BMC AMI DevX vs Gen comparison

BMC and Broadcom are both solutions in the Mainframe Application Development category. BMC is ranked #1 with an average rating of 7.7, while Broadcom is ranked #3. BMC holds a 40.7% mindshare in MAD, compared to Broadcom’s 4.1% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of BMC users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

BMC AMI DevX

Read 19 BMC AMI DevX reviews

4,088 Views
1,390 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Gen

Read 6 Gen reviews

414 Views
410 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

BMC AMI DevX

Gen

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 11, 2025

Gen and BMC AMI DevX are products competing in the software development and performance optimization category for enterprise environments. Gen has the upper hand in integration capabilities, while BMC AMI DevX excels with a wide range of modern development tools.

Features: Gen is known for its powerful code generation and legacy system integration, making it ideal for maintaining existing systems. BMC AMI DevX offers a modernized development portal, effective DevOps toolchain support, and extensive debugging capabilities, appealing to enterprises seeking innovation and efficiency.

Room for Improvement: Gen could benefit from more modern development tools and better cloud integration features. Enhancements in user interface and more flexible deployment options are needed. BMC AMI DevX might improve by refining legacy system integration, offering simpler cost structures, and providing more personalized customer service options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Gen features a straightforward deployment process utilizing model-driven development but demands existing technical expertise. Its customer service is efficient though traditional. BMC AMI DevX offers flexible cloud and on-premises deployment and proactive customer support, making it adaptable for modern enterprises seeking comprehensive assistance.

Pricing and ROI: Gen offers a cost-effective setup with competitive licensing fees, leading to favorable ROI for cost-conscious companies. BMC AMI DevX might have higher upfront costs, but its advanced features and productivity gains contribute to a higher long-term ROI, justified by its enhanced functionality and innovation.

To learn more, read our detailed Mainframe Application Development Report (Updated: August 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Mainframe Application Development

August 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

BMC AMI DevX

Ranking in Mainframe Application Development

1st

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Software Configuration Management (1st), Debugging (8th), Database Development and Management (20th), Test Data Management (7th), Mainframe Testing Tools (1st), Data Masking (8th)

Gen

Ranking in Mainframe Application Development

3rd

Average Rating

8.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Mainframe Application Development category, the mindshare of BMC AMI DevX is 40.7%, down from 43.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Gen is 4.1%, up from 2.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Mainframe Application Development Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
BMC AMI DevX	40.7%
Gen	4.1%
Other	55.199999999999996%

Mainframe Application Development

Featured Reviews

Brian Westerman

Director of R&D at Syzygy Inc.

Helps to make mainframe data management process easier and saves manhours

We plan to replace BMC Compuware File-AID due to its price. Two years back, we paid 11,000 dollars. However, the current price is 27,900 dollars. The price has increased to at least eight times its initial cost. We would need to pay around 60,000 dollars to have all three products together. We also encountered issues during version updates.

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Ismo Remes

Consultant

Full packets enable software implementation on the mainframe and client sides

I rate it eight out of 10. It's just very powerful tool, very powerful product to use. Nowadays, there are a couple of mainframe companies, using mainframe products, so to be honest, I'm not recommending it. Of course, if you have mainframe and you have do something in the mainframe that’s different.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"It helps our staff work by speeding up their documentation process."

"We can develop in parallel today on ISPF, but it's giving us the advantage of the newer interface into the mainframe programming languages that younger programmers can use and are familiar with, rather than using the ISPF green screen."

"The smart editor helps because it will code-complete for me. I can see code working a lot faster and I'm able to get things coded in less time."

"Once we got the configurations and deployment rolled out, it was very stable. I haven't had any major issues with Eclipse or the Topaz Workbench plugins."

"We had parallel development before, but the way ISPW implements it is better. It has more control and oversight of the process, whereas before, it was like the Wild West. Everybody could have their own package with their own version of the component in it... ISPW is constantly aware of it. It notifies when someone else is using or has a different version of that component."

"The product has made our mainframe data management process easier. It has helped us save manhours. The tool's most valuable feature is the ability to edit tape files. Its ability to clone files is beneficial in application development."

"One of the features that the developers like is that they can retrieve what they need with the tool. They don't have to go through some process or request something be done by another team. They can get the programs they need, compile them, retrieve the JCL and alter the JCL if they need to, and put these programs wherever they need to go for their testing."

"The visual ability to see potential downstream impacts to changes being made assists our developers in understanding the impact associated with their change."

More BMC AMI DevX pros

"You can easily manage the code, and you can easily find other changes, other group changes, other models, other components."

"CA Gen has provided us web development capability."

"Full packets, enable you to develop software and systems using these packets, and implement software on the mainframe side and the client side. You can use the same packets, so it's very powerful."

Cons

"I'm always looking for improvement in things like the documentation, to make things a little bit easier and simpler to understand, a place where people can go to troubleshoot issues."

"Better discussions to identify inventory prior to the start of any migration would be helpful for potential clients that have applications with code that is not modified often."

"It's a very complicated tool."

"Technical support has gotten better over the years, though there's always room for improvement."

"We plan to replace BMC Compuware File-AID due to its price. Two years back, we paid 11,000 dollars. However, the current price is 27,900 dollars. The price has increased to at least eight times its initial cost. We would need to pay around 60,000 dollars to have all three products together. We also encountered issues during version updates."

"It's not as intuitive as it should be. In terms of navigation, there is a large training curve for using it. For a millennial it might be better, if they're used to Eclipse. But coming from a non-Eclipse environment and using Eclipse, though I have experience with Eclipse, it might be cumbersome."

"When you're setting up the parameters for how ISPW will work in your shop, there are a lot of questions that have to be answered... BMC Compuware should have more in-depth explanations about what the choices in each question mean. If you pick A, what does that mean has to happen? What does that impact? If you pick B, what does that mean? What does that impact?"

"There are some features that are not well documented, so documentation could use a little help, on things like setting up deployment and which structures in the database correspond to which tables."

More BMC AMI DevX cons

"I cannot use DB2 specifications, DB2 comments, easily."

"The product needs to be well marketed, then adopted. I am not seeing many customers using the product."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"In terms of pricing, there isn't an extra charge for the parts of it we use. It comes with the licenses we purchased for other products, so no complaints there. The licensing is built in with the other products that you purchase from Compuware."

"It has saved our developers time and effort when working on documentation, which is now more readable and fluent."

"I like the seat-based licensing much more than MSU-based licensing, and that the cost has been competitive."

"The price point is great."

"In general, Compuware tools are very competitive."

"The only thing I would mention related to the licensing and/or the pricing, is that they have some visualization features in there that are licensed by concurrent users. We're starting to trip up on that. We're looking to probably increase the number of concurrent licenses that we have. But those types of licensing strategies, where they license by concurrent users or the number of seats is confusing for some people. They don't understand why it works sometimes and doesn't work other times."

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

37%

Insurance Company

12%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Large Enterprise	16

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Compuware File-AID?

The product has made our mainframe data management process easier. It has helped us save manhours. The tool's most valuable feature is the ability to edit tape files. Its ability to clone files is ...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Compuware File-AID?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Compuware File-AID?

We use the solution clone test files.

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Comparisons

Endevor vs BMC AMI DevX

Compared 33% of the time

IBM File Manager vs BMC AMI DevX

Compared 16% of the time

IBM Debug for z/OS vs BMC AMI DevX

Compared 10% of the time

InterTest vs BMC AMI DevX

Compared 10% of the time

Software AG Natural for Mainframe vs BMC AMI DevX

Compared 1% of the time

More BMC AMI DevX Competitors

BMC AMI DevOps for Db2 vs Gen

Compared 46% of the time

IBM Developer for z/OS Enterprise Edition (IDzEE) vs Gen

Compared 30% of the time

More Gen Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Test Data Management

August 2025

Download BMC AMI DevX product report

Buyer's Guide

Mainframe Application Development

August 2025

Download Gen product report

Also Known As

File-AID, Data for Db2, Code Debug, Data Studio, Workbench for Eclipse, Code Pipeline

CA Gen

Overview

BMC AMI DevX is a comprehensive solution enhancing code management and testing efficiency. It offers debugging capabilities within financial applications and integrates data management seamlessly, serving major banking sectors with reliable performance.

AMI DevX is tailored for banking industries, optimizing application debugging in COBOL and enhancing data handling in robust financial systems. It simplifies mainframe data management with real-time insights, improving efficiency through editing and cloning functionalities. The tool's integration with Compuware File-AID for IMS and DB2 ensures streamlined development processes. Challenges include a steep DB2 learning curve and initial setup complexities, with technical support inconsistencies and steep pricing impacting affordability. Despite this, its valuable features significantly support large banking operations.

What features make BMC AMI DevX valuable?

Line-by-Line Code Debugging: Allows precise identification and rectification of issues.
Variable Change & Line Skipping: Flexibility in testing without recompiling.
Database-Independent Testing: No need for loading databases during testing.
Real-Time Data Insights: Enhances decision-making with immediate information.
Data Warehousing & Analytics: Facilitates comprehensive data analysis.
Integration & Formatting: Streamlines development by simplifying data processes.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Improved Efficiency: Streamline data management and editing capabilities.
Robust Debugging: Effective in both online and batch COBOL program debugging.
Enhanced Financial Application Support: Superior handling in grants and loans applications.
Comprehensive Testing: Enables creation of clone test files for thorough testing.

In large banking sectors, BMC AMI DevX is integral for grants and loans-related applications. Its robust nature supports financial systems, offering debugging for COBOL, updating data in Compuware File-AID for IMS, and integrating DB2. Users implement this for exceptional data management and application reliability.

BMC

CA Gen provides a single, integrated development environment that can help your teams create and maintain large-scale business applications for multiple platforms. This streamlined environment can help reduce manual labor and speed migration time while ensuring the future relevance of existing environments and applications.

Broadcom

Sample Customers

Helvetia, The IMT Group, Hapag-Lloyd, Royal Bank of Canada, Chunghwa Telecom

Global bank

Buyer's Guide

Mainframe Application Development

August 2025

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