Client Drivers and Interfaces
Industry-Standard Connectivity to Mainframe Data and Logic
DataDirect Shadow supports a wide array of industry-standard client drivers and interfaces to make it easier for developers to access relational or non-relational data, capture mainframe data events, as well as extend mainframe COBOL programs and screen-based applications to Service-Oriented Architectures or modern Web applications.
Shadow Studio is an Eclipse-based development and management console containing client drivers supporting the latest specifications for JDBC, ODBC, and ADO.NET, as well as interfaces for SOAP and MQ. Shadow includes the industry’s leading DataDirect Connect client drivers for high performance connectivity to mainframe relational/non-relational data and application environments.
- Easy-To-Implement Connectivity – Simplifies developer interaction with the mainframe by exposing mainframe data and applications through a relational database metaphor
- Stored Procedure Support – Type 4 driver provides support for stored procedures in DB2 and Shadow's remote procedures enable JDBC applications to call Java, COBOL, C/C++, P1/I, or Assembler programs that access DB2 as well as other mainframe data sources
- Enterprise Transactions – Built on X/Open XA, Shadow Enterprise Transactions ensure database synchronization across all platforms with two-phase commit (2PC) for mainframe and non-mainframe data
- Write Once/Run Anywhere – Exploits Java's "write once, run anywhere" capabilities by providing JDBC access to the mainframe environment from multiple platforms, including Windows 2000; IBM AIX; HP-UX; Sun Solaris; Linux; and z/OS Unix System Services
- SQLCancel Function – Improves application control over querying with SQLCancel functionality that terminates SQL statement execution , for example if that execution is taking too long
- LOB Deferred Materialization – Improves application performance and response time by deferring the retrieval of data stored in LOB data types (BLOB or CLOB) until statements explicitly refer to the columns. Deferring data materialization until necessary ensures that overhead incurs only when required
- XML Support – In conjunction with the Shadow for JDBC client driver, z/Direct returns information from data sources to the calling application in XML format
- Easy-To-Implement Connectivity – Fully supports the ODBC 3.5 API as well as 32-bit and 64-bit driver platforms, simplifying developer interaction with the mainframe by exposing mainframe data and applications through a relational database metaphor
- Enterprise Transactions – Built on X/Open XA, Shadow Enterprise Transactions ensure database synchronization across all platforms with two-phase commit (2PC) for mainframe and non-mainframe data
- SQL Conversion – When using ODBC or ADO.NET drivers, z/Direct non-invasively converts dynamic SQL to higher-performing static SQL, improving performance up to 70%, as well as simplifying and enhancing application administration
- SQLCancel Function – Improves application control over querying with SQLCancel functionality that terminates SQL statement execution , for example if that execution is taking too long
- LOB Deferred Materialization – Improves application performance and response time by deferring the retrieval of data stored in LOB data types (BLOB or CLOB) until statements explicitly refer to the columns. Deferring data materialization until necessary ensures that overhead incurs only when required
- Comprehensive Support – Delivers support for the .NET Framework 2.0, 3.0 and 3.5 on 32-bit and 64-bit platforms. Also, Shadow supports the ADO.NET 2.0 Common Programming Model, as well as runtime compatibility with Visual Studio .NET
- Support for a Metadata Collections – Based on the ANSI SQL Information Schema specification as well as collections specific to CICS and VSAM
- Easy-To-Implement Connectivity – Simplifies developer interaction with the mainframe by exposing mainframe data and applications through a relational database metaphor
- Enterprise Transactions – Built on X/Open XA, Shadow Enterprise Transactions ensure database synchronization across all platforms with two-phase commit (2PC) for mainframe and non-mainframe data
- SQL Conversion – When using ODBC or ADO.NET drivers, z/Direct non-invasively converts dynamic SQL to higher-performing static SQL, improving performance up to 70%, as well as simplifying and enhancing application administration
- SQLCancel Function – Improves application control over querying with SQLCancel functionality that terminates SQL statement execution , for example if that execution is taking too long
- Support for z/Direct Virtual Connection Facility – Manages an arbitrarily large number of connections for high-performance applications
- Migration Support – z/Direct uses the same infrastructure regardless of database driver, simplifying migration from either ODBC or JDBC to ADO.NET while retaining full capabilities for mainframe data access
Shadow encapsulates mainframe data, COBOL programs and screen-based applications in a wrapper comprised of WSDL or Web Services Description Language, an XML-based language that provides a model for describing Web services.
Shadow Studio uses the SOAP or Simple Object Access Protocol to call one of the operations listed in the WSDL describing the mainframe artifact, enabling the formerly incompatible system technologies to be joined together to create a new composite service. Shadow offers full support for SOAP over HTTP and SOAP over MQ as transport options.
