New BVS Tools Hook IBM i to Google Apps

January 22, 2013 Alex Woodie

BVS Tools has rolled out a collection of new software called GreenTools for Google Apps (G4G) that enable users to connect various Google Apps with data and applications residing on IBM i servers. Two G4G apps, including G4GGCP and G4GGCAL, connect IBM i data with Google Cloud Print and Google Calendars through Google’s APIs, and more apps are on the way.

Today’s IT environments have become extremely heterogeneous, and demand extreme flexibility on the part of IT experts and users. In the old days, IT pros may have felt a sense of accomplishment at having hooked an IBM i application into a Microsoft Office application sitting on a Windows desktop. Those good old days are long gone, and today IT pros are tasked with hooking IBM i apps with a growing array of mobile devices and Web services.

As the PC declines in use, Web services such as Google Apps have gained traction among businesses of all sizes. The good news is Google’s Apps are accessible from a range of devices. The bad news is they require some degree of programmer sophistication to make full use of the API.

Brad Stone has endeavored to do the API dirty work with his suite of IBM i-enablement tools for Google Apps. He currently offers two G4G apps, which cost $149 each.

With G4GGCP, IBM i users gain the capability to print reports residing on the IBM i server to any printer that’s connected to Google Cloud Print. For example, users could utilize the software to print a PDF report that’s sitting on the IFS driver of their IBM i servers using their home printers, eliminating the need to drive into the office to get a hard copy.

The G4GGCP services are accessed by entering a command from a 5250 command line interface, referencing a file on the IFS or a URL containing that file. Documents must first be converted into PC formats, such as PDF, HTML, DOC, and RTF, to use the service (easily accomplished using spool file conversion tools, such as Stone’s popular SPLTOOL). G4GGCP also enables users to send documents to Google Drive (formerly Google Docs) instead of the printer.

Google introduced its Cloud Print Web service as a feature of its Chrome Web browser in 2010, and widened the service’s availability when it hit beta status in early 2011. To get started, users simply register their printers with Google Cloud Print. Then, they can submit print jobs through the service from any device (Web browser, Windows desktop, or mobile device). This approach eliminates the need to install print drivers on devices that users want to print from.

Brad Stone’s second new application, G4GGCAL, allows users to retrieve entries from any Google Calendar into the IBM i database. Once the connection is established, a user could then write short programs around the G4GGCAL entries to do things, such as run scheduled reports, trigger other programs, or send reminders via green-screen alerts. “This app doesn’t yet allow you to manipulate a Google Calendar, but if requested this could be added,” Stone says via email.

Stone intends to write more G4G apps that let IBM i users access Google Apps APIs. Users must have BVS’ Get URI (GETURI) application, which enables IBM i applications to communicate with Web services, running on their IBM i servers. Data is returned from the Google Apps to G4G in the JSON format, which is then parsed and interpreted by the G4G app, Stone says.

Stone says most of the work that went into G4G revolved around writing his own JSON parser and learning to work with OAuth 2.0, the new authentication method used by Google Apps and others, such as Facebook and soon Twitter. “This type of security is used to give your IBM i access to items such as your Google Cloud Printers or Calendars without the need to share your userid or password,” Stone says.

For more information on the G4G apps, as well as downloads, visit www.bvstools.com.

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Do the Math When Looking at IBM i Hosting for Cost Savings

COVID-19 has accelerated certain business trends that were already gaining strength prior to the start of the pandemic. E-commerce, telehealth, and video conferencing are some of the most obvious examples. One example that may not be as obvious to the general public but has a profound impact on business is the shift in strategy of IBM i infrastructure from traditional, on-premises environments to some form of remote configuration. These remote configurations and all of their variations are broadly referred to in the community as IBM i hosting.

“Hosting” in this context can mean different things to different people, and in general, hosting refers to one of two scenarios. In the first scenario, hosting can refer to a client owned machine that is housed in a co-location facility (commonly called a co-lo for short) where the data center provides traditional system administrator services, relieving the client of administrative and operational responsibilities. In the second scenario, hosting can refer to an MSP owned machine in which partition resources are provided to the client in an on-demand capacity. This scenario allows the client to completely outsource all aspects of Power Systems hardware and the IBM i operating system and database.

The scenario that is best for each business depends on a number of factors and is largely up for debate. In most cases, pursuing hosting purely as a cost saving strategy is a dead end. Furthermore, when you consider all of the costs associated with maintaining and IBM i environment, it is typically not a cost-effective option for the small to midsize market. The most cost-effective approach for these organizations is often a combination of a client owned and maintained system (either on-prem or in a co-lo) with cloud backup and disaster-recovery-as-a-service. Only in some cases of larger enterprise companies can a hosting strategy start to become a potentially cost-effective option.

However, cost savings is just one part of the story. As IBM i expertise becomes scarce and IT resources run tight, the only option for some firms may be to pursue hosting in some capacity. Whatever the driving force for pursing hosting may be, the key point is that it is not just simply an option for running your workload in a different location. There are many details to consider and it is to the best interest of the client to work with an experienced MSP in weighing the benefits and drawbacks of each option. As COVID-19 rolls on, time will tell if IBM i hosting strategies will follow the other strong business trends of the pandemic.

When we say do the math in the title above, it literally means that you need to do the math for your particular scenario. It is not about us doing the math for you, making a case for either staying on premises or for moving to the cloud. There is not one answer, but just different levels of cost to be reckoned which yield different answers. Most IBM i shops have fairly static workloads, at least measured against the larger mix of stuff on the public clouds of the world. How do you measure the value of controlling your own IT fate? That will only be fully recognized at the moment when it is sorely missed the most.

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