AS400 Weekly Brief: June 17–23, 2025
Here’s a roundup of what’s been making waves in the AS400 community this week. From the continued push towards modern development tools like VS Code to important updates in AI governance and security, it’s clear the platform is still evolving. These developments prove its adaptability and ongoing relevance in today’s tech landscape.
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VS Code Takes Center Stage for IBM i Development
The article “VS Code Will Be The Heart Of The Modern IBM i Platform” discusses the increasing popularity and significance of VS Code as an integrated development environment (IDE) for the IBM i platform, suggesting it will eventually eclipse IBM’s own Rational Developer for i (RDi). IBM’s decision to integrate an AI-driven code assistant for the IBM i platform with VS Code, rather than RDi, sends a clear message about its future direction. The community’s ability to contribute ideas, extensions, and features, coupled with VS Code’s free, fast, and reliable nature, contributes to its momentum. This modernization eliminates the need for older tools like SEU or PDM for 5250 greenscreens or the slower RDi.
Published: June 23, 2025
VS Code Will Be The Heart Of The Modern IBM i Platform - IT Jungle -
IBM Unifies AI Governance and Security with New Software
IBM recently unveiled new software designed to bring AI security and AI governance teams closer, offering a unified perspective on an enterprise’s risk posture for AI agents and generative AI systems. These enhancements integrate existing IBM tools like watsonx.governance and Guardium AI Security. The new capabilities include compliance validation, detection of AI use cases across various environments, and automated red teaming to pinpoint vulnerabilities. This announcement reflects a significant industry-wide movement towards proactive and integrated AI risk management.
Published: June 18, 2025
IBM Introduces Industry-First Software to Unify Agentic Governance and Security -
IBM Storage Innovations for AI and Cyber Resiliency
IBM announced new advancements in its storage solutions this week, with a clear focus on supporting demanding workloads like AI and bolstering cyber resiliency. Key updates include hardware and software enhancements in IBM Fusion 2.10, new features in IBM Storage Ceph 8.0 for block storage, and new cyber resiliency solutions such as IBM Storage Defender: Data Resiliency Service and IBM Z Cyber Vault. These innovations are designed to help businesses effectively manage and protect the massive volumes of unstructured data generated by modern applications.
Published: June 17, 2025
IBM Storage Rocks 🚀 | Weekly IBM Storage News | 17 June 2025 | Global Storage -
The AS/400: A 37-Year-Old Dog That Loves To Learn New Tricks
An article this week offered a reflective look at the AS/400 platform’s impressive 37-year journey, celebrating its remarkable evolution and continued relevance amidst rapid changes in IT. Despite its age, the platform, now known as IBM i on Power Systems, consistently adapts by integrating with cutting-edge technologies like Generative AI and embracing open-source tools. This ongoing adaptability proves its enduring value and flexibility for running mission-critical operations.
Published: June 23, 2025
The AS/400: A 37-Year-Old Dog That Loves To Learn New Tricks - IT Jungle
Tools & Tips
- ARCAD’s VS Code Extensions for IBM i
If you’re looking to modernize your development workflow, check out the suite of VS Code extensions from ARCAD Software. Tools like Elias/Builder enable Git-based IBM i development, CodeChecker provides static analysis for code quality, and iUnit helps with automated testing. These extensions are designed to streamline DevOps practices, improve code quality, and make IBM i development feel more familiar to those accustomed to modern programming environments.
VS Code Will Be The Heart Of The Modern IBM i Platform - IT Jungle
Fun Fact
Did you know the AS/400 was originally codenamed “Silverlake”? It was named after Silver Lake in Rochester, Minnesota, where the project officially began in December 1985. The system was then publicly announced as the Application System/400 on June 21, 1988.
IBM AS/400 - Wikipedia
We’d love to hear from you!
Have you participated in any AS400 events or utilized new AS400 tools recently? Share your experiences or insights with us—we’re featuring selected community voices in next week’s edition.