RTC Now Lets You Simulate IBM i Dependency Builds on Windows

September 10, 2013 Alex Woodie

IBM i and z/OS shops that use IBM‘s Rational Team Concert (RTC) software to manage their development processes will get a new “simulation mode” that allows time-saving dependency builds to run on any platform, including Windows. The new feature is included in the latest release of RTC, version 4.0.4, which shipped in late August.

The new functionality will allow users to run a simulated dependency build for IBM i and z/OS applications on any platform, including Windows, IBM says. “This makes it possible to create all the dependency metadata [build maps and so on] of a build without running a true full build,” IBM says in its RTC 4.04 software announcement.

What’s more, the new feature–which is only available in the IBM Enterprise Platforms edition of RTC–allows IBM i and z/OS applications to be moved to RTC without requiring a full rebuild to populate dependency info in the first place, IBM adds.

IBM added new scanners with RTC version 4 (which shipped a year ago) that enable it to fully support the dependency build, promotion, and deployment process on the IBM i platform.

The rationale behind using dependency builds is that it saves time by only building artifacts that have changed since the last successful build. Now that IBM’s enterprise customers (i.e. those running big midrange and mainframe servers) can run these dependency builds on the Windows workstation, laptop, tablet or smartphone they develop on, the process should get even faster and easier.

RTC 4.0.4 brings several other minor enhancements. For example, the WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor used for work items–the CKEditor–is now the same used for other lifecycle management products, which will make using keyboard shortcuts easier, IBM says.

This release also supports creating copies of work items in the web UI and the Rational Team Concert client for Microsoft Visual Studio. Previously, this feature was only available when working with the Eclipse development environment.

Developers will also benefit from features like: the capability to rename inherited custom attributes in child project areas; the capability to configure whether timestamps should be just a date, or a date plus time; an improved Advanced Release Burndown Chart; support for authenticating users via smartcards and certificates; and the capability to re-import data from Rational ClearQuest into RTC work items.

RTC is an application lifecycle management (ALM) tool that allows teams of developers to work together more efficiently. The product offers source code tracking for RPG, COBOL, Java, and other languages; build management and deployment functionality; and workflow tracking and project management, among other functions. The software has grown in popularity among IBM i shops since it was first introduced nearly five years ago.