One of the largest challenges clients face with their data strategy is not having the ability to efficiently and cost effectively leverage their ever-growing volumes of data for AI and analytics. With data residing everywhere and in all forms, clients now – more than ever – need a solution that’s scalable, reduces operational costs, and has the ability to address multi and hybrid cloud environments.

Recognizing these trends and the need for self-paced modernization, current IBM DataStage and Information Server customers can now take advantage of an exclusive offer to upgrade their architecture with IBM Cloud Pak® for Data, built on Red Hat OpenShift, the leading enterprise Kubernetes platform for container orchestration.

Below are some of the most frequently asked questions about modernizing DataStage to IBM Cloud Pak for Data and their answers. 

What’s the benefit of having Red Hat OpenShift as a foundation?

Having Red Hat OpenShift as the foundation for the IBM Cloud Pak for Data platform provides portability of applications that run on top between hybrid cloud or multicloud environments. Using Kubernetes Operators, Red Hat OpenShift offers automated installation, upgrades, and lifecycle management for every part of the container stack, and OpenShift provides supporting services such as monitoring, authentication, authorization and network management (features which are not in the open source version of Kubernetes). When these varied resources are all part of a single, unified platform in IBM Cloud Pak for Data, they are easier to integrate and manage than they would be on a stand-alone offering.

What additional capabilities do I get when I upgrade my stand-alone DataStage?

The added bonus with the  DataStage and Information Server Modernization for existing clients, is that you also gain access to Cloud Pak for Data Enterprise Edition. This means that you will have the opportunity to use other services like data virtualization, governance (Watson Knowledge Catalog) and building & deploying ML models (Watson Studio). Check with your IBM rep or business partner to see what pricing is possible for your business.

What are the cost and performance benefits I get from modernizing my DataStage or Information Server services?

Those who modernize will experience up to 30% faster workload execution due to built-in workload balancing and best-in breed parallel runtime, as well as, gain up to 50% lower cost of operations due to automatic failure solution and automation of operational tasks such as backup, recovery, and patch management. With containerization you can consolidate your data infrastructure and improve operational efficiency, while gaining access to faster upgrades to the latest version of DataStage, faster application development cycles and more frequent software developments. Your workloads can have greater application portability with lower operational costs across hybrid cloud, multicloud, and edge footprints, and with DataStage on IBM Cloud Pak for Data, you can save on data movement costs by bringing integration workloads to your data with design once, run anywhere thereby avoiding data egress costs incurred while moving data out of cloud platforms as well as the ability to save 87% in development costs with automated job design.

If I am an SAP or QualityStage customer, does the modernization program apply to me?

Existing IBM customers can come with their SAP PACK license and either use that with Datastage standalone or any of the Datastage or Information Server extended services on Cloud Pak for Data. If you are a new customer, the DataStage Enterprise, DataStage Enterprise Plus, or Information Server extensions delivers a fully containerized solution. Furthermore, With the DataStage Enterprise Plus Extension for QualityStage customers, you can still run QualityStage AVI standalone, and then, once QualityStage AVI on Cloud Pak for Data is available in 1H 2021, you will be able to easily containerize your stand-alone offering. Address Verification Interface (AVI) is a separate subscription.

Do I need to migrate my workloads right away? What kind of assistance does IBM provide?

We’re partial to containerization since we see the value it’s bringing to clients quite often but also understand if a company doesn’t have any plans to containerize right away. Once you are ready, you can begin to modernize to the platform and containerize at your own pace. Users can request a migration waiver of up to 12 months, during which you can continue to run your existing DataStage or Information Server environment, while gradually migrating to Cloud Pak for Data in parallel. The value with the Modernization offer is that customers can leverage the Cloud Pak for Data platform for their analytics and governance with Data virtualization, Watson Knowledge Catalog or Watson Studio while continuing to run DataStage or Information Server standalone.  IBM provides different ways to help our clients such as a job assessment tool from Data Migrator to understand job compatibility and upgrade complexity as well as a full range of services starting with a JumpStart deployment services all the way to end to end migration engagements.

Taking the next steps to modernize

The DataStage Enterprise Modernization program was created to help clients plan and execute their data strategy and be competitive in today’s fast-paced business environment. With IBM Cloud Pak for Data, they can spend less time and money on data operations and more time on gaining better insights for their business. Learn more about the new updates to IBM Cloud Pak for Data and how the platform continues to provide innovation through digital transformation and cost reduction.

To know more about the benefits of modernizing your DataStage, or if you want to see what  modernization options IBM has for you, watch our 20-minute “DataStage for Cloud Pak for Data Modernization Upgrade” webinar.

And if you want to read more about DataStage on Cloud Pak for Data, our whitepaper goes in-depth on the benefits of modernizing your data strategy to a unified platform.