Modernization options for Oracle Forms applications

Presentation held at DOAG 2023 in Nuremberg.

In mature IT system landscapes, there are still many monolithic applications that have grown over the years and were built on an outdated technology platform. Oracle Forms, which itself has been on the market for decades, is no exception. New innovative features are often difficult or impossible to implement on this basis. It is also difficult to find the appropriate resources in terms of the skillset required for implementation.

In this presentation, I will discuss the possible options for modernizing Forms applications. Among other things, I will discuss whether there is a "one-fits-all" solution or whether different approaches need to be combined. In this context, I will also present a concrete case study: In our company, we are currently replacing our Forms monolith - our core system - which has grown over 30 years. I will report on the procedure, the lessons learned and the approaches used. In particular, I will also discuss how essential it is to take a closer look at the topic of integration in this context and to think about it.

1. © OPITZ CONSULTING 2023 / ÖffentlichModernizing Oracle Forms 1
Nuremberg, 2023-11-22
Sven Bernhardt
MODERNIZING ORACLE FORMS

2. © OPITZ CONSULTING 2023 / Öffentlich
THAT‘SME
Modernizing Oracle Forms 2
Sven Bernhardt
Cloud-Native enthusiast, API & integration geek. Always curious how new
technologies and concepts can help to make things more valuable and efficient.
@sbernhardt
https://svenbernhardt.wordpress.com/
Chief Architect / Integration Evangelist
OPITZ CONSULTING Deutschland
GmbH

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WHY TO MODERNIZE?01
CHALLENGES & OPTIONS02
CONCLUSION04
OC FORMS
MODERNIZATION JOURNEY03

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WHY TO MODERNIZE?01

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IT SYSTEM LANDSCAPES ARE SUBJECT TO CONSTANT CHANGE
Modernizing Oracle Forms 5

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„STRUKTURELLE ZUKUNFTSUNFÄHIGKEIT“
STRUCTURALINABILITYTO STAY
6
¢End of Support
¢Lack of maintainability
¢Declining benefits
¢Dying knowledge
¢Lack of agility / Implementation backlog
¢Declining data quality
¢Rising costs
„Despite its benefits for companies, old
software is structurally unsustainable.
This is due to their characteristics and the
resulting risks for the actual business. “
(Lünendonk 2015)
Modernizing Oracle Forms

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missachten!
This is what it looks like sometimes/often/always in application
landscapes...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXaw70X7wb4&t=2s
Modernizing Oracle Forms Seite 7

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PRODUCT-CENTRIC APPLICATIONWORLD
DIGITAL
PRODUCT
Modernizing Oracle Forms
Digital
Product
Monolith
Digital
Product
Business Domain
Shared Application Platform
Shared Services (Foundation) incl. integration platform
Hybrid, flexible infrastructure incl. Cloud Services
Standard (On
-Prem)
Business DomainBusiness Domain
Digital Product
Standard (On
-Prem)
SaaS-Cloud
Standard SaaS

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PRODUCT-CENTRIC APPLICATIONWORLD
DIGITAL
PRODUCT
Modernizing Oracle Forms
Digital
Product
Monolith
Digital
Product
Business Domain
Shared Application Platform
Shared Services (Foundation) incl. integration platform
Hybrid, flexible infrastructure incl. Cloud Services
Standard (On
-Prem)
Business DomainBusiness Domain
Digital Product
Standard (On
-Prem)
SaaS-Cloud
Standard SaaS
Integration
is the foundation
for IT modernization-> Necessary
to clean-up!
Gartner:
Composable
Enterprise

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STRATEGIC OPTIONSFORMODERNIZATION
Modernizing Oracle Forms
Current
situation?Continuation
Monolith
today tomorrowday after tomorrow
Retention
Platformshift /
Generator Concepts?
Monolith Crunching
Reengineering
Commercial off-the-Shelf (COTS)
Relief
Change
Deprecated applications
(mostly monolithic):
•Legacy Java
(pre-cloud-native)
•Legacy App Server
•Cobol
•RPG
•Database monoliths
Condition:
Structurally
unsustainable
Save time, postpone problem to later
Modernized applications
(mostly cloud-native):
•Containerized
•Aligned with Business
Capabilities
•Maintenance-friendly
•Design for Change
Condition:
Structurally
sustainable
Is there new, cost-optimized software on the market??
The "right" way
can only be decided
individually.
e.g. Lift&Shift, CI/CD, dyn. Runtime env
10

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CHALLENGES & OPTIONS02

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APPROACHINGAPPLICATIONMODERNIZATIONIN A STRUCTURED WAY
Modernizing Oracle Forms 12
1.
Project
setup &
Approach
2.
Application
strategy &
goals
3.
As-is-
analysis
4.
Opportunities
& Constraints
5.
Scenarios
6.
Target
architecture
7.
Transition
roadmap
How to approach? What‘s the goal?
What are the current
situation and the
technical
requirements?
What are the
constraints?Which options make
sense?
What IT
transformation is
required?
How does the transition
to the target
architecture
take place?
8.
Implementati
on
How is it
implemented?
9.
Maintenance
& evolution
How does future-
proof evolution
work?
Coordinate
procedure
Understand
goals
Analyze as-is
situation
Document
constraints
Define target
architecture
Plan
implementationEvaluate
scenarios
Execute
implementatio
n plan
Maintain &
develop
Analyze Business drivers & systems to modernize
(Problem zone)
Define a target picture
(Solution zone)
Define roadmap & scale
implementation (Knowledge zone)

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ORACLE FORMS
Modernizing Oracle Forms 13
¢Rapid application development framework
for database applications
¢Proven technology for multiple decades
¢Classical 3-tier architecture
¢Client tier
¢Web Browser (Java Applet)
¢Forms Standalone Launcher (FSAL)
¢Middle tier
¢Oracle Application Server
¢Oracle Weblogic Server (Since FMW 11)
¢Database: Oracle Database
¢Programming language: PL/SQL
Source: https://docs.oracle.com/middleware/1221/formsandreports/deploy-forms/intro.htm#FSDEP114

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ORACLE FORMS TECHNOLOGY IS AGING AND LACKS FLEXIBILITY AND INTEROPERABILITY NEEDED NOWADAYS
Modernizing Oracle Forms 14
¢Monolithic runtime architecture
¢Complex application architectures as grown over the years
¢Missing support for Web and Mobile use cases
¢Less support, no newfeatures
¢Vendor lock-in
¢Modernization challenges (applies to most legacy applications):
¢Decreasing knowledge
¢Complex data migrations
¢Lack of documentation
Source: https://www.oracle.com/us/assets/lifetime-support-middleware-069163.pdf

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ORACLE FORMS MODERNIZATION SCENARIO: CONTINUATION MONOLITH
Modernizing Oracle Forms 15
¢Key challenges:
¢Security / Compliance issues due to unsupported environment
configuration
¢Increasing support costs due to aged Oracle Forms installations
¢Approach / Options:
¢Upgrade the environment to a supported configuration
¢Benefits:
¢Supported / compliant environment
When deciding to continue the monolith, it should be ensured to have
the respective knowledge for Oracle Forms available!

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ORACLE FORMS MODERNIZATION SCENARIO: PLATFORMSHIFT / GENERATOR APPROACH
Modernizing Oracle Forms 16
¢Key challenges (additional):
¢Need to serve new digital channels (Web, Mobile)
¢Move to the Cloud
¢Decreasing knowledge of Oracle Forms
¢Approach / Options:
¢Move from Oracle Forms to Oracle APEX (manually)
¢Use tools like AuraPlayerto help with migration and create new
frontends to your existing application logic
¢Benefits:
¢Enable new use cases on existing business logic
¢Slightly simplify the architecture (With the APEX option)

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ADVANTAGES APEX TO ORACLE FORMS
Modernizing Oracle Forms 17
¢No JDK / JRE is needed on the client-side
¢Browser-based IDE, easier to use than Oracle Forms
¢Better options for theming and ensuring a better User
experience (UX)
¢More lightweight architecture
¢Lower TCO
¢No Database license is needed (no support, missing
features!)
¢No Weblogic license is needed
¢Cloud-compatible technology: Oracle Database is available in
OCI in various variants
¢The basic tech stack remains the same
Source: https://docs.oracle.com/en/database/oracle/apex/23.2/htmig/about-
apex-architecture.html#GUID-2FF90AE3-87AE-42EB-90C7-A79A0A6AA997

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CHALLENGES WHEN MANUALLY MOVE FROM FORMS TO APEX
Modernizing Oracle Forms 18
¢Reluctance of people
¢Long-term users of Forms-based applications
¢Developers that need to change their way of
developing
¢Even if the technology base is the same,
migration might be complex
¢No business logic encapsulation (missing clean
PL/SQL APIs)
¢Need to understand the logic that has grown
for some years
¢Architectural changes
PeopleOrganization
Technologies

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ORACLE FORMS MODERNIZATION SCENARIO: REENGINEERING / MONOLITH CRUNCHING
Modernizing Oracle Forms 19
¢Key challenges (additional):
¢Support for hybrid or multi-cloud scenarios (Cloud-native apps)
¢Complete change of technology platform
¢Approach / Options:
¢Data migration is needed in both cases
¢Integration in the existing architecture
¢Monolith Crunching
¢Gradually cut out functionality and provide it as standalone apps
¢Need to integrate the new standalone app with the existing Forms application
¢Reengineering
¢Completely build an application from scratch on a new technology stack
¢”Big Bang” conversion
¢Benefits:
¢Evolvable application architecture (Sustainable desgin)
¢Faster time-to-market

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CLOUD-NATIVE APPLICATION CHARACTERISTICS
Modernizing Oracle Forms 20
¢Characteristics of Cloud-native apps:
¢Loose coupling
¢Resilient and fault-tolerant
¢Scalable
¢Manageable
¢Observable
¢Apps follow 12-factor appprinciples
“… loosely coupled systemsthat are resilient, manageable, and
observable. Combined with robust automation, they allow
engineers to make high-impact changes frequently and
predictably with minimal toil.”
(CNCF definition Cloud-native)
Cloud-native
Microservices & APIs
CI / CD
DevOps
Containers

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ORACLE FORMS MODERNIZATION SCENARIO: STANDARD SOFTWARE (COTS)
Modernizing Oracle Forms 21
¢Key challenges:
¢Non-differentiating functionality and so not core business
¢Follow industry best practices
¢Approach / Options:
¢Software evaluation and selection process
¢Data migration is needed
¢Integration in the existing architecture
¢Benefits:
¢Decreased effort for maintenance and operations (if SaaS solution is
selected)
¢Better use of development resources (focus on differentiating logic)
¢Optimization of business processes (more efficiently)

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COMPARISON OF ORACLE FORMS MODERNIZATION OPTIONS
Modernizing Oracle Forms 22
FlexibilityCostDurationMigration
complexityTrainingBenefitsIntegration
Continuation
monolith¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢
Platformshift¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢
Generator
Approach¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢
Monolith
Crunching¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢
Reengineering¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢
COTS¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢

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COMBINATION OF DIFFERENT SCENARIOS MIGHT BE NECESSARY DEPENDING ON DIFFERENT FACTORS
¢IT strategy
¢Business needs / pain
¢Timeline
¢Available Budget
¢Availabe Know-How
¢Technological factors
Modernizing Oracle Forms 23

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OC FORMS MODERNIZATIONJOURNEY 03
Modernizing Oracle Forms

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CRUNCHINGTHEMONOLITH
Seite 25Modernizing Oracle Forms
Crunching: Will be completely transferred to SCS
COTS: Introduction of standard software (HR)
Platformshift: Modern UI (Web & Mobile enabled)
COTS: Introduction of standard software
(Sales/Marketing)

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PLATFORMSHIFT: MODERN UI WITH ORACLE APEX
Modernizing Oracle Forms 26
¢Goals:
¢Make the most important employee
functionalities easily accessible
¢Provide a modern look and feel
¢Improve User experience (UX)
¢New application based on Oracle APEX that
re-uses existing Oracle Forms logic
¢Core functionalities of PVS core are
encapsulated using
¢Views
¢PL/SQL API (Packages)

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LONG-TERM GOAL: REPLACEPVS (ORACLE FORMS MONOLITH)
Modernizing Oracle Forms 27
SharePoint
PVS
Doxis
FiBu
LoBu
Active Directory
DWH
assyst
OpenScape
HR4You
Oscar
Lohn Polen
Onesto
Exchange
FileServer
Steak
TLMT
Website +
Tracking
Replacement

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STRUCTURED INTEGRATION AS BASIS FOR SAAS INTRODUCTION (COTS-OPTION IF POSSIBLE)
Modernizing Oracle Forms 29
Doxis
Active Directory
DWH
assyst
OpenScape
Oscar
Lohn Polen
Onesto
Exchange
FileServer
Steak
Website +
Tracking
CRM
Integration
Platform
ERP
SharePoint
TLMT
3rdParty Cloud(s)
HRBusiness Partners
OC employees

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GOALS OC INTEGRATION PLATFORM
Modernizing Oracle Forms 30
¢Ensure data integrity and quality during PVS replacement
¢Simplification of the OC system landscape
¢Traceability of OC integration paths
¢Improved governance and compliance management (APIs, data structures, etc.)
¢Creation of a technological basis for ensuring sufficient data quality in the future
¢Increase operational excellence
¢Ensuring an evolutionary architecture
¢Future-proof
¢Extensibility
¢RobustnessandResilience
¢Scalabilityandelasticity

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INTEGRATION PLATFORM IS BUILT ON CLOUD-NATIVE PRINCIPLES
31Modernizing Oracle Forms

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… AND CLOUD-NATIVE TECHNOLOGIES
Modernizing Oracle Forms 32
¢Open-Source tools from CNCF landscape
¢Key technology components
¢API Gateway (Kong)
¢Event Hub (Confluent Cloud)
¢Schema Registry (Confluent Schema Registry)
¢Apicurio(API Registry)
¢Secrets Management (HashiCorpVault)
¢Identity Management (Keycloak)
¢Service Mesh (Kuma)
¢Application-level monitoring is done with
Grafana Stack (Grafana Cloud)

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KEY CONCEPTS
Modernizing Oracle Forms 33
¢Loosely-coupled service architecture
¢System-independent domain model
¢Transparent error handling
¢Centralized observability

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SERVICE CATEGORIES
34
¢Presentation Services (Single-purpose APIs)
¢Expose tailored information set for specific clients
¢Use the information provided by Domain services
¢Business Services (Multi-purpose APIs)
¢Implement business resp. domain logic
¢Operate on a system-independent object model
¢Combine information provided by Adapters
¢Connectivity Services (Adapter)
¢Implement system-specific logic
¢Convert data and protocols
¢Expose a domain model
Modernizing Oracle Forms

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SYSTEM-INDEPENDENT DATA MODEL
Modernizing Oracle Forms 35
Account
•CId : String
•UUID : String
•Name : String
•…
ErpKunde
•K_ID : Number
•UUID : String
•K_NAME : String
•…
DwhKunde
•ID : Number
•UUID : String
•FIRMEN_NAME : String
•…Integration platform
CRM
ERP
DWH
DomainAccount -> DwhKunde
DomainAccount -> ErpKunde
DomainAccount
•UUID : String
•Name : String
•…
Account
-> DomainAccount
Schema Management

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“LEGO”-LIKE COMPONENT ARCHITECTURE
36Modernizing Oracle Forms
EventHub
PVS
DWH
Other SystemsAPI Gateway
ChangedDataEvent
DomainEvent
DomainEvent
DomainEventInsertChangedData
InsertChangedData
GetSalesforceObject
GetDomainObject
Async communication (Events)
Sync communication
Legend:
Domain: Sales

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CENTRALIZED OBSERVABILITY: TRACING EXAMPLE VIEW
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CENTRALIZED, CONSISTENT ERROR VISUALIZATION & ALERTING
Modernizing Oracle Forms 38

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CONCLUSION04

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FROM ORACLE FORMS TO …? THERE’S NO GENERAL RECIPE!
Modernizing Oracle Forms 40
¢Depends on the overall IT strategy
¢Cloud / No-Cloud
¢Supported channels
¢Use Cases
¢Depends on the knowledge available
¢Depends on the willingness to change from
the organizational as well as people side

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IDEALLY, YOU FOLLOW A STRUCTURED APPROACH TO MINIMIZE FAILURE POTENTIAL
Modernizing Oracle Forms 41

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MODERNIZATION IS MORE ABOUT PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONS THAN ABOUT TECHNOLOGY
Modernizing Oracle Forms 42
Need for
Change
management

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Q & A

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INTEGRATIONISTHEFOUNDATIONFORIT-MODERNIZATION
Modernizing Oracle Forms
Sven Bernhardt
Chief Architect
sven.bernhardt@opitz-
consulting.com
www.opitz-consulting.com
Thanks for your attention!
Questions left? Contact me!
44