Technical Upgrade Considerations for JD Edwards World Customers

An Oracle White Paper February 2013

PURPOSE STATEMENT THIS DOCUMENT PROVIDES AN OVERVIEW OF CUSTOMER OPTIONS FOR GETTING TO THE MOST CURRENT RELEASES OF JD EDWARDS ENTERPRISEONE AND JD EDWARDS WORLD. IT IS INTENDED SOLELY TO HELP CUSTOMERS ASSESS THE BUSINESS BENEFITS OF UPGRADING AND TO PLAN YOUR IT PROJECTS. THIS DOCUMENT IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS INTENDED SOLELY TO ASSIST YOU IN PLANNING FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION AND UPGRADE OF THE PRODUCT FEATURES DESCRIBED. IT IS NOT A COMMITMENT TO DELIVER ANY MATERIAL, CODE, OR FUNCTIONALITY, AND SHOULD NOT BE RELIED UPON IN MAKING PURCHASING DECISIONS. THE DEVELOPMENT, RELEASE, AND TIMING OF ANY FEATURES OR FUNCTIONALITY DESCRIBED IN THIS DOCUMENT REMAINS AT THE SOLE DISCRETION OF ORACLE.

PROPRIETARY AND DISCLOSURE NOTICE THIS DOCUMENT IN ANY FORM, SOFTWARE OR PRINTED MATTER, CONTAINS PROPRIETARY INFORMATION THAT IS THE EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY OF ORACLE. YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THIS CONFIDENTIAL MATERIAL IS SUBJECT TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF YOUR ORACLE SOFTWARE LICENSE AND SERVICE AGREEMENT, WHICH HAS BEEN EXECUTED AND WITH WHICH YOU AGREE TO COMPLY. THIS DOCUMENT AND INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE DISCLOSED, COPIED, REPRODUCED OR DISTRIBUTED TO ANYONE OUTSIDE ORACLE WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT OF ORACLE. THIS DOCUMENT IS NOT PART OF YOUR LICENSE AGREEMENT NOR CAN IT BE INCORPORATED INTO ANY CONTRACTUAL AGREEMENT WITH ORACLE OR ITS SUBSIDIARIES OR AFFILIATES.

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Technical Upgrade Considerations for JD Edwards World Customers

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................. 1 OPTION 1. SYSTEMS AND INFRASTRUCTURE ON PREMISE ... 2 Vertex Considerations .................................................................................. 2 IBM i Operating System Considerations ................................................... 2 OPTION 2. MANAGED SERVICES FOR SYSTEM SUPPORT WITH HARDWARE ON PREMISE ........................................................... 4 IBM RPG and User Skill Sets...................................................................... 4 Managed Services for JD Edwards World................................................. 4 OPTION 3. MOVING TO A HOSTED ENVIRONMENT ................. 5 OPTION 4. SELECT ANOTHER (NON-IBM) PLATFORM .............. 6 SUMMARY ........................................................................................................ 6

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Technical Upgrade Considerations for JD Edwards World Customers

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Does Oracle support my companys JD Edwards upgrade decision? Regardless of your decision to upgrade to current releases of JD Edwards World or JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, Oracle stands with you through its Lifetime Support and Applications Unlimited policies.

Customers upgrading from older versions of Oracles JD Edwards World, including A7.3 and A8.1 as well as releases prior to A7.3, to a current release of either JD Edwards World or JD Edwards EnterpriseOne face multiple decisions involving software upgrades and current hardware replacements. They often ask: Do we keep and update our current hardware? Can our hardware be updated considering the age of the box and its related components? Do we invest in a new machine? Do we get out of the architecture business all together and look at hosting and related cloud solutions?

Do we have adequate IT skills in-house or should we contract skills? Does our staff need training? Often, these customer questions fall into two general categories: 1) Technical skills available in their company 2) Determination of skill sets required for implementing an upgrade, new hardware, or new architecture. The following four options, which are summarized in Table 1, are available to JD Edwards World customers to meet their technical challenges: 1) On Premise Keep systems and operations support in-house 2) Managed Services Keep systems in-house but use managed services for key systems support and operations 3) Host (Cloud) Move to a hosted environment where systems and support operations are contracted to an Oracle partner hosting services provider 4) Non-IBM Platform Move to another hardware platform Depending on your business needs, you can stay with JD Edwards World or upgrade to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne. With either choice, Oracle and its partners are ready to support your decision through Oracles Lifetime Support policy and Oracles Applications Unlimited program.

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Table 1. Upgrade Options for JD Edwards World Customers JD Edwards World to World Upgrade to A9.3 JD Edwards World to EnterpriseOne 9.1 Migration

Option Number

JD Edwards World Options

Keep your existing IBM iSeries Keep your IBM iSeries and have it managed

Notes
Leverage existing IBM iSeries Resources to manage system CNC skills in house IBM iSeries knowledge Lack of resources for day-to-day system management CNC skills in house
Capital expenditure restraints Free up IT for other projects Lower cost alternatives Non IBM/RPG staff Retirement of experienced JD Edwards World staff

Hosted in the Cloud Change Hardware Platform

OPTION 1. SYSTEMS AND INFRASTRUCTURE ON PREMISE

What about IBM hardware and JD Edwards EnterpriseOne? JD Edwards EnterpriseOne does run on an IBM iSeries so you can use your existing hardware when migrating from JD Edwards World to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne.

For Oracle customers who continue with JD Edwards World, the IBM i is the only platform of choice. If business conditions dictate migrating to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, there are additional hardware and operating system considerations and options. Fortunately for IBM customers, IBM continues to dramatically upgrade hardware and operating system capabilities and the JD Edwards team in Denver works closely with IBM to leverage and incorporate these upgrades.
Vertex Considerations

What about Vertex for USA and Canada payroll? For JD Edwards World Vertex Q Series requires IBM operating system i7.1.

JD Edwards World customers running payroll need to consider the end of support for the Vertex L series for United States and Canada payroll. Vertex will no longer provide updates for the Vertex L series after December 31, 2013. This was first announced September of 2010. Current JD Edwards World customers will receive a Q Series license at no additional cost. JD Edwards World integration to the Vertex Q series for United States payroll is in A9.3 base. The JD Edwards Q Series integration for Canadian payroll is planned for A9.3 Update 1 with the minimum operating system for A9.3 is i7.1.
IBM i Operating System Considerations

One determining factor for new or updated hardware is the release of the Operating system being used and the age of the CPU. IBM has announced that support for operating system V5R4 will end September 30, 2013. The latest release of the IBM operating system is i7.1

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(V7R1) which is also the minimum operating system version required for JD Edwards World A9.3 (the current release). Some older IBM i boxes are not compatible with i7.1. Table 2, provided below by IBM, displays the compatibility of the servers with the operating system releases. The newest line of IBM processors, based on Power 7 technology, offers a very powerful processing/price ratio greater than older IBM products currently used by many JD Edwards World customers.

Are all IBM i boxes compatible with the IBMs i7.1 operating system? No. See table 2.

Table 2. IBM Hardware and Available Operating Systems Servers IBM POWER7 720, 740, 750, 770, 780, 795 IBM POWER6 JS12, 22, 23/43, 550* 560 IBM POWER6 520, 550*, 570, 595 IBM POWER5+ 515, 525 IBM POWER5 520, 550, 570, 595 IBM 800, 810, 825, 870, 890 IBM 270, 820, 830, 840
Applies to specific models. Verify details with IBM 1 Source: IBM data verified 10 January 2013. Subject to change.

IBM i V5R4

IBM i V6R1

IBM i 7.1

If it is necessary to update or purchase a new IBM i to take advantage of the latest IBM technologies, there are some tools to assist in the sizing and the return on investment for the project. IBM has an ROI tool for hardware and software which is graphical and interactive and is highly customizable to your environment. Once the information is entered, it generates a custom, professional presentation to support your modernization project.2 IBM will assist with sizing based on a customer supplied questionnaire.3 This sizing exercise takes into consideration a companys workload, growth and web clients.

1 2 3

See: www-947.ibm.com/systems/support/i/planning/upgrade/osmapping.html Available online at: k.kmaone.com/JdeRoi or through www.upgradeJDE.com Available online at: www.ibm.com/erp/sizing

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OPTION 2. MANAGED SERVICES FOR SYSTEM SUPPORT WITH HARDWARE ON PREMISE IBM RPG and User Skill Sets
What about RPG for JD Edwards World? JD Edwards World is moving to RPG IV / ILE concepts in base code. There is more object orientation in the new RPG, which means those versed in JAVA or other object oriented languages will find it easier to understand and learn RPGIV concepts.

JD Edwards World customers may be facing the situation of employees retiring who have the knowledge of the IBM i and RPG and these skill sets are non-existent in the company. Some customers are finding that it is difficult to find RPG skills in the workforce. RPG is still taught at some USA community colleges and select Canadian universities but altogether in relatively smaller numbers compared to offerings delivered in the previous century. Generating a web search for rpg training may return local college or technical school information in your area offering RPG skills classes. JD Edwards World customers who no longer have RPG skill sets in house and are having issues finding RPG and iSeries resources often upgrade to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne. Likewise, these customers often have IT staff demanding to work on new technologies which makes an upgrade to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne a good choice. These customers may decide to keep their IBM iSeries machines and leave them on premise if they: Have CNC skills in house Contract CNC skills to an Oracle partner to manage the architecture Contract with an Oracle partner to teach CNC skills to their IT staff Hire additional skills, which are readily available in the marketplace Regarding RPG itself, JD Edwards World is moving to RPG IV/ILE concepts in base code. There is more object orientation in this new RPG which means those versed in JAVA or other object oriented languages will find it easier to understand and learn RPG IV concepts. Contact IBM i for more technical training opportunities4:

Managed Services for JD Edwards World

Perhaps you have a reasonably current and adequately sized IBM i. Some customers are wary of the cloud and want to keep their systems and critical data on premise. However, you may not have staff to perform an upgrade or the required skills for day-to-day management of your JD Edwards system. In this case, a managed services solution is an excellent choice, one that is becoming very popular in the marketplace over the last two years. Managed services are a growing industry fueled by Oracle partners who have experience from hundreds of projects and skills developed across many customers to replace or augment your in-house technical operations support. Managed services are not an all or nothing proposition; rather, most managed solutions area offered on a continuum from partial augmentation to complete management. Several basic considerations are important when looking at a managed solution:

More information at: www-03.ibm.com/systems/services/conferenceseries/

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1) Proper service-level agreements required to support your environment and operational business needs 2) Comparison of costs of outsourced management vs. costs of retaining direct employees to provide the operations support services 3) The inherent value of using managed service staff which has daily exposure and experience with multiple JD Edwards systems from different companies Most Oracle partners now can operate remotely; quite often they have a national or even a global support practice and combine onsite with remote services. Others located locally are a call away from being onsite. Both offer a prearranged schedule of regular maintenance based on your needs, such as backups and updates. As is the case with any solutions provider, a well defined service level agreement is an absolute requirement. For those who are migrating to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, this type of Oracle partner service can provide the skills often not available to support CNC (Configurable Network Computing) efforts necessary with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne. It can be leveraged as a long term solution or as a more short term transfer of knowledge of CNC skills from the expert to in-house support resources.

OPTION 3. MOVING TO A HOSTED ENVIRONMENT

Should I consider a hosted JD Edwards solution? Hosting a JD Edwards system is a great choice for customers with aging on-premise hardware who do not want to expend limited capital funds for new hardware and related components.

Hosting for JD Edwards products has been available since the 1990s and recently has become more viable, more available and very popular through a growing list of Oracle partners. This is a popular and convenient option for customers who: 1) Have outdated IBM i hardware (AS400, iSeries, System i) 2) Do not want to invest in new hardware 3) Have a shortage of IT expertise and resources to maintain the system Upgrades and updates are performed by an Oracle partners hosting team who are JD Edwards technology and application experts. Customers who host will no longer have to worry about finding knowledgeable in-house resources or partners to perform an upgrade or find appropriate times and resources to install patches and updates since all of these tasks a done by the partner which frees up IT resources and company funds to focus on other innovative and operational initiatives. Other reasons to consider working in the cloud include: JD Edwards World customers who want to take advantage of the great new features in JD Edwards EnterpriseOne such as One View Reporting and its enhanced user interface, but do not have skills to manage the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne architecture, should also strongly consider this option. Companies with outdated IBM i machines who do not want to invest in new hardware and do not have to worry what is on the back end running the software. Customers, who have a business need for JD Edwards EnterpriseOne but have capital expenditure restraints, may find that hosting can turn the capital expense (cap-ex) restraints into operational expenditure (op-ex) based opportunities.

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OPTION 4. SELECT ANOTHER (NON-IBM) PLATFORM

What about other hardware? There are many business reasons to consider moving from an IBM environment to other Oracle supported platforms if an upgrade to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne is planned.

JD Edwards World customers who need additional functionality, a modern user interface, tablet and mobile device support and enhanced reporting should consider upgrading to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne. JD Edwards EnterpriseOne works very well with the IBM i and is backed by a large percentage of this install base running on the IBM solution. When companies upgrade to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne they keep their IBM iSeries but also need to add at a minimum a deployment server and a web server. For those upgrading to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne there is often compelling reasons to consider switching hardware and operating system technologies. This includes: Lower cost hardware alternatives Available existing in-house technical support resources attuned with either Microsoft or Oracle platform and database technologies Need to consolidate multiple systems on one platform Retirement or other departures of experienced JD Edwards World and/or IBM resources Influx of younger employees experienced with different technologies An existing or planned sizeable investment in either Microsoft or Oracle platforms More information on the potential advantages of running JD Edwards EnterpriseOne on Oracle technology is available from Oracle5. Please note that JD Edwards EnterpriseOne has a different infrastructure management from JD Edwards World. Training and qualified Oracle partner involvement is a primary key to a successful upgrade project from JD Edwards World to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne.

SUMMARY

For JD Edwards World customers considering their options to either upgrade to the current version of JD Edwards World or migrate to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, there are four options: 1) Keep systems and operations support in-house 2) Keep systems in-house and use managed services for key systems support and operations 3) Move to a hosted environment where systems and support operations are contracted to an Oracle partner offering hosting services. 4) Move to another hardware platform Keys to the decision include careful consideration of your companys organization preference, availability and skill set of resources (particularly IBM PRG), service level expectations and costs (both short term and future). Whether the path leads to continuing with JD Edwards World or EnterpriseOne, be assured that both solutions have long and robust roadmaps, and that JD Edwards World customers can confidently continue to include JD Edwards as a key player in a long term strategy. .
5

Information available at www.oracle.com/us/media1/057250.pdf

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Technical Upgrade Considerations for JD Edwards World Customers Number: E1WP-1103 (A.1) Original: January 2013 Revised: Author: Barb Canham Oracle Corporation JD Edwards World Headquarters 500 Oracle Parkway Redwood Shores, CA 94065 USA JD Edwards Worldwide Inquiries: Phone: +1.650.506.7000 Fax: +1.650.506.7200 oracle.com Copyright 2013, Oracle. All rights reserved. This document is provided for information purposes only and the contents hereof are subject to change without notice. This document is not warranted to be error-free, nor subject to any other warranties or conditions, whether expressed orally or implied in law, including implied warranties and conditions of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. We specifically disclaim any liability with respect to this document and no contractual obligations are formed either directly or indirectly by this document. This document may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without our prior written permission. Oracle, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft, Siebel, and Retek are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. This document is for informational purposes only and may not be incorporated into a contract or agreement.