Steve Will Retirement.

June 1, 2026

 

Good day all, especially the IBM i professionals. 

 

It's kind of a sad day in IBM i land. Mr. Steve Will, IBM i CTO & Chief Architect, DE at IBM has announced his retirement from IBM effective at the end of July 2026.

For Steve, it's a joyous day to go do what he wants to after so many years of being at the helm of IBM's IBM i division. It's a sad day since many if not all of us working in the IBM i ecosystem looked forward to Steve's LinkedIn posts and webinars.

Congrats on an amazing career @Steve Will. You will be sorely missed! 

 

Steve's LinkedIn post can be read here   

 

 

IBM i ACS Version 1.1.9.13.

May 27, 2026

IBM has announced an update to ACS (Access Client Solutions) from current 

version 1.1.9.12 to new version 1.1.9.13.

 

This ACS version is related to CVE's only. 

 

The announcement looks like this:

 

Info on ACS can be found on this blog on the "Helpful Tips by Category" page here.

If your version of ACS is set to "Edit", "Preferences", "Notify when update is available":

 

 

 

 

 

 This dialog box will be displayed when ACS is opened.

 

 

 

It will also be displayed when opening ACS and utilizing the Help Tab and "Check for Updates".

 

 

IBM Bob Premium Package for i

May 21, 2026 

 

IBM has announced the "Bob Premium Package for i." General availability is

June 24, 2026. 

 

 

 

"IBM offers a premium package ordering option for IBM Bob" can be 

viewed here. Courtesy of @IBM

 

"Announcing the IBM Bob Premium Package for i: Bringing AI-Powered Modernization to IBM i Development" can be viewed here. 

Courtesy of @Brandon Pederson 

 

IBM i Wiki Page (History and more)

May 11, 2026 

It's been relatively quiet in IBM i land recently. Power-Up 2026 has come and gone. People are getting back to work and implementing what they learned.

 

That being said, it seemed like a good time to post a page of info on the system. I'm sure it will bring back a few memories for people in IBM i nation. It may even bring a few smirks as well.

 

With that, please enjoy the IBM i Wikipedia Page here  

 

 

 

 

IBM i ACS Version 1.1.9.12

April 21, 2026 

IBM has announced an update to ACS (Access Client Solutions) from current 

version 1.1.9.11 to new version 1.1.9.12.

 

The announcement looks like this:

 

Info on ACS can be found on this blog on the "Helpful Tips by Category" page here.

If your version of ACS is set to "Edit", "Preferences", "Notify when update is available":

 

 

 

 

This dialog box will be displayed when ACS is opened.

 

 

 

It will also be displayed when opening ACS and utilizing the Help Tab and "Check for Updates".
 

 

IBM Software Download Tips: Three Easy Steps to Make Download Director Work Again

April 10, 2026

IBM's Download Director news:

 

"Over the past few years, customers who have relied on Download Director to let 

 them download PTFs and software from IBM Fix Central often report that it has 

 stopped working."

 

 "The primary reason for this is that Download Director relies on Java Web Start 

 (javaws) technology which has been removed in the more recent versions of Java."

  

"This link and video describe the three main tasks customers need to complete to be 

  able to download PTF's and software from IBM websites that use Download 

  Director technology." Please click here. 

 

 

Project "Bob" GA

 

Mar 24, 2026

Project "Bob" announcement!

  

"IBM Bob 1.0.0 helps developers solve enterprise problems within real code bases while offering proactive improvement insights".

Planned availability date.
24 March 2026

 

The announcement can be found here 

 

IBM i Reference Pages Blog "Project Bob and MCP Server" page can be accessed here. 

The True Cost of Replatforming Off IBM i

March 13, 2026

"The True Cost of Re-platforming Off IBM i" - (No One Talks About This) 

written by @Richie Palma - Account Executive - IBM i Infrastructure Solutions at 

@Service Express & IBM Champion for Power Systems. 

 

"This is a practical look at costs organizations consistently under-estimate, and what you should factor into your decisions."

 

The article can be viewed here. 

SMS Notifications for IBM Support – Now Available in Select Regions

March 12, 2026  

 

IBM is expanding the ways you can receive important updates related to your support cases and field service activities. In addition to existing digital channels such as email, they are introducing SMS (text message) notifications to help ensure you stay informed in real time.

This feature is being introduced gradually, with more capabilities and country coverage to follow.

 

You can read more about this topic here. 

 

As of March 19, 2026, IBM sent this note about this subject:

"Additional options for this feature will be released in the future as documented on https://www.ibm.com/mysupport/s/article/SMS-Notifications-for-IBM-Support, but at this point of time this only works for Field Service notifications." 

 

RSS Feed "The QSECOFR"

March 10, 2026  

I'm pleased to inform everyone of an IBM i RSS feed I think you'll enjoy.

Brought to you by @Sameera Wijayasiri - Head of Technical - Cognitive Systems and Security (Enterprise Solutions) at South Asian Technologies Pvt Ltd

 

Sameera's feed is "The QSECOFR" and can be found here. The site contains

Sameera's unique perspective on the IBM i with many "how-to" articles plus IBM i links and an LUW page for "Open source tools available for Linux, Unix(macOS), and Windows".

Project "Bob" availability date.

Feb 20, 2026

Project "Bob" announcement!

  

"IBM Bob 1.0.0 helps developers solve enterprise problems within real code bases while offering proactive improvement insights".

Planned availability date.
24 March 2026

 

The announcement can be found here 

IBM i Diagram and Shirt

Feb 20, 2026

People in the IBM i community are creative and supportive of the system. Always have been and always will be. Defending it to the max. With that said, these 2 pictures made me smile and hopefully they'll make you smile as well.

Presenting:

Courtesy of @Callie Brown of @Meridian IT  

 

 

Courtesy of @Mark McDonnell of @Briteskies 

 

 

I-Rays and OZGAR

Feb 13, 2026 

 

I was recently introduced to 2 pieces of software that I believe will be interesting to the IBM i community. I had the opportunity to view demo's of both and found them

to be fascinating.

 

The first is from the Specific Group out of Austria. The Specific Group has engineered IBM i Ai software named 'OZGAR.ai'. 

 

OZGAR is defined as:

"Your dedicated AI, trained in your environment to understand complex unstructured codebases, generate documentation and visualizations, and deliver actionable insights for engineers and developers. Clarity for critical systems."

Information about OZGAR.ai can be found on the IBM i Reference Pages Blog "Ai Page" here.  

 

------------------------------------------- 

 

The second is from Omnilogy out of Poland. Omnilogy has engineered IBM i software named 'i-Rays'. 

 

i-Rays is defined as: "IBM i Autonomous Observability. Observe, Understand and Act Before IBM i   Issues Happen. i-Rays continuously learns the expected behavior of your IBM i systems, detects early deviations, and identifies the most likely root cause long before performance drops or failures occur." 

 

Information about i-Rays can be found on the IBM i Reference Pages Blog 

"Vendor and Resources Page" here  

IBM i V7R5 vs V7R6 Comparison

Jan 30, 2026 

IBM has just put out a Q&A site for an OS V7R5 versus V7R6 comparison.  

That page can be found here             

 

                        

Beyond the Green Screen Series

Jan 19, 2026

 

The IBM i Reference Pages Blog has a treat for anyone using VS Code for development.  

@Sanjula Ganepola - Staff Software Developer @IBM brings you his

"Beyond the Green Screen" tips for VS Code.

 

You can reach the material 1 of 2 ways:

- By clicking on Sanjula's link above and opening his LinkedIn posts.

- By clicking into Sanjula's page listed on the "VS Code" page here.

 

As of this post, Sanjula has composed 14 VS Code development tips with more

to follow. A sample of his blog page looks like this: 

 

 

 

 

 

IBM i ACS Version 1.1.9.11

Jan 14, 2026

 

Take note !! 

 

IBM has announced an update to ACS (Access Client Solutions) from current 

version 1.1.9.10 to new version 1.1.9.11 due to a CVE (Common Vulnerability Exposure).

 

The announcement looks like this:

 

 

 

 

The download for it can be found here.

Info on ACS can be found on this blog on the "Helpful Tips by Category" 

page here.

 

 

IBM i MG (Must Gather) Toolkit.

Jan 13, 2026 

 

 

Sometimes we forget about some of the FREE tools that IBM provides. One of the most important IBM i tools is the MG (Must Gather) Toolkit. It is an integral piece of software that includes tools to help on the job along with tools to assist in the diagnosis of problems.

 

If your shop doesn't have this installed, it is easy to obtain. If your shop does have it, it is easy to update.

 

NOTE: In the last update of the Toolkit on Dec 11, 2025, the main page shown above changed significantly from the previous version. 

 

Once installed, it is easy to bring up the menu:

1- addlible qmgtools

2 - go mg 

 

Any and all information about the QMGTOOLS Must Gather Toolkit can be 

found here. This is the "IBM i Helpful Tips by Category" page on this blog. Page down to locate the QMGTOOLS section.

 

  

 

IBM i Navigator Q1 2026 - Moving Toward Requiring all TLS connections

Dec 19, 2025   

 

Take note !! 

 

IBM Champion @Rob Berendt brings us this important info from IBM heading into

Q1 2026 about IBM i Navigator here. 

 

The corresponding IBM i site page can be found in Rob's post.

 

 

IBM Database Expert Query for i

Dec 12, 2025 

 

 

 IBM recently held a webinar via Common about the new 

"IBM Database Expert Query for i" 

 

It is the replacement for DB2 Web Query. Looks like it'll be subscription type pricing. The IBM announcement will be in Jan 2026.

You can find the replay of that webinar here 

It can also be found by opening the "IBM i Extras" page. Click on the "Guided Tours 2025 Replays" link. 

 

Note: You must be registered with Common to view the replay. It is easy to join and 

create yourself a logon ID / Password.   
 

Common PowerUp 2026

From April 27 - 30, 2026, The Largest IBM i Community Event in the World will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana.

 

Info can be found here