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skissane a day ago

> Not sure whether MCP still receives updates though.

MCP Release 21 came out in mid-2023, and release 22 is supposed to be out middle of this year, with further releases planned: https://www.unisys.com/siteassets/microsites/clearpath-futur...

Looking at new features, they seem to be mainly around security (code signing, post quantum crypto) and improved support for running in cloud environments (with the physical mainframe CPU replaced by a software emulator)

Unisys’ other mainframe platform, OS 2200 is still around too, and seems to follow a similar release schedule - https://www.unisys.com/siteassets/microsites/clearpath-futur... - although I get the impression there are more MCP sites remaining than OS 2200 sites?

sillywalk 18 hours ago | parent [-]

Does MCP or OS 2200 have any well known users, or was there a niche that they fill(ed)?

Also, I noted in those two roadmaps that they offered continuity - Clear Path Forward -> "Don't worry about migrating or refactoring your apps", but also stated that "none of these new features are guaranteed to show up, and if that damages your company financially, it's not our fault".

I don't know if this is just a standard legal cop-out

skissane 18 hours ago | parent [-]

> Does MCP or OS 2200 have any well known users,

I know the Michigan state government uses Unisys MCP (I don’t know for what): https://www.michigan.gov/-/media/Project/Websites/dtmb/Procu...

In 2023, NY State Education Department had an RFP to build a replacement for their Unisys MCP-based grants admin system with a modern non-mainframe solution (don’t know current status of that project): https://www.nysed.gov/sites/default/files/programs/funding-o...

It is generally easier to find out who government users are because they are often required to publish contracts with the mainframe vendor, RFPs for replacement systems or services, etc. (Exception is some national security users where the existence of the system and/or the tech stack it runs on may be classified.) By contrast, private companies, that kind of info is usually only available under NDA - obscure legacy systems is the kind of “dirty laundry” a lot of business don’t want publicly aired

In 2013, it was reported in the media that the Australian retailer Coogans was one of the last (maybe the last?) Unisys mainframe sites in Australia - https://www.smh.com.au/technology/tassie-retailer-rejects-cl... - I don’t know if they kept their mainframe after that or got rid of it, but in 2019 they went out of business - https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-12/hobart-retailer-cooga...

> but also stated that "none of these new features are guaranteed to show up, and if that damages your company financially, it's not our fault".

> I don't know if this is just a standard legal cop-out

I’m pretty sure that’s just the “standard legal cop-out” - lots of vendors put language like that in their roadmaps, to make it harder for customers to sue them if delivery is delayed or if the planned next version ends up being cancelled