1 3 1 IBM i Master for Development

Installing LANSA on Windows

1.3.1 IBM i Master for Development?

Pros

  • IBM i centric development. It's the model of choice for development shops with a major focus on IBM i.
  • Existing IBM i change management systems may be used.
  • Can develop without a connection to the Master System.
  • It's the model you've been using.
  • The LANSA development team has used this model extensively for developing LANSA in LANSA. (Not sharing the database with Repository Synchronization)
  • All developers can be kept up to date using Repository Synchronization.
  • Using Individual PC databases and Repository Synchronization together provides for some control over receiving other developer's changes as they are only received when connecting to Host Monitor.

Cons

  • The Master System must be available when installing the IBM i Slave and whenever system data needs to be updated. (System Initialization and Partition Initialization)
  • The Master System must be available to obtain permission to modify an object (Check Out) and to make those changes available to other developers (Check In)
  • When the database is shared or Repository Synchronization are used, other developer's changes are updated into a developer's environment according to the schedule of the other developer. They are not obtained on demand. That is, the developer is not sandboxed.
  • If the database is installed on each Developer PC then this requires more disk resource.
  • Each Developer needs to install and update their Visual LANSA software.

Note: The redundancy afforded by having the Master System reduces the importance of backing up individual PC databases. If a PC database is lost, then only the changes up to the last check in will be lost. If developer's check in frequently then little is exposed.

Ý 1.3 Choosing a Development Model