Cisco Systems this week announced Cisco Transaction Connection (CTRC), which enables high-speed, secure access to IBM mainframe databases.
CRTC, which was jointly developed with StarQuest Software, is a software and router combination based on Cisco Internetwork Operating System software. The product is designed to replace Unix and Windows NT gateways for database access. Previously, gateway systems or proprietary host software were required to access IBM DB2, according to company officials. However, CRTC enables TCP/IP data requests to be converted into Systems Network Architecture messages and then forwarded to the host.
The solution supports enterprise subsystems for Internet commerce, dynamic Web content, customer applications, decision-support systems, data mining, and business intelligence, officials said. Enterprise customers can also receive at no additional charge a site license for the StarSQL Enterprise Edition when purchasing CTRC. StarSQL provides fast transfer of data from host resources into desktop and Unix server-based applications, according to company officials.
CTRC, Version 1, is available now, priced starting at $200,000 for 500 concurrent connections from each Cisco router.