This article shows you how to run multiple products on the same machine.
Problem:
Many users are now running or would like to run multiple versions of Micro Focus COBOL products on the same machine. It doesn't matter whether you want to test a patch or test a new version before putting it into production: it is easy to run multiple versions of Server Express and older versions of Micro Focus Object COBOL Developer Suite on the same machine without any problems.
Resolution:
Let's take the example of running Server Express v5.1 and Server Express v4.0 SP2 on the same machine. First, they must be installed in separate directories. The directory structure would look something like:
Next, you must ensure that the environment variables COBDIR and LD_LIBRARY_PATH — LIBPATH for AIX and SHLIB_PATH for HP/UX — are set correctly.
Then set the PATH environment variable so that the first entry is pointing to $COBDIR/bin. This will guarantee that the correct drivers are used with the version of COBOL that is in operation.
The following example would be using korn shell. Set the environment variables in .profile or .kshrc.
ORIGPATH=$PATH:/etc:/usr/local/bin
export ORIGPATH
PATH=$COBDIR/bin:$ORIGPATH
export PATH
COBDIR=/opt/microfocus/cobol/sxv5.1
LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/opt/microfocus/cobol/sx5.1/lib
ORIGPATH=/usr/bin:/bin…………
export ORIGPATH COBDIR LD_LIBRARY_PATH
PATH=$COBDIR/bin:$ORIGPATH
export PATH
The following are examples to set up aliases to switch from one product to another.
alias sx51='COBDIR =/opt/microfocus/cobol/sx5.1; export COBDIR;
PATH=$COBDIR/bin:$ORIGPATH; export PATH; LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$COBDIR/lib; cat $COBDIR/etc/cobver'
alias sxv42sp2='COBDIR =/opt/microfocus/cobol/sxv42sp2; export COBDIR; PATH=$COBDIR/bin:$ORIGPATH; export PATH; LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$COBDIR/coblib; cat $COBDIR/cobver'
The only other consideration is the License Manager. Given that only one License Manager can be running at any one time, it is important to always use the License Manager from the latest version of COBOL. This provides a License Manager Utility that is backward compatible for previous releases while maintaining the currently installed license database.
If any problems arise, don't forget, our Technical Support Group is just a phone call away.
