Many enterprise Java applications still rely on outdated frameworks and libraries. This results in potential security risks, high maintenance costs, limited enterprise support, and lack of visibility into dependencies and frameworks.

These mission-critical applications remain essential but need modernization to stay secure and efficient. Modernizing helps organizations:

Improve security and protect sensitive data
Deliver new features and services faster
Optimize IT resources, lower costs, and gain a competitive advantage

However, modernization can be complex and time-consuming, often requiring significant developer effort. What if it did not have to be? Imagine using tools designed for enterprise Java applications that can scan your environment, guide you through the modernization steps, and automate many tasks to save time and effort.

This article introduces the IBM Application Modernization Accelerator Developer Tools (AMA Dev Tools) and explains how the tools simplify and accelerate enterprise Java application modernization from within your preferred IDE. AMA Dev Tools are part of the JSphere Suite for Java portfolio and require a valid access key.

What are AMA and AMA Dev Tools?

The AMA Dev Tools help developers easily modernize enterprise Java applications to use modern Java runtimes, the latest enterprise Java APIs, and current Java SE versions, all within their IDE. These IDE plug-ins or extensions work with the IBM Application Modernization Accelerator (AMA) tool to simplify and speed up the modernization process.

If you are new to AMA, it is a tool that analyzes your existing application landscape, visualize connected databases, queues, and dependencies, and assess the complexity, cost, and changes needed to move to your target runtime (for example, WebSphere Liberty, IBM MoRE, or tWAS in Containers). Based on the analysis, you can plan and prioritize key applications, identify dependencies and shared code that need updates, and group applications by target environments. AMA also provides effort estimates, modernization assessments, and a migration plan that includes runtime configuration to help you set up and run your modernized applications efficiently on a modern runtime such as Liberty.

AMA Dev Tools help execute the migration plan that is generated by AMA. Using AMA Dev Tools with AMA removes the need for developers to switch contexts by providing insights and automated fixes directly within their preferred IDE. For instructions, see Using a migration plan to modernize your application.

Key capabilities of AMA Dev Tools

AMA Dev Tools provide features that help developers modernize enterprise Java applications quickly and confidently, all within their IDE.

AMA Dev Tools

The main capabilities include:

Analyze legacy applications and explore the modernization plan without switching between tools
Apply recommendations and automations directly in your IDE
Migrate JAX-RPC services to JAX-WS services with guided assistance

These capabilities simplify the modernization process, reduce manual effort, and ensure high-quality, secure code throughout the journey.

Analyze your legacy enterprise Java application and explore the migration plan

Without AMA Dev Tools, developers often switch between their IDE and the AMA user interface to view the modernization plan or other deployment tools. This constant context switching adds cognitive load and slows down the process.

With AMA Dev Tools, you can easily view the AMA migration plan with recommended actions, within your IDE.

The migration plan can include the following tasks (depending on the migration type that you choose):

Java runtime modernization (for example, moving from traditional WebSphere Application Server to Liberty)
Java version upgrades (for example, from Java 8 to Java 17 or 21)

Modernize Java Applications

Apply recommendations and automations

One of the key advantages of AMA Dev Tools is the built-in automated fixes that are available directly in your IDE. You can import your AMA migration plan, which includes recommended recipes and rules, and apply them instantly to update code and configurations that are needed for modernization, saving significant time on your modernization journey.

Automated code changes

The automated fixes eliminate the need to manually identify migration steps or search for OpenRewrite recipes. The tool automatically detects and applies the required fixes, saving significant time and effort so your team can focus on complex modernization tasks that need manual attention. For instructions, see Fixing issues and reviewing additional information for your application.

Migrate JAX-RPC services to JAX-WS services

The latest version of AMA Dev Tools (version 1.1, or later) introduces a JAX-RPC to JAX-WS migration helper that guides developers through upgrading legacy JAX-RPC services. This feature uses automation to simplify and speed up the migration process, helping you modernize legacy JAX-RPC application code more efficiently.

JAX-RPC to JAX-WS Source Migration Helper

The migration helper is available in Visual Studio Code and Eclipse IDE and can be integrated into your existing development workflow. For migration helper instructions, read this article, "Migrate JAX-RPC to JAX-WS for Liberty: Automated conversion guide", or see the AMA Dev Tools docs.

What do these features mean for your team?

Using AMA and AMA Dev Tools together can save significant time and effort during modernization. Organizations have reported savings of up to 200 hours (70%) of engineering effort, allowing teams to modernize applications faster and focus on innovation.

To learn more about these results and real-world success stories, explore the following case studies:

Get started with AMA Dev Tools

AMA Dev Tools are part of the JSphere Suite for Java portfolio and require a valid access key. Customers using IBM Enterprise Application Runtimes (EAR) or IBM Modernized Runtime Extension for Java (MoRE) can obtain a key to start using the AMA Dev Tools.

Want to try things out? Try the Trial experience for Application Modernization Accelerator, which includes access to both the Application Modernization Accelerator (AMA) and AMA Dev Tools. You can use the trial experience to explore how these tools can simplify and accelerate your application modernization journey.

You can download the tools as plug-ins directly from your IDE marketplace and start using them right away:

Explore more tools

If you are developing enterprise Java applications with Liberty or MoRE, you can enhance your workflow by using the following complementary IDE extensions:

Liberty Tools are available for Eclipse IDE, Visual Studio Code, and IntelliJ IDEA. They support fast, iterative development using Liberty dev mode and help you build, test, deploy, and manage Open Liberty or WebSphere Liberty applications directly from your IDE.

Easily modernize Java applications in your IDE with AMA Dev Tools

Easily modernize Java applications in your IDE with AMA Dev Tools