Migration Toolkit for Application Binaries overview

The Migration Toolkit for Application Binaries is the newest tool in the IBM® WebSphere® Application Server Migration Toolkit. The tool includes scanning capability to quickly evaluate application binaries for rapid deployment on WebSphere Application Server traditional and Liberty. This command-line tool enables administrators to evaluate applications in minutes without accessing the source code. It is always recommended to run your scans in a lower environment instead of a production environment.

The tool can generate the following reports and configuration file:

  • Application Technology Evaluation Report
  • Application Inventory Report
  • Application Migration Report
  • Detailed Migration Analysis Report
  • Liberty Configuration

The tool can either display an HTML report, or save the report as an HTML or JSON file. The Liberty configuration file can only be generated as an XML file. When migrating to Liberty, the server.xml file will be generated under the Liberty Configuration section of the report. If you are migrating between WebSphere traditional versions, a separate wsadmin script is generated when configuration is discovered.

Application Migration Report

The Application Migration Report combines the content of the Application Technology Evaluation Report ( --evaluate ), the Detailed Migration Analysis Report ( --analyze ), the Application Inventory Report ( --inventory ), and the WebSphere configuration file ( --generateConfig ). The Application Migration Report is generated with the --all action, which is the new default action. The Application Technology Evaluation Report can still be generated by specifying the --evaluate action explicitly.

Application Technology Evaluation Report

The Application Technology Evaluation Report identifies the Java™ EE programming models in the application and provides a recommendation for the right-fit IBM WebSphere Application Server edition. This report is also provided by the Eclipse-based migration toolkit using the Eclipse menu bar Run > Generate Application Technology Evaluation Report.

Application Inventory Report

The Application Inventory Report contains a high-level inventory of the content and structure of each application and information about potential deployment problems and performance considerations. This information is useful in determining the contents and complexity of your applications.

Detailed Migration Analysis Report

The Detailed Migration Analysis Report highlights Java EE programming model and WebSphere API differences between different versions of WebSphere Application Server traditional and Liberty. The tool offers advice and potential solutions to assess the ease of moving applications from one version of WebSphere traditional to another, as well as to Liberty. The tool also supports migrating from JBoss, WebLogic, Apache Tomcat and other third-party servers. In addition, it informs you of any Java EE specification implementation differences that could affect your applications. If you are moving an application to a cloud platform, the tool offers additional advice, suggestions, and best practices to ensure that the application runs correctly in those environments. The tool also allows you to create user-defined rules to flag scenarios that are specific to your migration.

This report flags rules in the the following rule categories, which were introduced by the Eclipse-based migration toolkit:

  • All application servers
  • Apache Tomcat to WebSphere migration
  • Connectivity considerations for IBM Cloud
  • Containers (OpenShift, Kubernetes)
  • Framework migration
  • Java EE 6
  • Java EE 7
  • Java EE 8
  • Java SE version migration
  • Java Technology Support for Liberty
  • Java Technology Support for Liberty Core
  • Java Technology Support for Open Liberty
  • JBoss to WebSphere migration
  • Liberty for Java on IBM Cloud
  • Liberty on third-party PaaS
  • Other third-party servers
  • Technology connectivity considerations for IBM Cloud
  • User-Defined
  • WebLogic to WebSphere migration
  • WebSphere traditional to Liberty
  • WebSphere traditional to Liberty Java EE 6
  • WebSphere version migration

The command-line tool supports migrating from Java SE 5 or later and WebSphere Application Server Version 6.1 or later. To flag rules for earlier versions of Java or WebSphere Application Server, use the Eclipse-based WebSphere Application Server Migration Toolkit on your application source.

Liberty Configuration

The Liberty configuration file is generated and includes configuration needed in a Liberty server based on scanning application binaries and WebSphere configuration. Use this file to configure your Liberty server by copying the content to the Liberty server.xml file, or use the <include> element to include it in the server configuration.

Configure the Migration Toolkit for Application Binaries

The binary scanner can be configured using command-line parameters and a properties file. There is a scanner.properties file in the same directory as the binary scanner jar that can be used to specify application scan options. Any scan options specified on the command-line take precedence over those specified in the properties file.

Additional resources

For detailed information about the rules included in the relevant categories, see the Migration Toolkit Rules.

The WebSphere Migration Knowledge Collection: Migrating to Liberty provides an overview of all the tools, videos, and resource links.

The WebSphere Migration Knowledge Collection: Getting Started provides information on all aspects of WebSphere Application Server migration.

For comprehensive information on WebSphere Application Server migration topics, including examples of using the migration toolkit, see the WebSphere Application Server V8.5 Migration Guide.