Application Decommissioning Connectors
Connectors and templates for retiring SAP ECC, Oracle EBS, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft, mainframe (z/OS, AS/400), custom databases via JDBC, Microsoft Exchange.
Application Decommissioning
OpenText Information Archive Implementation Services
Most CIOs are paying for 30 to 100 legacy applications that nobody uses operationally but legal, tax, or regulatory cannot let be deleted for another 7 to 10 years. Post-merger ERPs, decommissioned billing platforms, retired HR systems, mainframe-era ledgers. Each runs on aging hardware with niche skills disappearing. OpenText Information Archive is the multi-source application-decommissioning archive that lets the source application be shut down while the structured data, unstructured content, and audit trail remain compliant and discoverable. BCS implements the application-decommissioning programme so the operating cost retires while compliance posture strengthens.
Retire the legacy app
OPEX REDUCTION
Decommission legacy ERPs, billing platforms, HR systems, and mainframe applications. The infrastructure, licence, and maintenance cost retires.
Keep the compliance record
STRUCTURED + UNSTRUCTURED
Structured database tables AND unstructured documents archive together. The legal retention requirement is preserved without keeping the source application alive.
Aviator on the archive
NATURAL LANGUAGE RETRIEVAL
Content Aviator GenAI lets legal, audit, and tax retrieve archived content in natural language. The retired application's UI is gone but the data is still discoverable.
Architecture
Five Layers Of OpenText Information Archive
A multi-source archive built for application retirement and long-term retention
Most enterprise IT estates carry technical debt that compliance prevents from retiring. Legacy ERP systems from past acquisitions. Retired billing platforms with seven years of records. Mainframe ledgers, decommissioned HR systems, sunset CRM platforms. Each one carries an operating cost — infrastructure, licences, dwindling skills — and a compliance hold.
Information Archive solves the underlying problem. The structured data, the documents, the emails, and the audit trail all archive into one compliant store. The source application retires. The compliance hold satisfies. The operating cost drops by 80-90% per retired system.
01 - Application Decommissioning
Connectors and templates for legacy retirement
Connectors and templates for retiring legacy SAP ECC, Oracle EBS, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft, mainframe (z/OS, AS/400), custom databases, and Microsoft Exchange. Each connector handles the source-system specifics.
02 - Structured Data Archiving
Relational tables with referential integrity
Relational database tables archive with referential integrity preserved. Foreign-key relationships, primary keys, and the relational structure that made the source system usable carry forward.
03 - Unstructured Content Archiving
Documents, emails, attachments
Documents, emails, attachments, and scanned images archive alongside the structured records. Legal retrieval for a historical transaction returns the structured record AND the supporting documentation.
04 - Retention & Legal Hold
Multi-phase retention policies
Multi-phase event-driven retention policies. Legal holds with audit trail. Disposition workflows run on policy schedule. Records governance follows the archive content through the multi-year retention window.
05 - Content Aviator
Natural-language archive retrieval
Conversational AI grounded on archived content. Legal, audit, and tax teams retrieve historical records in natural language. The retired application's UI is gone but the data is still queryable through Aviator.
Why Information Archive
The Four Scenarios That Move Information Archive From Consideration To Programme
Information Archive programmes start when one of four operational realities forces the decision.
01 - Application portfolio rationalisation
30-100 legacy applications draining the IT budget
The CIO is paying $2-5M per year in maintenance, licence, and infrastructure costs for 30-100 legacy applications that nobody uses operationally. The CFO wants the cost out. Compliance cannot let the data go for another 7-10 years. Information Archive resolves both.
02 - ERP migration
ECC retiring; legacy data needs a destination
The SAP migration to RISE or GROW completes. The legacy ECC system needs to retire but legal and tax retention require preserving the transactional data for 10+ years. Information Archive absorbs the ECC content; the application decommissions.
03 - M&A application consolidation
Acquired entities' legacy ERPs need to retire
Post-merger integration completes; the acquired entity's legacy ERP is no longer needed operationally but the historical records must be preserved. Information Archive retires the acquired-entity application while keeping the records discoverable.
04 - Mainframe sunset
The mainframe application needs to retire and the skills are disappearing
Mainframe applications (z/OS, AS/400) carry the highest skills risk in the IT estate. The team that maintains them is shrinking. Information Archive provides a destination for the mainframe data so the application can retire on a defined timeline.
Business Impact
Who Benefits From The Information Archive Implementation, And Through Which Operational Lever?
Information Archive lands across IT, finance, and compliance differently. Each accordion names the specific lever.
CIOApplication portfolio reduction, technical debt
For the CIO, Information Archive is the path to retiring 30-100 legacy applications that have been on the "cannot retire" list for years. The technical debt that prevented modernisation finally retires.
- 30-100 legacy applications retire while compliance posture strengthens.
- Mainframe applications retire as skills become harder to retain.
- IT estate consolidation accelerates as decommissioning becomes operational rather than aspirational.
CFOOpEx reduction, licence and infrastructure cost
For the CFO, each retired application is direct opex reduction — licence, infrastructure, support, labour. Information Archive carries the retention cost; the retired application's cost goes to zero.
- Per-application operating cost drops by 80-90% post-decommissioning.
- Multi-year savings compound across 30-100 retired applications.
- Tax and statutory retention executes against the archive at managed cost.
Chief Compliance OfficerRecords retention, regulator readiness
For Compliance, Information Archive moves regulated content from at-risk legacy infrastructure to compliant managed archive. GxP, HIPAA, Dodd-Frank, EMIR, PCI-DSS certifications cover the archive estate.
- GxP, HIPAA, Dodd-Frank, EMIR, PCI-DSS compliance certifications cover the archived content.
- Audit retrieval against historical records becomes a managed query rather than a legacy-system retrieval risk.
- Legal hold mechanics apply across structured and unstructured archived content uniformly.
Head Of Records ManagementCross-source records governance
For Records Management, Information Archive consolidates records from dozens of source systems onto one platform with one retention policy framework. Records governance becomes operational rather than per-system.
- One retention policy framework covers records from dozens of source systems.
- Multi-phase event-driven retention handles complex regulatory requirements.
- Disposition workflows execute against the consolidated archive on schedule.
CTOCloud-deployable archive, OAIS standard
For the CTO, Information Archive deploys as Docker/Kubernetes containers on AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure. The OAIS (ISO 14721) compliance means the architecture is recognised by archivists and standards bodies.
- Deploys as containers on AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure.
- OAIS (ISO 14721) compliance ensures architecture aligns with archive standards.
- OpenStack and Kubernetes deployment models supported for private-cloud customers.
Head Of Legal / eDiscoveryHistorical record retrieval, hold across retired apps
For Legal, applying a hold across data in 30-100 retired applications is operationally infeasible. Information Archive makes it a single archive operation that covers all archived data.
- Legal hold applies across the entire archive estate in one operation.
- eDiscovery retrieves historical records across dozens of source systems from one archive.
- Aviator AI enables natural-language search across archived content for case scoping.
Chief Data OfficerArchive data semantics, AI grounding
For the CDO, archived content becomes accessible through Aviator AI grounded on the governed archive. Historical analysis and regulatory inquiry retrieve through conversational search.
- Aviator AI grounds on the governed archive store.
- PII auto-masking during retrieval supports privacy requirements.
- Cross-source archive content discoverable through one Aviator surface.
Chief Strategy OfficerM&A integration, post-merger application consolidation
For Strategy, acquired entities arrive with their own legacy application portfolios. Information Archive retires the acquired applications without losing the compliance record — integration accelerates and operating cost compounds down.
- Acquired entities' legacy applications retire through Information Archive.
- Records consolidation enables one compliance posture across the consolidated organisation.
- Post-merger IT cost reduction accelerates as legacy systems decommission.
Capabilities
Components Of OpenText Information Archive
Five product components organised across decommissioning, structured/unstructured archiving, retention, and AI.
Structured Data Archiving
Relational database tables archive with referential integrity preserved. Primary keys, foreign-key relationships, and the relational structure carry forward into the archive.
Unstructured Content Archiving
Documents, emails, attachments, scanned images archive alongside structured records. Historical record retrieval returns the transaction AND the supporting documents.
Retention & Legal Hold
Multi-phase event-driven retention policies. Legal holds with audit trail. Disposition workflows execute against the archive on schedule. Records governance covers the full multi-year retention window.
Content Aviator (GenAI)
Natural-language retrieval across archived content. Legal, audit, and tax teams query the archive conversationally. PII auto-masking supports privacy requirements.
OAIS / ISO 14721 Compliance
Architecture compliant with the Open Archival Information System (OAIS, ISO 14721) standard. Recognised by archivists and standards bodies.
Compliance Certifications
Supports GxP, HIPAA, Dodd-Frank, EMIR, PCI-DSS compliance requirements. The compliance posture covers the archive estate.
How BCS Implements This
The Six Workstreams — What BCS Owns, What The Client Owns, When Each Runs
An Information Archive programme typically runs 16-28 weeks for the first application-decommissioning wave. BCS sequences six workstreams.
01Weeks 1-4
Application Portfolio And Retention Analysis
The candidate legacy applications are inventoried. Operating cost per application, retention requirement, source-system data volume, business-criticality residual, and compliance hold reason are catalogued. Decommissioning waves are prioritised.
BCS owns: portfolio inventory tooling, cost-benefit analysis. Client owns: source-system owners, compliance retention requirements.
02Weeks 3-8
Archive Tenant And Retention Policy Design
Information Archive deployment model selected (cloud SaaS, container deployment on AWS/Azure/GCP, or OpenStack private cloud). Retention policy framework harmonised across business units. Legal hold mechanics designed.
BCS owns: deployment design, retention policy framework. Client owns: records committee sign-off.
03Weeks 6-14
Source-System Connector Activation
Connectors activated for the prioritised source systems (SAP ECC, Oracle EBS, mainframe, custom databases, Exchange). Source-system data extraction tested. Referential integrity validation runs against representative data.
BCS owns: connector configuration, extraction engineering. Client owns: source-system access, technical owners.
04Weeks 10-20
Wave-Based Archive Migration
Source applications archive in waves prioritised by cost and risk. Structured data and unstructured content archive together. Each wave validates against the source system before legacy decommissioning approval.
BCS owns: migration engineering, validation tooling. Client owns: per-wave business owner sign-off.
05Weeks 14-24
Anugal Access And Aviator Activation
Anugal IGA extends access governance over archive retrieval rights, with cross-source segregation of duties enforced. Aviator activates against the archive for natural-language retrieval. Hallucination test harness validates Aviator quality on archived content.
BCS owns: Anugal policies, Aviator configuration, test harness. Client owns: legal and compliance sign-off on Aviator access patterns.
06Weeks 20-28
Legacy Decommissioning
Per-wave legacy applications decommission once validation completes. Source-system infrastructure retires. Licence agreements terminate. Operating cost reduction measured and reported. Continuous-wave programme rolls forward for the next application set.
BCS owns: decommissioning orchestration, cost measurement, programme roll-forward. Client owns: per-application decommissioning sign-off.
About BCS
BCS — The Agentic System Integrator For Content
Content programmes that ship as an operating model, not an event
BCS implements Information Archive as part of the broader application portfolio rationalisation practice. The Information Archive team understands the difference between an archive that satisfies legal and an archive that actually lets the source application retire.
The agentic system integrator model means three operating platforms travel with every Information Archive programme.
Anugal
Cross-source access governanceIdentity governance over archive retrieval rights spanning dozens of source systems. Segregation of duties enforced for legal, audit, and tax retrieval patterns. Cross-source access certification covers the archive estate.
deKorvai
Source-system data qualitySource-system data validation that runs before archive ingestion. Inconsistent records, orphaned data, and broken referential integrity in the legacy source are remediated so the archived content is auditable and discoverable.
Symphony
Decommissioning wave orchestrationDecommissioning orchestration for the wave-based application retirement programme. Per-wave validation gates, source-system shutdown sequencing, and rollback paths execute as one workflow rather than dozens of independent retirement projects.
Recent Updates
What Has Changed In Information Archive In 2026?
Three updates that shape the Information Archive conversation in 2026.
Content Aviator on archived content with PII auto-masking
Content Aviator GenAI grounds on the governed archive store with permission-aware retrieval and PII auto-masking. Legal, audit, and tax teams retrieve historical records in natural language without re-implementing the retired application's UI.
Source: Information Archive updatesDocker, Kubernetes, AWS, GCP, Azure deployment
Information Archive deploys as Docker/Kubernetes containers on AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, or private cloud. The deployment flexibility supports data-residency requirements, regulated-industry isolation, and post-merger integration scenarios.
Source: OpenText Information ArchiveGxP, HIPAA, Dodd-Frank, EMIR, PCI-DSS certifications
Compliance certifications cover the archive estate. The certification posture matters when retired applications carried regulated content — the archive inherits and maintains the compliance posture.
Source: Information Archive overviewFrequently Asked Questions
The five questions that decide the Information Archive programme.
How is Information Archive different from Core Archive?
Different products, different scope. Core Archive is SAP-specific cloud SaaS for SAP ArchiveLink content and SAP transactional data; required for RISE with SAP and GROW with SAP. Information Archive is the general-purpose application-decommissioning archive for retiring ECC, Oracle EBS, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft, mainframe, custom systems, and Exchange. Many enterprises use both: Core Archive for the SAP cloud destination, Information Archive for the application retirement programme.
How does Information Archive compare to Solix EDMS, Informatica Data Archive, or IBM Optim?
All four are application-decommissioning archive platforms. Information Archive's differentiators: it archives BOTH structured database tables AND unstructured documents/emails together (Solix and Optim tend to focus on structured); it ships Content Aviator GenAI for natural-language retrieval; and it integrates natively with the rest of the OpenText estate (Documentum, Extended ECM, Core Archive).
Can we still query the data after the source application retires?
Yes. Information Archive provides a unified compliant viewer for the archived content. Content Aviator adds natural-language retrieval — legal, audit, and tax teams can ask questions of the archived data in natural language. The retired application's UI is gone but the data remains queryable and presentable to regulators or auditors.
What about referential integrity across archived tables?
Preserved. The structured archive maintains foreign-key relationships, primary keys, and the relational structure that made the source system queryable. A historical record retrieves with its related records (orders with line items, employees with payroll entries, claims with adjudication history).
What is the commercial engagement model?
Most Information Archive engagements run as fixed-milestone delivery for the first application-decommissioning wave (16-28 weeks), with portfolio analysis priced separately. The team typically includes a programme lead with application-decommissioning experience, two to four archive engineers, source-system specialists per priority application type (SAP, Oracle, mainframe), an identity engineer running Anugal, and a decommissioning cutover lead.
Scope The Information Archive Implementation In 30 Minutes
BCS runs a 30-minute readiness session covering the legacy application portfolio, the retention requirements per source system, the priority decommissioning candidates, the cloud deployment model, and the Aviator activation plan for archive retrieval.
30-minute discovery session*