A Complete Integration Toolkit
When people think about integration, they often jump straight into APIs, cloud platforms, or data pipelines. But a simpler way to understand it is to think of integration like plumbing in a house.
Every home, no matter the layout, size, or age, needs plumbing. Water has to flow in, waste has to flow out, and everything must connect seamlessly behind the walls. But no two houses are exactly the same. Some require modern upgrades while others rely on legacy layouts, and many often need a mix of both.
The same is true for integrating IBM i based systems. Every organization needs systems to exchange data between ERP systems, cloud platforms, APIs, analytics tools, and partner applications. While pre-built tools don’t always perfectly fit every situation and use case, they can still provide a powerful starting point by accelerating integrations, reducing complexity, and enabling low-code approaches that get teams up and running faster—and at a fraction of the cost.
infoConnect is a comprehensive suite of tools designed to expedite IBM i integrations. Read on to explore the reasoning behind infoConnect’s creation, its capabilities, benefits, and how it’s used in real enterprise scenarios.
Why IBM i Integration Isn’t Often One-Size-Fits-All
IBM i/AS400 systems run mission-critical operations across industries, but as with any decades-old system, integration can often present a set of common challenges:
- Batch-based processes instead of real-time data flow
- Heavy reliance on custom RPG or COBOL development
- Limited API accessibility
- Skill gaps in legacy technologies
- In some cases, no access to underlying application source code, program, or database level connections at all
These challenges can slow modernization efforts and keep valuable data siloed within IBM i systems.
Introducing infoConnect: A Flexible Integration Toolkit
The infoConnect suite is designed to support IBM i integration across a variety of environments and system constraints. Rather than being a single tool or connector, it offers three complementary capabilities:
- 1. Change Data Capture (CDC / database replication) – real-time outbound db2 data exchange
- 2. Connectors & APIs – seamless system-to-system communication via APIs
- 3. Process Automation – integration without database or application source code access
To meet the needs of modern IBM i environments, the suite is built to integrate with leading platforms and technologies, including MuleSoft for API-led connectivity, Kafka (open-source) and Confluent Cloud for event streaming, AWS and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) for cloud-native architectures, and other messaging, integration, and data platforms that keep your operations competitive.
At the same time, infoConnect is flexible enough to run across diverse environments and applications. infoConnect works seamlessly across homegrown, packaged, or commercial applications and ERP systems, including legacy apps that may have limited to no integration interfaces. On top of that, the tool suite works across virtually any existing infrastructure, including cloud, on-premises, or hybrid setups.
Together, these capabilities enable real-time, bi-directional integrations with minimal custom development, giving teams the flexibility to connect the IBM i to modern platforms while continuing to support the systems they rely on today.
1. Change Data Capture: Real-Time Outbound Integrations
At the foundation of many integrations is the need to get data out of the IBM i efficiently. infoCDC monitors DB2 journal entries to stream user defined database changes such as inserts, updates, and deletes in near real time. Rather than handle data with batch transfers, infoCDC:
- Captures only the data you care about, reducing excessive processing
- Streams updates continuously to keep downstream systems in sync
- Simplifies modernization efforts without heavy custom development
This enables modern capabilities like real-time analytics, event-driven architectures, up-to-date reporting and dashboards, and the elimination of overnight batch dependencies.
Here’s an example of an enterprise use case:
A retail distributor running an IBM i-based ERP needed to synchronize inventory and order status with its e-commerce platform.
In their previous setup:
- Updates ran in batch jobs every hour
- Inventory mismatches caused overselling
- Customers saw delayed order updates
With infoCDC:
- Inventory and order changes are captured instantly from DB2
- Updates are streamed in real time to the e-commerce system
- All systems continuously stay synchronized
Business impact: Improved customer experience, reduced errors, and faster, more reliable fulfillment processes.
2. Connectors & APIs: Enabling Seamless Integration Across Platforms
Modern integration isn’t just about moving data, it’s about enabling systems to communicate and interact in real time.
The infoConnect suite includes pre-built connectors and API enablement capabilities that help IBM i systems integrate with modern ecosystems such as MuleSoft, Kafka, Confluent Cloud, AWS, Azure, GCP, and other platforms. Purpose-built for IBM i, these connectors support program calls, DB2 data, and data queues, making it possible to call IBM i programs from middleware, surface IBM i business logic as APIs, support database replication with infoCDC, and connect with cloud and on-prem environments. This allows teams to:
- Expose IBM i logic as REST/SOAP APIs
- Enable bi-directional data exchange
- Participate in event-driven architectures
- Integrate with cloud and on-prem systems alike
- Avoid fragile, custom-built point to point integrations
Again, let’s look at an example of an enterprise use case:
A financial services company needed to support a new mobile banking application using IBM i data.
In their previous setup:
- No existing APIs
- No real-time data access
- Business logic embedded in RPG programs
With infoConnect:
- IBM i programs are exposed as REST APIs
- Mobile apps can request balances and transactions instantly
- Data can flow securely between systems in real time
Business impact: Accelerated digital transformation, improved customer experience, and avoided costly system rewrites.
3. Process Automation: Integration Without Source Code
When there is no access to the underlying application source code, program-level interfaces, or database connections, IBM i teams often need another way to automate and connect programs with the outside world. In those cases, traditional integration methods can fall short, but infoRPA provides another path.
infoRPA enables integration through process automation, allowing organizations to:
- Automate manual green screen interactions
- Mimic user input and navigation
- Extract and input data through existing interfaces
- Replace manual tasks with automated workflows
This makes it possible to integrate without modifying the original IBM i application. Here’s an example use case:
A logistics company depended on an end-of-life third-party IBM i TMS system.
In their previous setup:
- No API access
- No database integration allowed
- Staff manually re-entered shipment data into a cloud tracking system
With infoRPA:
- The green screen workflow is automated
- Shipment data is extracted and entered in the cloud platform
- The process runs continuously without human involvement
Business impact: Eliminated manual entry, reduced errors, and enabled integration with modern tools without touching the original system.
How the infoConnect Suite Works Together
Most integration solutions only address part of the problem, such as data movement, APIs, or custom development. But we know that modern, real-world IBM i environments often have more intensive needs, and often require a combination of all three approaches to truly be future-proof. That’s why we built infoConnect and why it stands out as a complete integration toolkit.
At a glance, here’s how to tell what tool you need by which use case:
- Need real-time outbound Db2 database replication? → Use CDC
- Seeking modern connectivity and API enablement? → Leverage the connectors
- No access to underlying source systems? → Use process automation
This combination helps organizations address a wide range of integration scenarios, even when technical constraints or system limitations are involved.
Additionally, one of the biggest advantages to infoConnect is speed and simplicity. Rather than building custom integrations from the ground up, teams can leverage pre-built components and low-code configuration to reduce development time and simplify deployment.
In other words, instead of building everything from scratch, infoConnect offers the following advantages:
- Pre-built components accelerate implementation
- Low-code configuration reduces development time
- Minimal IBM i expertise is required to leverage
- Solutions can scale as needs evolve
The result is a practical approach to integration that closes gaps today while providing the flexibility to support tomorrow’s requirements.
Final Thoughts: Integration That Adapts to You
Much like the plumbing in your home, integration is as critical as it is foundational—connecting systems behind the scenes and keeping information flowing where it’s needed. As your technology landscape evolves, those connections need to grow without disrupting the foundation you’ve already built.
That’s where infoConnect stands apart. Whether you’re connecting modern architectures, legacy systems, or hybrid environments, the suite adapts to your environment instead of forcing you to adapt to it.
By combining real-time data capture, modern connectivity, and process automation, infoConnect helps organizations unlock more value from their IBM i systems without the hassle.
Ready to simplify your next IBM i integration project? Connect with our team today to explore how the infoConnect suite can support your modernization strategy.
