Collate and Convert MF COBOL (MFVL and ISAM) Files

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MF COBOL (MFVL and ISAM) Files

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Micro Focus COBOL File Processing & Conversion

Challenges:

Short and long variable length records in Micro Focus COBOL, and ten Index Sequential Access Method (ISAM) sub types are in file formats that many applications cannot import or process. You may also need to process this data directly and retain its format, or convert it to another index file format, or to a structured (sequential) file format like CSV, XML or LDIF.

Solutions:

IRI delivers COBOL and other file conversion functionality in two packages, which you can choose based on the level of need.

Note: You will need an active MF COBOL license on the same machine running IRI software and the copybook definition for each input file, unless you can discover the metadata manually.

ISAM & MFVL File Conversions Only
Now available from IRI is a low-cost, data migration product called NextForm. NextForm allows you to convert files in Micro Focus ISAM (index) and Variable Length (flat) files into other popular file formats (like CSV, XML, text, etc.) or from the other formats on the left into ISAM or MFVL. NextForm also supports COBOL and other data type conversions at the field level, plus the remapping of record layouts (e.g. fixed to delimited).

Note that NextForm file definitions will work in SortCL so that you can re-use your metadata if you someday want to upgrade to CoSort's fast transformation, custom reporting, and/or data-centric protection functions.

COBOL File Processing & Conversion
The CoSort package's SortCL tool can manipulate, convert, and write both Micro Focus Variable Length records in COBOL, and multiple ISAM file formats. You would use SortCL against these files if you also needed to sort, join, aggregate, integrate, reformat, protect, or produce reports on COBOL data sets off the mainframe.

COBOL File Protection (Field & Record Level)
Both the CoSort package's SortCL tool and IRI's new NextForm can privatize data in your files with (auditable) field-level encryption, masking, de-identification, and other routines, based on the nature of the data and the recipient of the file.

IRI's NextForm, CoSort (SortCL), and FieldShield solutions support these formats:

• C-ISAM (default)
• IDXFORMAT 3, 4 and 8 format
• Btrieve formats (with/without ANSI emulation)
• Mainframe print format Heap file
• ESDS file
• MF Variable Length (MFVL) long/short
• ACUCOBOL-GT Vision index files

Files in these formats can also be processed and reformatted to/from the other file formats listed on the left. For example, you can convert an MF-ISAM file to CSV or XML and vice versa.

COBOL Test Data
Do you need test files in MF-ISAM or Variable Length formats? If so, see IRI's RowGen product. RowGen uses the same layout metadata as CoSort (SortCL) and NextForm so you can easily move between test data generation and real data transformation.

IRI, The CoSort Company