Computer networking goes back to the early 1960s, when an airline reservation system needed to retrieve information from a mainframe. With that first data transmission, networking was born. Incidentally, that’s probably also when the science of losing airline luggage went high tech. Regardless, that first primitive communications application was heralded as the electronic marvel of its time.
Today, a person in Lisbon, Spain, can trade salad recipes with a person in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, via the Internet, and we never even give this a second thought. It’s amazing how rapidly technology has progressed and how easily we take it for granted. What’s even more amazing is the reluctance of many businesses to take advantage of the Internet and electronic commerce. For most, the reason is likely due to a lack of knowledge about what e-commerce and the Internet can do for them, not to mention the myriad technical issues a business must contend with to successfully use e-commerce. We want to help you overcome those misgivings by providing you with some of the knowledge you may be missing.
In this issue, you’re going to learn how to connect your AS/400 to the Internet, how to allow Internet/intranet users to access your AS/400 data, and how to protect yourself from potential security exposures. Finally, as an added bonus, we’re previewing “Windows NT and the AS/400: Past, Present, and Future,” an in-depth management look at the impact of the Windows NT Server on the AS/400 community. This excerpt is from a detailed technical analysis written by Jim Hoopes and will appear in full in the June issue of MC. With V4R2 of OS/400 and the IPCS, Windows NT has become so important to the AS/400 community that we felt you should begin now to consider how it may help your networking strategy in the months and years to come.
Perhaps one of your biggest concerns about networking at this point is, “What do we do with it?” Let’s assume that your business has been successfully selling a great product for years, but now you want to take advantage of the tremendous exposure you can receive on the Internet. What’s next? Obviously, you need to connect your AS/400 to the
Internet to reap that benefit. Laura Knapp shows you how to do this by explaining how to implement the HTTP server for Internet and e-commerce.
As the AS/400 becomes the Internet server of choice, it will also become an even greater target and challenge for hackers. With IBM positioning the AS/400 as the answer to e-commerce and the proliferation of TCP/IP and the Internet, the potential for a security breach becomes worldwide. Fortunately, with V4R2, IBM has given us a means of protection for our valuable data. David Money shows us how to set up and implement the IPCS firewall so you too can keep out those with malicious intent.
OK, so far you’ve got a means of allowing others to access your system and a secure firewall between your AS/400 and the world at large. Now, you need to let that virtual community have access to your data. What better way to do this than by using the latest gem from Lotus? In this issue, Timothy Laurent provides us with a primer to Lotus Notes and Domino. By the time you finish, you’ll be armed with the knowledge of how it works and how to use these tools in your Internet/intranet network environment.
It’s a bold step you are about to take. You are going from a closed system of a limited number of users to one that has the potential to let millions of people touch your business and access your data. It can be quite daunting, but the rewards for those who persevere and make networking and e-commerce a part of their business will more than outweigh the initial uncertainty. The information in the articles you are about to read will provide you with the foundation to get started on this brave new journey.
More than ever, there is a demand for IT to deliver innovation. Your IBM i has been an essential part of your business operations for years. However, your organization may struggle to maintain the current system and implement new projects. The thousands of customers we've worked with and surveyed state that expectations regarding the digital footprint and vision of the company are not aligned with the current IT environment.
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Forms of ransomware has been around for over 30 years, and with more and more organizations suffering attacks each year, it continues to endure. What has made ransomware such a durable threat and what is the best way to combat it? In order to prevent ransomware, organizations must first understand how it works.
Disaster protection is vital to every business. Yet, it often consists of patched together procedures that are prone to error. From automatic backups to data encryption to media management, Robot automates the routine (yet often complex) tasks of iSeries backup and recovery, saving you time and money and making the process safer and more reliable. Automate your backups with the Robot Backup and Recovery Solution. Key features include:
Business users want new applications now. Market and regulatory pressures require faster application updates and delivery into production. Your IBM i developers may be approaching retirement, and you see no sure way to fill their positions with experienced developers. In addition, you may be caught between maintaining your existing applications and the uncertainty of moving to something new.
IT managers hoping to find new IBM i talent are discovering that the pool of experienced RPG programmers and operators or administrators with intimate knowledge of the operating system and the applications that run on it is small. This begs the question: How will you manage the platform that supports such a big part of your business? This guide offers strategies and software suggestions to help you plan IT staffing and resources and smooth the transition after your AS/400 talent retires. Read on to learn:
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