Prerequisites

System Requirements

Ensure your system meets the following prerequisites:

Required Software

1. Visual Studio Code

• IMS Explorer for VS Code requires Visual Studio Code 1.105.0 or later. You can download it directly from the Microsoft website: https://code.visualstudio.com/download

2. Java SDK/JRE 21 (64‑bit) or later

• The following Java runtimes are currently supported by the IMS Explorer for VS Code extension. If you do not have Java installed, you can use the provided links to download it.
  • IBM Semeru Runtime 21: https://developer.ibm.com/languages/java/semeru-runtimes/downloads
  • Oracle Java 21: https://www.oracle.com/java/technologies/downloads/#java21
  • OpenJDK (Temurin) 21: https://adoptium.net/temurin/releases?version=21

Newer Java versions may work, but Java 21 is the tested and recommended version.

• Ensure that your Java installation can be found by Visual Studio Code.
  • If your supported Java installation has a corresponding JAVA_HOME or PATH environment variable, the extension will detect and use this during runtime.
  • If you have multiple Java installations and want to specify a specific supported runtime to use with the IMS Explorer for VS Code extension, you can specify a Java installation using the IMS Explorer for VS Code ims.explorer.connection.property.javaHome extension setting. See Configuring the extension for more information.

3. (Optional) Git for source control features

IMS Requirements

IMS Explorer for VS Code works with IMS version 15 or later. The following components and features must be active to experience the full capabilities of IMS Explorer for VS Code.

• IMS catalog. See IMS catalog definition and tailoring.
• IMS Connect. See IMS Connect definition and tailoring.
• ODBM (Open Database Manager) for IMSplex environments. See CSL ODBM administration.