Research Finder
Find by Keyword
Mainframe Delivery: Is Instantaneous the New Normal?
PopUp Mainframe introduces X and Z Editions, aiming to deliver on-demand mainframe environments on cloud or Linux on Z, promising accelerated delivery and cost benefits.
Key Highlights
- PopUp Mainframe announces general availability of its X and Z Editions.
- The solution aims to provide instantly available mainframe environments.
- It offers deployment flexibility across cloud (X Edition) and Linux on Z (Z Edition).
- Early adopters report significantly increased delivery velocity.
- The technology supports both traditional and modern DevOps toolchains.
The News:
PopUp Mainframe has launched PopUp Mainframe X Edition and PopUp Mainframe Z Edition, designed to provide instantly accessible mainframe environments for development and testing. These new offerings aim to alleviate bottlenecks in mainframe delivery processes. The X Edition supports deployment on x86 and cloud platforms, while the Z Edition is architected to run on LinuxOne or within mainframe IFL/KVM environments. The company states this will lead to significant improvements in delivery speed and cost-effectiveness. Find out more in the press release here.
Analyst Take:
The mainframe, while a bedrock for many critical applications, has often been perceived as having slower development cycles compared to distributed environments. PopUp Mainframe's announcement addresses this perceived challenge head-on, with a clear focus on agility and efficiency. The introduction of instantly available mainframe environments, whether on demand in the cloud or leveraging existing Linux on Z infrastructure, signals a potential shift in how mainframe development and testing are approached. This isn't just about speed; it's about fundamentally rethinking the resource allocation and accessibility associated with mainframe projects.
What was announced
With the X Edition is the capability to spin up a functionally equivalent z/OS environment on x86 or cloud infrastructure. This aims to deliver a cost-effective and readily available platform for development, testing, and training. Key features include on-demand provisioning, support for standard mainframe tools like ISPF, and compatibility with modern DevOps pipelines. The Z Edition, on the other hand, is architected to leverage the growing prevalence of Linux on Z. This allows organizations with investments in LinuxOne or available IFL/KVM partitions to host these ephemeral mainframe environments directly on the mainframe hardware. This edition is designed to appeal to organizations with stringent security requirements or those seeking to maximize their existing mainframe investments by consolidating workloads. A crucial aspect of both editions is the robust configuration management, which allows for a quick return to a known good state, a valuable feature for testing and R&D. Furthermore, the instant shutdown capability is designed to minimize resource consumption and align with Green IT initiatives.
The reported 300% increase in delivery speed is a compelling statistic, suggesting a radical improvement in throughput. If these claims hold true in broader adoption, it could significantly alter the economics of mainframe application development and maintenance. The support for both traditional ISPF and modern DevOps toolchains is a smart move, acknowledging the diverse skill sets and methodologies within mainframe teams. This dual compatibility aims to foster better collaboration and potentially bridge the gap between established practices and newer approaches. Steven Dickens from HyperFRAME Research highlights the potential for unlocking new mainframe agility and workload testing possibilities by leveraging Linux on Z environments for modern DevOps processes. This perspective underscores the strategic nature of this announcement, potentially enabling mainframe teams to adopt more agile practices without necessarily disrupting their core production environment. Accenture has noted in recent reports the increasing importance of mainframe modernization that balances stability with agility, and PopUp Mainframe's offering appears to directly address this need.
Looking Ahead
I have been tracking the PopUp Mainframe story for a couple of years now and I am impressed by Gary Thornhill’s, The CEO’s dedication to product quality and engineering and overall I stand by what I said in the press release, namely that “The introduction of PopUp Mainframe’s tools on Linux on Z unlocks new possibilities for mainframe agility and workload testing. This strategic move enables organizations to harness Linux environments directly on the mainframe to allow for the deployment of modern DevOps processes while ensuring operational efficiency for mainframe teams.”
Based on what I am observing, the market for mainframe modernization tools that enhance agility and reduce costs is poised for significant growth, whether this is from larger vendors or startups like PopUp. The ability to provision and de-provision mainframe environments on demand, without the traditional overhead associated with LPAR management, could be a game changer for many organizations. The key trend that I am going to be looking out for is the level of integration PopUp Mainframe achieves with existing DevOps pipelines and how seamlessly mainframe teams can incorporate these ephemeral environments into their workflows.
However, a persistent challenge for start-ups in the mainframe space is Go-To-Market, PopUp will be no different. The mainframe installed base is almost by definition filled with the largest enterprises and government departments, and as such selling to these enterprises is hard. For Pop-Up to succeed it will need to invest in a GTM team to capitalize on the early customer adoption and drive to breakout sales.
HyperFRAME will be tracking how the company does in securing wider adoption and demonstrating the sustained benefits of its X and Z Editions in future quarters. The ability to deliver on the promise of increased velocity while maintaining quality and security will be critical for their long-term success.
Steven Dickens | CEO HyperFRAME Research
Regarded as a luminary at the intersection of technology and business transformation, Steven Dickens is the CEO and Principal Analyst at HyperFRAME Research.
Ranked consistently among the Top 10 Analysts by AR Insights and a contributor to Forbes, Steven's expert perspectives are sought after by tier one media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal and CNBC, and he is a regular on TV networks including the Schwab Network and Bloomberg.