CA-Telon

CA-Telon

We use a fully automated approach to guaranteed accuracy and consistency and have migrated in excess of thirty clients in the last two decades.

Overview

MigrationWare has been migrating CA-Telon clients since 1995. We use a fully automated approach to guaranteed accuracy and consistency and have migrated in excess of thirty clients in the last two decades. Two client’s Case Studies, Allied Irish Bank in Dublin and SEB bank in Sweden are on the right hand side of this page.
With Telon migration, you have three options :
  1. Migrate to Casegen as a replacement for CA-Telon
  2. Migrate to a new set of functionally identical applications, built using well structured modern source code with no licenced Run Time Components
  3. Keep the CA-Telon generated code and replace the licenced CA Run Time components, which are required for the source code to run 

CA-Telon Migration Issues

CA often licence their products in a ‘bundle’ which allows their clients flexibility in their use of multiple products. Some previous clients who were licenced in his way had an interest in removing CA-Telon but have considered that they would not gain any any financial benefit by doing so unless and until they removed all CA products.
In this scenario and in the event that CA will not negotiate a reduction in their licence fee to reflect the removal of an individual product, the removal of the entire CA software estate may be the only solution.. Several large companies have already successfully done this in conjunction with ourselves and companies like RSMPartners.
If this is your situation, please call us, we would be glad to assist you in assessing the potential for a total CA removal project.
  • Option 1

    Migrate to a new compatible development tool - Casegen

    In this option we will migrate all of the CA-Telon applications into our own application development tool, Casegen. This product is a PC based application design and generation tool that is similar in structure to CA-Telon, so much so that most CA-Telon trained developers will start using it with less than one days training.
    To begin with, we will analyse your CA-Telon environment and programs and set up Casegen so that it mimics all of the Macro changes, environmental options and setup specifications that you have in your current implementation of CA-Telon.
    We then import all of the programs information from the CA-Telon TDF into Casegen, and you are then ready to start using Casegen as a full replacement for Telon.
    As part of the migration to Casegen, we can, if required, assist you to make some basic changes, such as changing IMS/DC (IMS/TM) applications to CICS applications.
    The major difference with Casegen is that it generates modern well structured PL1 or COBOL, in the case of COBOL we use the ANSI ‘85 standard. The code that is generated by Casegen is the full source code of the programs, i.e. there are NO licenced program components, as there are in CA-Telon and without which the CA Telon generated applications will not run.
    We support all of the CA-Telon environments, options and databases. Using the Casegen product, you can maintain the imported applications, and regenerate them as you make changes. You can also create new applications, and will find that Casegen is far more productive and simpler to use that CA-Telon.
    Being PC based, you can use Casegen to design, modify and generate your applications, and then with a PC based mainframe environment, such as Micro Focus MFE, you can test the applications before uploading them to the mainframe – or wherever your production environment exists.

    See Casegen In Action?

    We would be happy to set up a Webcast to demonstrate the elegance and simplicity of the Casegen application design and generation product, to request a demo, click here.

    Benefits Of Migrating To Casegen

    • Removal of CA-Telon licence
    • No need for CA-Telon trained developers
    • Option to use Casegen as a new development tool, OR maintain at the source code level – no product lock in
    • Supports all the CA-Telon environmental options
    • The Casegen generated code is the full source code, no licenced Run Time components
    • Simple to port the entire application to another platform
    • Can form part of a PC based environment to develop, generate and test applications

    One Other Final Choice

    You may wish to escape from the Telon licence fees as soon as you can. However, it may take some time to convert all of the current applications into Casegen.
    In this case, you may be able to use the MigrationWare replacement Run Time Modules (see Option 3) to replace the CA licensed Run Time Modules, and almost immediately cancel the Telon Licence.
    Once your existing systems are running with the MigrationWare Modules, (a few weeks?) then you can convert the Telon systems over to Casegen , starting with those which have the most immediate need for maintenance.

  • Option 2

    Convert from CA-Telon to a new set of applications in well structured PL1 or COBOL code – with no ongoing licence requirements

    If you are keen to remove CA-Telon, but do not feel that you need the productivity of the Casegen development product, then we can migrate the Telon applications directly into modern well structured Cobol or PL1.
    To begin with, we will analyse your CA-Telon environment and programs and set up our migration toolset so that it reflects all of the macro changes, environmental options and setup specifications that you have in your current implementation of Telon.
    We then export all of the programs information from the CA-Telon TDF into the migration toolset, and generate out a complete new set of applications, which will now be in modern well structured code, with no licenced Run Time Module dependencies.
    To see samples of the before and after migrated code, contact us click here.
    As part of the migration, we can also assist you to make some basic changes, such as changing IMS/DC (IMS/TM) applications to CICS applications.

    Benefits Of Migrating To Standard Modern Code

    • Removal of CA-Telon licence
    • No need for CA-Telon skills, code is standard COBOL / PL1
    • The new code is the full source code, no licenced components
    • Simple to port the entire application to another platform
  • Option 3

    Keep the CA-Telon generated code and replace the CA licenced Run Time Modules

    This option is not recommended for clients where there is a high level of maintenance required, due to complexity of maintaining the unstructured code that CA-Telon generates.
    Most CA-Telon users will know that the code which it generates is not truly standalone COBOL or PL1, as it depends on certain CA supplied Run Time Modules.
    Although some of these are modules supplied in source form, they are nevertheless licenced modules, and if you choose remove CA-Telon, you must replace these modules or keep paying the full fees.
    Whilst you could, in theory, rewrite these modules, this is especially difficult if you are using any of the LINEOPT options as these are written in Assembler, and are very complex.
    Fortunately, MigrationWare has gone through the pain and has developed a full set of routines to replace the CA-Telon Run Time Modules. These have been deployed in half a dozen sites worldwide, and are truly well proven.
    The even better news is that to replace the CA modules with MigrationWare's, you simply need to re-link the existing applications, so you can be in a position to cancel the Telon licence in a very short space of time.
    Should you subsequently need to maintain the code, you will need to make any changes at the source code level. As the Telon generated source code is quite an old design, it is highly recommended that you are confident that no more than minimal maintenance will be required BEFORE you go down this route.

    Benefits Of Migrating By Replacing The CA Licenced Run Time Modules

    • Removal of CA-Telon licence
    • No need for CA-Telon skills, code is standard (though unstructured) COBOL / PL1
    • No CA licenced components, maintenance of the MigrationWare Run Time components is very inexpensive
    • In some cases it is possible to port the entire application to another platform

    One Other Final Choice

    You may wish to escape from the CA-Telon licence fees as soon as you can but are worried that if you simply replace the CA Run Time modules with the MigrationWare ones, then that will cause you a problem when you come to maintain the code. In this case, we have a solution for you.
    The resolution for this is to implement the MigrationWare Run Time Modules in the short term to escape from the cost of the Telon licence, and then have an agreed schedule to migrate into Casegen those systems that require regular maintenance...
    By doing this you will have the ease of maintenance of the 'active' systems, and the low cost option of using the MigrationWare Run Time modules to continue to run the other CA-Telon generated systems 'as is'.