RESTful web services.

We migrated a sample Mainframe “Account” application, packaged it as a standard Java war file, and deployed it to Alibaba Cloud, Amazon AWS Beanstalk, Google App Engine, IBM Cloud Foundry, and Microsoft Azure Web App (the links will take you to the application’s landing page). The war file is exactly the same package for all 5 cloud environments, ensuring you can retain the option to deploy to your preferred cloud(s).

When clicking on any of the application links above, bear in mind the initial response time may well be a tad sluggish. This is because:

These environments are artificially constrained. With the constraints lifted, every cloud platform used can seamlessly scale on-demand, with instances distributed across multiple geographies and availability zones (for high-availability), along with centralized management & monitoring. If you wanted to be a little more adventurous you could even set up a load-balancer and distribute your end-users across all 5 cloud applications!

Refactoring to industry-standard Java packages means Heirloom applications can immediately exploit the native capabilities of the target cloud platform.

When you access the application’s landing page, you will see 2 options. The first link is the default UI which emulates the function & behavior of the original 3270 screens. You will be taken to this UI after 10 seconds (if you don’t select the other option).

The second link is a JavaScript UI (created using the Ext JS framework). This is an example of how to quickly modernize the UI by interfacing directly to the CICS transactions that were automatically exposed as RESTful web services during refactoring. Once you’ve clicked “Load”, you will be presented with a sortable table. Double-clicking on a record will interface to Google Maps to locate the address. This particular UI was built in less than an hour, with no underlying changes necessary to the original application.

These instances are no longer running. Please contact us for a demo.

Amazon AWS Beanstalk, default UI, http://heirloomaccountenv.eba-yvfsrrm4.us-east-1.elasticbeanstalk.com/servlet

Amazon AWS Beanstalk, JavaScript UI, http://heirloomaccountenv.eba-yvfsrrm4.us-east-1.elasticbeanstalk.com/extjs/

Alibaba Cloud, default UI, http://8.210.99.190/servlet

Alibaba Cloud, JavaScript UI, http://8.210.99.190/extjs

Google App Engine, default UI, https://account-292103.appspot.com/servlet

Google App Engine, JavaScript UI, https://account-292103.appspot.com/extjs

IBM Cloud Foundry, default UI, https://account-us-south.mybluemix.net/servlet

IBM Cloud Foundry, JavaScript UI, https://account-us-south.mybluemix.net/extjs

Microsoft Azure Web App, default UI, https://heirloomacct.azurewebsites.net/servlet

Microsoft Azure Web App, JavaScript UI, https://heirloomacct.azurewebsites.net/extjs

How Heirloom® automatically refactors Mainframe workloads as cloud-native applications on Alibaba Cloud

I think most readers have some awareness of the Alibaba brand, but perhaps a somewhat more obscure understanding of the scope of this $850B Chinese multinational powerhouse. Most of us in high-tech work with cloud platforms from Amazon, Google, IBM, and Microsoft. Alibaba also has a thriving cloud platform, with Q2 2020 revenue increasing 59% YoY to $1.7B.

I have already posted articles on how easily Heirloom refactors mainframe workloads to Pivotal Cloud Foundry, AWS, Google App Engine, and the IBM Cloud.

Heirloom applications already run natively on multiple clouds. So what about Alibaba’s Cloud? It was very easy!

Here’s a summary of the required steps which took less than an hour to complete (prerequisites: an Heirloom Account and an Alibaba Cloud Account).

Recompiling the COBOL/CICS application into a Java .war package

STEP 1: Recompile. Create a new project in the Heirloom SDK using the built-in “account” application. As soon as the project is created, it will automatically be compiled into 100% Java (this literally takes just a few seconds), ready for deployment to any industry-standard light-weight Java Application Server (such as Apache Tomcat, which is the one utilized by Alibaba’s Web App Service).

Heirloom automatically replatforms & refactors Mainframe online & batch workloads to cloud-native applications.

STEP 2: Configure the deployment project. This is where we set up deployment information that tells the application things like how transactions IDs relate to programs and the end-point for the database (we are going to use an Alibaba ApsaraDB RDS for PostgreSQL instance).

Mainframe datasets are migrated to relational database tables.

STEP 3: Package the application as a Java .war file. This is done using Heirloom’s built-in “Export Wizard” (again, this literally takes just a few seconds). We now have an “account.war” package that contains everything we need to execute the application in exactly the same way as it used to run on the Mainframe. Only now, it has been refactored to a cloud-native Java application that we can deploy to any managed or serverless cloud we want.

Heirloom applications are standard Java packages, which means they immediately leverage native cloud services such as dynamic scaling, high-availability and centralized management.

Setup, Deploy & Execute Application on the Alibaba Cloud

STEP 1: Setup. From the Alibaba Cloud Console, “Basic Information” is where we create a “Web App Service” using Apache Tomcat. Next, “Environment Information” is where we choose our specific Tomcat stack and upload the “account.war” package that we built with Heirloom. Alibaba Cloud will then create the environment (this takes just a few minutes).

Unlike rehosting solutions which need vendor-proprietary application servers, Heirloom applications deploy to open industry-standard Java Application Servers.

STEP 2: Configure. Here, we add an “Internet Load Balancer”, which will allow multiple client connections to the application to retain persistent sessions to multiple instances. Next, we create an “AsparaDB RDS” database, which is populated by a powerful data migration toolkit (included in the Heirloom SDK) that migrates mainframe datasets (VSAM, sequential, relational) to relational tables in the target database. The data transparency layer within the Heirloom Framework means that this can be done without needing to change the original application source code.

Configuration of the application environment is done natively within the cloud platform, and independently of the refactored Heirloom application.

STEP 3: Execute. Out of the box, this particular application has 2 user interfaces that are both accessed via a standard browser.

The first is the existing 3270-style interface that will function and behave exactly as it did on the mainframe. There is no additional application code required here. Just the original application artifacts, such as COBOL source, data, BMS maps, etc.

Heirloom applications are guaranteed to match existing function & behavior of the mainframe workload.

The second uses an additional application written in a Javascript UI framework called Ext JS (you can use others such as Angular, React, JQuery, etc.). What’s happening here is that the modernized UI (i.e. the Ext JS application) is interacting directly with the CICS transactions that have been automatically exposed via REST (this happens by default when refactoring with Heirloom). The application itself has not changed. It is still processing CICS transactions, but in such a way that they are now aggregated by the Ext JS application which renders them into a sortable table. Additionally, the new UI then uses the data to extend the functionality of the application (in this case, showing the address location of a particular customer using Google Maps).

Not only is Heirloom the fastest most cost-effective way to refactor mainframe workloads to the cloud, they are instantly agile. UI modernization is just one possibility; others include breaking the monolith into microservices.