iSeries Access for Web V5R2 and WebSphere Host Publisher V4.0

Chapter 1. iSeries Access for Web V5R2 and WebSphere Host Publisher V4.0 3

iSeries connectivity can be characterized in three environments, each of which is explained in

the following sections:

 Traditional

 Client/server

 Thin client

Traditional 5250 environment

iSeries servers traditionally maintained an environment reliant on non-programmable

terminals. This became known as a

green-screen environment and involved a proprietary

5250 protocol.

Client/server environment

With the proliferation of personal computers, PC Support and subsequently Client Access

developed the 5250 green screen into a client/server environment. With the growth of the

Internet, the Internet Protocol (IP) has been widely accepted, replacing older synchronous

communications standards.

Recent releases of iSeries Access Family have been streamlined to operate with the TCP/IP

protocol as the only means of PC-to-iSeries connectivity.

The limitation of a client/server environment is that each client requires dedicated software to

be loaded and maintained on each workstation. In a network involving large numbers of PCs,

client maintenance is a significant expenditure in the annual IT budget.

Thin client environment

The term thin client was introduced to differentiate a workstation that operates in a client

server environment, yet does not require specific client software. The thin client, therefore,

does not require maintenance in the same manner as a full function client personal computer.

A thin client can access a server either via an intranet or an extranet.

The advantage of providing access to a central server via a standard Internet browser is a

reduction in the amount of effort expended on maintaining client software on a large number

of networked clients. In addition, access is made available to a wider variety of clients, which

may have been precluded from accessing the central server due to lack of specific client

software (such as Linux).

1.5 What is iSeries Access for Web

iSeries Access for Web is the most recent addition to the iSeries Access Family (5722-XW1).

iSeries Access for Web enables users to access the iSeries server from a Web browser,

using standard Internet browser protocols. iSeries Access for Web is a set of servlets that run

on OS/400 Java Virtual Machine (JVM) and generate HTML output to a browser (such as

Netscape or Internet Explorer).

iSeries Access for Web provides a subset of the capabilities provided with iSeries Access for

Windows. The advantage in using iSeries Access for Web is ease of deployment. With no

client software to be loaded on the workstation, the maintenance of the code is simplified and

centralized to the iSeries server.

iSeries Access for Web is designed for application users that:

 Need browser access to iSeries servers

 Need to access DB2 UDB data