IBM Enterprise COBOL for z/OS is IBM's strategic COBOL compiler for the zSeries® platform. Enterprise COBOL is comprised of features from IBM COBOL, VS COBOL II, and OS/VS COBOL with additional features such as multithread enablement, Unicode, XML capabilities, object-oriented COBOL syntax for Java interoperability, integrated CICS translator, and integrated DB2 coprocessor. Enterprise COBOL, as well as IBM COBOL and VS COBOL II, supports the COBOL 85 Standard. Some features such as the CMPR2 compiler option and SOM-based object-oriented COBOL syntax that IBM COBOL supported are no longer available with Enterprise COBOL.
Language Environment provides a single language runtime environment for COBOL, PL/I, C, and FORTRAN. In addition to support for existing applications, Language Environment also provides common condition handling, improved interlanguage communication (ILC), reusable libraries, and more efficient application development. Application development is simplified by the use of common conventions, common runtime facilities, and a set of shared callable services. Language Environment is required to run Enterprise COBOL programs.
Debugging capabilities are provided by Debug Tool. Debug Tool provides significantly improved debugging function over previous COBOL debugging tools, and can be used to debug Enterprise COBOL programs, IBM COBOL programs, VS COBOL II programs running under Language Environment, and other Language Environment-conforming language programs including PL/I and C/C++.
In previous IBM COBOL products, the runtime library was included with the compiler. In addition, the debug component was also an optional part of a single COBOL product. In Enterprise COBOL Version 3 Debug Tool was included with the full-function version of the compiler.
With Enterprise COBOL Version 4, the compiler, the debugging component, and the runtime library are all separate, although the runtime library (Language Environment) is included with the z/OS operating system and does not need to be purchased separately.