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IBM i 7.4 - TR8 Enhancements

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IBM i 7.4 - TR8 Enhancements

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You are in: IBM i Technology Updates > IBM i 7.4 - TR8 Enhancements
IBM i 7.4 -
Enhancements timed with
Technology Refresh 8 (TR8)
         
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Note: The announcement materials for IBM i 7.4 TR8 can be found here.
The remainder of this landing page intends to make it easy to see the supporting detail for these enhancements.



 
Db2 for i Enhancements 
Note: The following Db2 for i enhancements are delivered by Db2 for i PTF Group SF99704 Level 25.
  
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IBM i Services (new)
I/O Enhancements
 
IBM i 7.4 TR 8 supports new offerings for Power Systems:
 
  • #ESR0 - EXP24 U.2 NVMe Storage Enclosure
  • #EN2N, #EN2P: PCIe4 64 Gb 2-port Optical Fibre Channel Adapter
  • #EN2L, #EN2M: PCIe4 32 Gb 4-port Optical Fibre Channel Adapter
  • #EJ2B, #EJ2C - PCIe3 12 Gb x8 SAS Tape HBA Adapter
  • #EN2W, #EN2X - PCIe3 4-port 10 GbE BaseT RJ45 Adapter -- adds IBM i dedicated driver support
 
  • Direct attach for 8 Gb Tape for servers with Power10 technology
System Access and Management  
    ACS the strategic interface for accessing the IBM i and managing & interacting with Db2 for i continues to be enhanced based on the requests and requirements of our user community.  
     
    Run SQL Scripts 
    • Prompting for statement variables - Users can now leave 'variables' within their SQL and are now prompted for the input values.
      • SQL Prompting Example 1
      • SQL Example 2
      • SQL Prompting Examples
    • Active Hyperlinks
      • If you have a URL as part of your comments, hover over the URL, it becomes active and you can click it to launch to that location.
      • Active Hyperlinks
    • New Insert for Examples 
      • Insert for Examples is updated to include many new examples, including new examples to demonstrate the new Geospatial support included with IBM Db2 for i.
      • Note: Examples are only shown for systems that have the correct OS level to support the features
      • Insert from Examples
    • Overwrite Text
      • Right click and select the Overwrite vs Insert action to toggle between overwriting text or inserting text 
    • RSS Rich Copy Text Support 
      • When you copy something within RSS, the rich text attributes are no long lost when pasted into a location that supports rich text
    • Launching Explain and Run and Explain no longer activate the debugger under the covers  
    • Allow user to set the default 'Number of rows to retrieve at a time' under User Preferences ->Results 
      • Update Saved Row Count
    • Correct how the Default Schema and Library list are handled on the JDBC connection
    Schemas
    • RESTRICT ON DROP support for routines
    5250 Emulator
    • Support certificates with multiple Subject Alternative Name (SAN)

    The web-based interface for accessing, managing, and monitoring the IBM i nodes in your IT estate continues to improve. Based on enhancements from our advisor and user community, as well as efforts to deliver function from previous versions, the Navigator continues to improve and expand. Some of the updates delivered in this latest version are as follows: 

    General

    •  Dashboard - Leverage 'Display name' vs 'hostname' for the identifier of the IBM i node 
    • Search Keywords - updated with latest additions 
    • Updated Bookmarks
    • Improved error message details
    • Enhanced table filters
      • Preserved filter and column sort on table refresh
      • Provides user-selectable filter capabilities for each column  
        • Table Filtering

    Integrated File System (IFS) 

    • Refresh and Reload support 
    • When changing authority of a *DIR object, you have the option to propagate modified authority to all objects under that subtree.
      • IFS Propagate to subtree
    • Upload and Download actions 
    • Open directory in a new tab
      • IFS Multi Tab Support
    Network -> TCP/IP Servers
    • ObjectConnect server over IP  - Properties support  
    • NetServer now includes disabled users column next to status 
    • DDM server - Properties support 
    • FTP server - Properties support
    • DNS server - Updates to Properties support 
    • Telnet server - Properties support 
    • Support for all Debugger servers and services 
    System
    • Improved readability for status bars
    • New Properties View for easy copy, paste, and export 
    • Processor type added to system view
    Work Management 
    • Spool files can now be 'zipped' as part of the download action
    • Allow name change on Pre-Start jobs 
    • New job log 
    Advanced Job Scheduler 
    • Job Controls/Applications tab added under AJS Properties 
    The latest details on all the functions delivered can be found on Navigator latest and greatest. The latest PTF information is found on Navigator PTFs page
    Application Development 
     
    IBM i 7.5 TR 2 includes several key additions to multiple languages within Rational Development Studio (WDS):

    RPG Programming Language:
    • %SPLIT is enhanced to allow a special parameter *ALLSEP indicating that a value is returned for every separator
    • New built-in functions %PASSED and %OMITTED to test whether a parameter was passed SELECT is enhanced to allow an operand. New operation code WHEN-IS and WHEN-IN specifying the value to compare to or a range or list of values to compare to within the SELECT operand
    • New command parameter PPMINOUTLN for CRTBNDRPG and CRTRPGMOD to control the record length of the temporary file used by CRTSQLRPGI when the RPGPPOPT parameter is *LVL1 or *LVL2. Specify this parameter by using the COMPILEOPT parameter of CRTSQLRPGI
    • Add the “boolean” attribute for indicator parameters when generating PCML
    Additional Details can be found on at the RPG Cafe.
    COBOL Programming Language:
    • The COPY REPLACING statement and the REPLACE statement are enhanced.  The addition of LEADING and TRAILING phrases allows the user to replace only the leading or trailing occurrence of a character or string in a record.
    • New command parameter TGTCCSID for CRTBNDCBL and CRTCBLMOD to specify the CCSID used for the compile.  This parameter allows compiling from Unicode source in IFS.
    • Add the “boolean” attribute for indicator parameters when generating PCML
    Additional Details can be found on this page: ILE COBOL enhancements

     

    Rational Developer for i, V9.8 is built upon Eclipse 4.23 and Java 11, providing new base functionality and better integration with all Eclipse based application development tools, making you more productive. 

    V9.8 of Rational Developer for i is a P2 based install, making RDi very easy to install on Windows and MacOS. 

    • The Windows driver can be unzipped using your favorite unzip tool 

    • The MacOS install uses a Disk Image (.dmg) file that allows you to simply drag and drop install

    Rational Developer for i allows you to code to the latest Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 RPG Enhancements, including outline, content assist, and extended help, all without leaving the application.

    Many additional enhancements include:

    • “Show in outline” menu-option under the Source menu on a member which positions the Outline view to the selected symbol name 

    • A new option under Help menu “Display Rational Developer for i Error Log” that will open the .metadata log file in an editor view to allow quicker access to the current error log
    • Show in history function to helps you track what source members you’ve changed
    • New Mini Map feature, to help you quickly navigate inside your source member
    • Quickly create a new member using F6 on a member in the Object Table, and the type, library, and source file are filled in for you. All you need to do is provide a name and a description.

    • A new Default RPGLE Template that works on an empty member so you can create **Free members quickly, meaning you won’t need to copy old members for your **free and headers
    • We’ve added the ability to quickly create a new secure connection to your IBM i
    • You can now see the full qualified member name in member compares
    • Zoom menu options have been added, along with a reset menu option with a keyboard Ctrl-R

    Rational Developer for i ships with the latest ACS integration, allowing you to launch from the older menu options, and the new ACS display buttons on the Object Table view and the Library List view.

    Details on the latest can be found on the IBM Rational Developer for i product page.

     
    Various enhancements have been made to IBM i extensions for VSCode, both by IBM and the community. Some examples:
    • New method of uploading files to server in a faster manner.
    • Ability to launch debugging from VS Code for ILE programs.
    • Support for connecting to IBM i environments securely without user authentication.
    • Support for .env files in local projects that are used when running Actions
    • New API documentation in the form of TypeScript type definitions for extension authors to use the IBM i APIs.
    • CL language support inside of VS Code. Including content assist, outline view, and more.
    For more information about IBM i extensions, see https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=HalcyonTechLtd.ibm-i-development-pack
    The IBM Remote System Explorer API (RSE API) is a collect of Rest API interfaces that allow a client to access and work with various components on an IBM i. This includes APIs for the following:
    • Authorization 
    • IFS
    • QSYS Objects 
    • CL Commands 
    • SQL Statements  
    The RSE API support provides that secure framework for Rest based interactions with the IBM i. These can be used for Application communication or system management interactions.  More details on the RSE API can be found at RSE API home page
    IBM Technology for Java now includes support for Java 17. Java 17 is delivered in Option 20
     
    This is available though the latest Java PTF Group -  7.5:  SF99955 Level 5
     
    Details on Java for IBM i can be found at Java on IBM i page 

     
     
     
    The Rest API Engine shipped with the operating system (IWS - Server) is enhanced to continue to meet the needs of the modern hybrid application:
     
    IWS - Server enhancements:
    The Integrated Web Services Client support provides an ILE-based solution for calling Rest and SOAP-based APIs from native ILE code. This is the underlying support for the QSYS2.HTTP_Functions.
     
    IWS - Client enhancements:
    Details on the latest and all supporting documentation can be found on the IWS Support Page 
    IBM Backup and Recovery Media Services for i (BRMS)(5770BR1)

    Highlights of the recent enhancements include the following:

    For more detail on these and other BRMS enhancements, see Enhancements to BRMS wiki page.

    • The network setup process allows setting of two values, “local receives history” and “remote receives history”, when adding a new system into the BRMS network. This setting identifies whether history information is shared with other systems in the BRMS network.
    • The SAVBRM command supports the parameter OBJDTL(*YES) or OBJDTL(*NO) to specify whether object detail is kept in the BRMS database for IFS backups. The parameter default value is OBJDTL(*YES).
    • The BRMS PTF exit program processing installs the BRMS SQL Services when a BRMS PTF is applied.
    • BRMS SQL service enhancements are added for BRMS Networking, Maintenance Policy functions, and copy control group support. These new services give users SQL procedures to set up a BRMS network, control maintenance options run by control groups, and procedures to copy control groups.
    • BRMS recovery report includes attention-block instructions to maintain the authority of customized output queues in library QUSRSYS during a disaster recovery.

    IBM PowerHA® SystemMirror® for i (5770-HAS)

    IBM PowerHA SystemMirror for IBM i 7.4 with HA version 4.9.2 brings several enhancements to PowerHA, including:

    • Increased agility and adaptability in Geographic Mirroring environments with the ability to change Geographic Mirroring parameters with minimal impact on the production workload
    • Simplified recoverability in Geographic Mirroring environments with the ability to detach and vary on suspended copies of the IASP
    • Continued enhancements to the PowerHA modern web interface

    See the IBM PowerHA SystemMirror for i wiki page for more detail.

    Db2 Mirror for i

    New improvements for usability, serviceability and performance.  See here for more details.

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    Document Information

    Modified date:
    28 April 2024

    UID

    ibm16909461

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