IceBreak remains the only native web and application server designed to run web applications directly from RPG and COBOL on IBM i - without middleware and without rewriting existing business logic.

More than 20 years after the first version, we are still developing and refining the technology. Today, IceBreak has taken the next natural step and become one of the four high-performance engines that power Sitemule.

If you have heard of IceBreak, or have been using the solution for many years, you have come to the right place. We are System & Metode A/S, the Danish software company that has developed and supported IceBreak from the very beginning. Today, the technology sits at the heart of Sitemule - our complete modernization ecosystem that runs natively on IBM i.

How we got here

IceBreak was developed to solve a challenge that, at the time, had no satisfactory answer: How do you build and run modern web applications and APIs directly from RPG and COBOL without placing Apache, middleware, or external servers between the application and IBM i?

Our Chief Architect, Niels Liisberg, who has been an IBM Champion since 2019, designed IceBreak as a precompiler and native runtime. The technology extends RPG, COBOL, and SQL with modern web capabilities while keeping the business logic where it has always belonged - on IBM i.

For more than two decades, IceBreak has operated as an integrated part of business-critical systems across industries including finance, insurance, manufacturing, wholesale, retail, and logistics. The solution supports installations ranging from a few thousand daily transactions to environments with very large and sustained transaction volumes.

IceBreak today

IceBreak has not disappeared, and development has not stopped. Together with the three other engines in Sitemule, IceBreak now plays an expanded role:

• IceBreak powers web applications, APIs, and services

• IceCap modernizes screens and user interfaces

• BlueSeries handles business communications

• BlueNote monitors systems and operations

IceBreak serves as Sitemule’s web and application engine and forms a central part of the platform’s technical foundation.

Your existing solution continues

Nothing you depend on is going away. IceBreak will continue to be available for installation and use as a standalone product. It will continue to be maintained and supported, exactly as you know it today. Your current installation can therefore continue unchanged, while giving you the option to take the next step with Sitemule.

From IceBreak to Sitemule

Because IceBreak is now an integrated engine in Sitemule, upgrading becomes a natural next step - not a major migration project. Sitemule brings together web applications, service-oriented architecture, screen transformation, communications, messaging, and monitoring into a single browser-based workspace that runs natively on your IBM i.

So when you read about Sitemule, you are reading about a platform in which IceBreak continues to provide the core web and application capabilities.

More than a web server

As a runtime engine in Sitemule, IceBreak provides the foundation for a complete modernization environment. With IceBreak and Sitemule, you can, among other things:

• Modernize existing RPG and COBOL programs as browser-based applications

• Develop web services, microservices, and APIs without rewriting the business logic

• Make existing programs and data accessible through a service-oriented architecture

• Combine IceBreak with IceCap to transform 5250 screens into modern user interfaces

Everything runs natively on IBM i. No middleware. No external servers. SOX-compliant separation of development and production, OAuth/LDAP/Active Directory authentication, end-to-end SSL/TLS encryption - all built on IBM i’s own security model.

Two ways forward

• You already use IceBreak. Nothing changes in your day-to-day operations. Support and maintenance continue to be provided directly by us, exactly as before. At the same time, your existing IceBreak installation means that a significant part of the foundation for further modernization is already in place. Contact us to learn more about the special upgrade offer for existing customers. Contact support
• You want to see the full platform. IceBreak is one of the four engines in Sitemule. Explore how IceBreak works together with IceCap, BlueSeries, and BlueNote, and discover the modules built on top of the engines.