Adabas & Natural: Proven foundations, cloud-ready future

In the world of enterprise IT, few technologies have stood the test of time like Adabas and Natural. For decades, these systems have powered core business operations across industries — reliably, securely, and efficiently. Today, as organizations embrace digital transformation, cloud innovation, and hybrid cloud strategies, one key question arises: what happens to our trusted Adabas and Natural systems?

The reassuring answer — they are already cloud-ready.

Modernization doesn’t have to mean replacement. Using the strengths of Adabas and Natural while adding the flexibility and agility that cloud, hybrid cloud, and modern container technologies provide, it can mean evolution.

Modernization at your pace

Every organization’s journey is different. Some move quickly toward cloud adoption; others choose to optimize their existing environments first. The beauty of Adabas and Natural is that they’re built to adapt.

Whether you’re operating on-premises, in hybrid cloud environments, or exploring containerized deployments, Software AG’s technologies are designed to run efficiently across today’s platforms — from IBM z/OS mainframe systems and on-premises Linux/Windows servers to Kubernetes clusters and public cloud providers such as Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud.

Modernizing with Adabas and Natural allows businesses to retain their valuable application logic and data while opening pathways to integrate with modern systems and services. It’s not about leaving the past behind — it’s about connecting it meaningfully to the future.

Cloud architecture blueprints for a smoother journey

For most organizations, the assumption has been that integrating mainframe data into analytics tools requires lengthy To make this easier, our team supports customers with ready-made cloud blueprints and target architecture designs. These are practical modernization guides that outline how Adabas and Natural fit into cloud, hybrid cloud , or container ecosystems without rewriting the core. These blueprints have been developed based on extensive experience from existing customers who have been running Adabas and Natural on cloud for decades.

Our blueprints typically cover:

Target cloud and container architectures validated for Adabas & Natural.
Multiple flavors of blueprints for different business needs.
Security and governance patterns aligned with enterprise and cloud well-architected standards.
Cloud resources for monitoring, scaling, and lifecycle management.

These reference designs help customers plan modernization at their own speed — confidently, and with minimal disruption to running systems.

Supporting the modernization conversation

We view modernization as a collaborative process. Our team works closely with customers to discuss their strategic direction, infrastructure plans, and modernization priorities.

Whether that means rehosting to the cloud, adopting hybrid cloud strategies, deploying containers, or maintaining optimized on-prem landscapes, we bring insights and proven practices to support every decision.

More importantly, we ensure compatibility — Adabas and Natural are fully supported on the latest cloud-native platforms, with strong ecosystem integration and continued support from Software AG

Future-focused, without losing the core

The world of IT is changing rapidly, but some principles remain timeless: performance, stability, and trust. Adabas and Natural continue to deliver on those values — now enriched with new deployment flexibility and interoperability, making them ready for tomorrow’s architectures.

Your core systems don’t need to be replaced to stay modern. They just need the right environment to thrive — and we’re here to help you build it.

A reliable path forward

Modernization isn’t a one-size-fits-all journey. For some organizations, it means staying on premises with improved management. For others, it’s about exploring the scalability and resilience of the cloud, and for many, it’s a hybrid cloud approach that combines both to balance control and flexibility.

Wherever you are today, Adabas and Natural remain ready — adaptable technologies with a strong heritage and a clear future. And with the right architecture, they’ll continue powering your business stories for years to come.

Ready to modernize with confidence? View our Adabas & Natural Cloud Blueprints on GitHub and discover proven architectures you can apply immediately.