By George Lawton
[Posted by JVaughan]
Mainsoft recently released its updated software tool, Mainsoft for Java EE, version 2.0, for enabling companies to automatically convert .NET applications into Java EE bytecode. Version 2.0 introduces support for Microsoft’s Visual Studio 2005 IDE, the .NET Framework 2.0, ASP.NET 2.0 controls, role-based security, and C# generics. Companies can use the tool to write their applications in C# or .NET code and compile it to any Java EE application server. Mainsoft also has a portal development version,  that specifically supports the IBM WebSphere platform and its associated portal.

Solutions like this can allow teams to support one common code base. In some cases this can lead to savings in developer-related expenses.

Healthcare finance application maker Urix has been using the Mainsoft software to port it’s a application out to the Java platform. Atul Mistry, vice president of Technology at Urix said that some of the company’s largest customers wanted to get access to the Urix application, but had a requirement that the apps run in Unix. He explained that the Mainsoft tools save them from having to support two code bases and having an engineering team that is split between the languages.

The most appealing aspect of this solution is that Urix only has to support a single code base in .NET, which simplifies the development and deployment process. It has also saved Urix from having to hire an additional two Java programmers, which represents a considerable savings in wages and licensing fees.

Most of the testing for the application is done on the .NET code, although Urix does do the performance testing on both platforms. They have noticed about a 10% performance hit on the Java platform, which Atul said is not a big deal for that customer base, which typically deploys much larger servers.

Cohen said that the significant difference between cross compiling and bridging, is that bridging tools don’t resolve the business problem of providing a higher level of integration, where you can use .NET developers for Java EE deployments. He noted, “You can reuse programmers without having to bring in new talent.”
 
David Gootzit, an analyst with the Gartner Group noted that there are few large organizations that don’t have a mix of Java and .NET applications. The Mainsoft tools provide a solution for bridging this gap within a single enterprise portal.

Gootzit said there are currently two main approaches to bringing .NET applications into Java portals. One approach is to use Web Services to run remote portlets and invoke applications remotely. Mainsoft’s approach is to cross compile applications to the Java platform to run natively. With the Web services approach, you are solely invoking a remote resource, which makes it more difficult to extend the capabilities of the portal in question. This has implications for managing security.

Yaacov Cohen, president & CEO, Mainsoft, said,  “Everyone is talking about the Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) but no one is thinking about the best way to achieve interoperability. The main issue is the lack of interoperability between .NET and Java in terms of skills. I may want to choose an enterprise tool that gives me the scalability of Java, but may have a mix of .NET and Java skills.”

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 5th, 2007 at 4:51 pm and is filed under Interoperability, Distributed objects. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.