IBM is discontinuing support for zPDT. Anyone who wants to become familiar with developing applications for IBM mainframes will have to go to the IBM cloud for this.
IBM is discontinuing support for the System z Personal Development Tool (zPDT). From December 31, 2025, IBM will no longer offer the tool, and a year later, the product will disappear completely.
zPDT emulates the System z processors of IBM mainframes on an x86 Linux PC. Developers can get started with that virtualized baby mainframe, for example, to develop applications within the System z ecosystem. The solution is relevant for users who want to become familiar with IBM’s mainframe ecosystem.
Alternative in the Cloud
zPDT is being replaced by z/OS environments in the cloud. Developers must participate in the IBM Partner Plus program to gain access to it. The cloud experience is said to offer a better representation of System z environments. IBM prohibits users from using the environment in production, as it is said to be unsuitable for this.
The cloud solution also does not run natively on System z. IBM’s z/OS environments are also emulated in the cloud on top of Linux machines.
IBM’s move is somewhat strange, as the company seems to have little to lose at first glance by offering zPDT. After all, the tool lowers the barrier for developers to get to know the mainframe environment. Moreover, mainframe customers are notoriously fond of on-prem systems. The extent to which the cloud is experienced as a worthy alternative remains to be seen in the future.
There is no clarity yet about the fate of the Z Development and Test environment (ZD&T). ZD&T is also an emulation tool. It allows you to run z/OS software directly on x86 systems, i.e. without a virtualized z/OS instance.