Monday, December 7, 2020

New version of ACS, 1.1.8.6

acs 1.1.8.6

IBM has launched a new version of their Access Client Solution tools on December 1. ACS is so much more than 5250 emulation, it also includes:

  • Data transfer to and from IBM i
  • IFS explorer tool
  • Navigator for i
  • Printer output control
  • Run SQL scripts
  • And a lot more!

It is offered for free, and can be downloaded from IBM's website at: ibm.biz/IBMi_ACS

All you need is an IBM id. If you do not already have one you can create one at the login screen.

When you get to the downloads page click on the link shown in the above image to download the install file to your own PC. The file comes with versions for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

There is a "QuickStartGuide" HTML document in the folder for each type of operating system with instructions on how to install the new version. When you are installing this software there is no wizard or such like. When I ran the install it popped up a series of windows asking what features I wanted to install, and then about 5 minutes later it told me the install had completed.

To get a full list of all the features and enhancements there is a "Documentation" folder and within that "GettingStarted" HTML pages in many different languages.

You will notice they have changed the ACS icon too.

If you are using a free service, such as RZKH's PUB400, you can use ACS rather than pay for another 5250 emulation software. This is an even better deal than that as ACS is a lot more than just 5250 emulation.

Addendum

I have just received a message:

There are some ongoing issues with ACS 1.1.8.6 and MacOS Big Sur, "ACS may not be able to locate Java 8 on macOS 11.0 Big Sur. We recommend installing Java 11." Hope we release it this week officially.

Its still not released officially.

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9 comments:

  1. CBYNC38December 7, 2020 at 5:35 AM

    i am getting no updates avaliable

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Simon HutchinsonDecember 7, 2020 at 6:50 AM

      Are you checking for updates via the ACS client?
      If so you are not the first person to tell me that it says there is "no update".
      Clearly there is.

      Delete
    2. AnonymousDecember 7, 2020 at 7:21 AM

      I don’t see an update through ‘Check for Updates’ either.

      Delete
    3. Anton GombkötöDecember 8, 2020 at 2:14 AM

      As far as i understood it from an online webinar, this checks against your IBM i, whether there is a newer version.
      Some network traffic viewer might confirm this.

      Delete
  2. Michel DoucetDecember 7, 2020 at 7:14 AM

    I got the "no update" message too, i just downloaded the zip file and re-install. I did not loose any configuration

    ReplyDelete
  3. splashbitDecember 7, 2020 at 9:01 AM

    The option of "check for updates" option seems to have some problem, it already worked for me then other times don't work.

    I always go to the IBM page and see if there is any update.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Simon HutchinsonDecember 7, 2020 at 9:22 AM

      This is going to sound strange but in my ACS 1.1.8.4 and 1.1.8.5 the "Check for updates" disappeared. When it did I found there was a new version to download.

      Delete
  4. CBYNC38December 7, 2020 at 12:32 PM

    Yeap

    ReplyDelete
  5. ÍñigoDecember 9, 2020 at 2:42 AM

    And does anyone know what has changed?

    ReplyDelete

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