Overview

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Java™ developers can transform COBOL programs to Java with the assistance of generative AI. Using a two-step process, developers can generate Java classes structures and then generate the business logic for each method. The IBM® watsonx Code Assistant™ for Z service can be deployed in IBM Cloud® or on prem.

Transform COBOL services by using IBM Cloud

Transforming COBOL services to Java by using an AI-assisted approach requires setting up an instance of watsonx Code Assistant for Z in IBM Cloud. For more information on how to set up watsonx Code Assistant for Z in IBM Cloud, see Setting up watsonx Code Assistant for Z in IBM Cloud.

watsonx Code Assistant for Z as a service is available in IBM Cloud. This cloud service provides access to the Large Language Model (LLM) that enables Java developers to convert COBOL to object-oriented Java. After you provision an instance of watsonx Code Assistant for Z, you must prepare the COBOL services that you want to transform to Java.

The watsonx Code Assistant for Z VS Code extension helps you prepare the COBOL services by writing the necessary metadata to the Cloud database. Keep COBOL services in a source code management repository, such as Git, to manage the development of services and handover from COBOL to Java developers.

Figure 1. Transform overview set up in IBM Cloud for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.0+ and earlier
Transform overview set up in IBM Cloud
Figure 2. Transform overview set up in IBM Cloud for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.1+
Transform overview set up in IBM Cloud

User flow for setting up and using transformation with generative AI using IBM Cloud

The following diagram shows how the different roles collaborate together to set up and use the solution by using IBM Cloud.
Note: Some of these steps may have already been completed as part of the directions in Setting up watsonx Code Assistant for Z in IBM Cloud.
Figure 3. Transform workflow by role for setup in the IBM Cloud for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.0+ and earlier
Transform workflow by role for setup in the IBM Cloud
Figure 4. Transform workflow by role for setup in the IBM Cloud for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.1+
Transform workflow by role for setup in the IBM Cloud

Transform COBOL services on prem

You can run watsonx Code Assistant for Z fully on prem. The following diagrams shows how to achieve COBOL transformation on prem.

Figure 5. Transform overview set up on prem for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.0+ and earlier
Transform overview set up on prem
Figure 6. Transform overview set up on prem for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.1+
Transform overview set up on prem

User flow for setting up and using transformation with generative AI on prem

The following diagrams shows how different roles collaborate to set up and use the solution on prem.

Figure 7. Transform workflow by role for on prem setup for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.0+ and earlier
Transform workflow by role for on prem setup
Figure 8. Transform workflow by role for on prem setup for watsonx Code Assistant for Z version 2.8.1+
Transform workflow by role for on prem setup