Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

[mjhaston]

I just saw that Oracle will not be updating MySQL for System i going forward. IBM has something called DBi. I also thought the Zend Server was free for the System i, but I think I see a hefty price tag on it.

I was just about to get an osCommerce shopping cart going on a client's System i. Should I think again?

My first choice is to build the shopping cart with an ExtJS front-end and have CGIDEV2 working the data back and forth to the RPG programs. The client thought PHP and MySQL would be more maintainable in the future. Anyone else have concerns or can shead some light on mine?

[MichaelCatalani]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

The CGI api's and CGIDEV2 are free, easy to use, and the performance screams. I've used the cgi apis for a really long time. They have a minimal footprint on the system, and can scale to a very high number of transactions within that small footprint.

Alternatively, you could simply use RPG programs and use the web service wizard. It's still fast, just not as fast as pure cgi due to some java being injected into the process by the wizard. (You dont see the java in your programs, its simply used to interface the web service into your program call by the wizard.) Connecting the web services to some of the web facing components, especially the .net stuff such as vb and c#, is really easy. If I have a function in a service program that does something I want to place on the web, I can literally wrap the service program function call in a wrapper program, use the wizard to deploy it as a web service, hop into vb or c# and discover the web service, and populate list boxes or other components in just a few minutes. It's really that quick and easy.

Some of the front end components, including the EXTJS stuff I believe, all allow you to feed the components with a web service. The beauty of this is that you simply point the component's link to the web service at design time, and it can configure itself to make the call and discover what data is needed, and whats coming back. You call also easily feed the ExtJs components with standard CGI ajax calls.

You do need to scope out which browser and versions you want your front end compatable with. If you have to go back before IE6 or earlier, thats probably gonna get ugly with some of the rich gui stuff.

With Oracle going bi-polar, I'm not sure I would want to do any kind of new development with anything they are affiliated with.

[mjhaston]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

Thanks Michael for the in-depth reply. I'm very familiar with CGIDEV2. I use that and ExtJS pretty much daily these days and love it ... so do the users. I started reading up on Zend Server and DBi last night to try and get an idea of where that path may lead.

[as400Pro]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

I would just keep coding in PHP ...sure it was a hot fad like 2 years ago.
but I think just like in fashion wait another 20 years or so it it becomes fashionable once again.

So long after you are gone from your company a newbie comes in see's your NOW in fashion PHP and
thinks you are the second Nostradamus... Code on Rock God!

[mpavlak]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

Hi there!

I would be happy to answer any questions about Zend Server on IBM i. In the spirit of full disclosure, I work for Zend so let me address a couple of points:

1) Zend Server and Zend Studio come at no charge for IBM i customers with one year of updates and email/web based support. After that year, the products will run perpetually, but support expires. So run the PHP to your hearts content.

2) Support is sold on an annual subscription basis by Zend. Again, it is optional.

3) Zend and IBM have entered into a long term commitment to providing builds and updates to Zend Dbi (essentially MySQL on IBM i). We also have an agreement with a third party company of MySQL experts to provide formal "SLA-Level" support offerings, if needed. So there should be no problem with the customer building an application based on MySQL technology for the future. However, *if* they are building an application form scratch and they are targeting IBM i they may want to consider DB2 as it is the native DB on IBM i and does have more features and performance. You can also access remote implementation of MySQL from PHP applications running natively on IBM i, and vice-versa.

4) CGI-DEV2 rocks. I've used it (and CGI and Net.Data and ASP) but prefer the features of PHP that seem so much more intuitive and easy to use. Just my $.02.

5) PHP appears to be around for the long haul both from a Zend perspective and a PHP community perspective. So that leaves it as a fairly safe bet.

Call me if you have any questions.

Mike Pavlak
Solution Consultant, Zend Technologies, Inc.
(708)233-5880
mike.p@zend.com

[mjhaston]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

Thanks Mike. What *I think* I want to do is run osCommerce on the Zend Sever or Zend Core with MySQL or DBi ... and then using the IBMDB engine (or whatever it's called) be able to sync up those DBi files with DB2 files. The client would like real-time inventory numbers as well as other information.

[DeadManWalks]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

Can't PHP make a connection to DB2, there by no need for the other?

[mjhaston]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

osCommerce is a canned shopping cart. I don't know that I want to go into all that code to make the direct connection to DB2. I think I'd rather let osCommerce do it's thing and then get at the MySQL files I need.

If I understood your reply correctly?

I'd still rather roll my own ExtJS cart with CGIDEV2

[tomholden]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

yes PHP using Zend Server/Core can directly tap into the DB2 for "i" using the db2_ functions as well as the i5_ functions (to access user spaces, data areas, call programs, etc you'll have to use the i5_ functions)

[DeadManWalks]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

Thanks for explaining. I know I must have been missing something.

[mpavlak]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

Please keep in mind that osCommerce only "supports" MyISAM as a storage engine. One thing to consider about the DB2 Storage Engine is that while AWESOME it will require you to change your code in one place or the other as DB's rarely fit together well. So I would say that if you have build your application, either in PHP or RPG then the storage engine might make a lot of sense. Otherwise, re-writing might be painful. I have not used osCommerce but will play with it and report back. Other applications like Drupal or Concrete5 make it really easy to integrate PHP code that talks directly with DB2 on IBM i thus making the differences between the databases transparent to the end user. So maybe there is a possibility. I would say take a GOOD look at it and play before writing your own solution.

Mike Pavlak
Solution Consultant, Zend Technologies, Inc.
(708)233-5880
mike.p@zend.com

[mjhaston]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

Mike -

Just so I'm clear on this. Because osCommerce uses the MyISAM storage engine ... I won't be able to use the DB2 Storage Engine to access that MySQL database? I know nothing about the DB2 Storage Engine, just read a little bit about creating files in DB2 that "sync" with MySQL. I was hoping that would be a huge advantage to using a canned cart like osCommerce. I was hoping the cart would do it's thing and I would have access to those files on the System i.

[mpavlak]

Re: Zend Server and MySQL - Should I run away?

I'm not saying that it will or will not work. What I am saying is that according to the osCommerce documentation, the only storage engine supported is MyISAM. This means that they "may" be using features exclusive to MyISAM and potentially not available in DB2. Regardless of how good the port might be for the storage engine, IBM cannot "invent" things that are not there without going back to the DB2 group. I am not aware of any differences, but I am not a MySQL expert, either. I say play with it and report back. But realize that if you hit a roadblock, the software vendor has an automatic "out". Good luck!