Troubleshooting EBCDIC Encoding Issues
InstallAnywhere 2022
InstallAnywhere-generated installers work with EBCDIC-built-in systems. You can build installers for these systems with InstallAnywhere on an ASCII-built-in system; however, some InstallAnywhere actions may yield unexpected results if you are not clear on how they work.
Installing Files
InstallAnywhere installers deploy files on the target system with a binary copy mechanism. Text files are installed the same way. When you build an installer for an EBCDIC-built-in target system on a Windows-based development system, for example, the installer deploys text files in ASCII format. To install EBCDIC-format files, first convert those files using a conversion tool like native2ascii (part of the J2SE SDK) and then add them to the installer separately. You can use Check Platform rules on both the ASCII and EBCDIC text files to control which files are installed on which platforms.
Note:The System i (i5/OS) Install File action contains text conversion controls in its customizer. Therefore, no manual text conversion steps are necessary. Users can employ the Source CCSID and Target CCSID text boxes to define the text conversion that is required for that action.
Modifying Existing Files
Actions, such as Modify Text File - Single File and Modify Text File - Multiple Files, perform their modifications in the target system's built-in encoding. To make ASCII-format changes to a text file on an EBCDIC-built-in target system, execute the Modify Text File action and then use a format-conversion tool, like native2ascii, to convert the file to ASCII format after the action has completed.
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