The A-VX IV operating system was loaded on the Express 5800/600 series (October 1997) of core systems that could work with Windows NT application software. A-VX IV was an upgrade that allowed the previous A-VX III server operating system to run on Windows NT while ensuring the continued use of office server assets.
The Express 5800/600 series came with A-VX IV middleware that maintained the continuity of office server assets. In addition to making it possible to run groupware, WWW server software, and other commercial Windows software, NEC provided NT − A-VX software that linked WWW server software and Windows software with office server assets. This technology enabled the construction of new core systems, such as intranets, where browsers and Windows applications had access to accumulated core corporate business process assets.
The main Windows-related functions were as follows.
- Printview This function converted printed reports to spool files (print image files) on A-VX to create paperless tasks and to reuse print data in open platform environments.
- A-VX − fax/mail functions Because COBOL applications could send faxes and send and receive Internet email with a simple file interface, it was possible to quickly build business processes such as checking inventory or processing orders on a cell phone.
As NEC customers began to use office servers for more sophisticated business processes, system outages resulted in larger impacts on businesses. Therefore, to ensure higher system availability, NEC provided redundant systems that would switch from the working server to a standby server in the event of a failure.
In November 1998, NEC beefed up its Database Replicator function, which created duplicate Windows databases (Oracle or SQL servers) of A-VX relational databases on office servers. In July 2000, NEC added more functionality to its Open Database Access kit, which allowed legacy applications to directly access Windows databases (Oracle or SQL servers).
- Database Replicator NEC provided this function that automatically made duplicates of A-VX relational database data in Windows databases (Oracle or SQL servers) without requiring any modification to COBOL applications created to process A-VX relational databases. This made it easier to build environments where Windows applications could make use of core business A-VX data.
