When it comes to radical change that alters the course of history, it was left to Scottish inventor, James Watt, to turn an idea into something more practical, a device that would significantly alter the path of history. While the invention of the steam train was still in its infancy, struggling to attract universal acceptance (as a mode of transportation), it was James Watt who invented the separate condenser that gave steam engines the efficiency that they needed. He turned reciprocating motion – the up and down stroke inherent to steam powered engines – into rotary motion, crucial for locomotives.
“Scotland significantly advanced the Industrial Revolution … improvements (that) allowed steam engines to power machinery and eventually locomotives,” according to references in the web encyclopedia Britannica. Looking at Nonstop, now going through radical changes that might alter the course of history, it’s hard to ignore the significance of the development, by the HPE Nonstop, of virtualized Nonstop (vNS). Of late, this significance is beginning to materialize in a manner that is attracting the attention of even the most conservative Nonstop customer.
At the recent gathering of the Nonstop community for the E-GTUG European Nonstop Symposium 2026, references were provided to major corporations now running vNS. Among those referenced was the American airplane manufacturer which, having decided to standardize on a competitor’s line of x86 servers, was looking to move away from Nonstop but jumped at the opportunity to run vNS on servers other than from HPE. The results were that their investment in Nonstop was protected even as they were able to demonstrate a level of openness and modernization that otherwise may have been overlooked.
The concept of modernization today has become a moving target. With virtualization accomplished, the topic of even more interest among Nonstop community participants is AI. At E-GTUG, Casey Taylor, VP & GM HPE Nonstop, made it clear that in the eyes of HPE, “AI is the biggest infrastructure build-out since the railroads. Together, virtualization and AI go hand in hand particularly when you consider what’s fresh and secure on Nonstop needs to be accessed by AI’s LLMs running on adjacent servers. A world that is dominated by virtualization and the presence of virtual machines with competing hypervisors. Modernization is now imperative rather than an alternative and the impact is being felt by all Nonstop customers.
“There is rarely a discussion TCM has participated in of late where modernization and the ease with which applications can be ‘modernized’ has not been raised,” said TCM’s Andy Vasey. “This is important when recruiting people with those skillsets, as they enter the workplace from universities and colleges, where productivity gains are expected.” All recent graduates want to use the languages, tools, utilities and services that they learnt in the centers of higher education. Without such support by the Nonstop team, these skilled assets would turn to other platforms to better exercise their skills. “Modernization cannot be ignored by any member of the Nonstop community, and this has become central to the business execution within TCM.” said Andy Vasey,
TCM is at the forefront of supporting middleware and tools vendors. The steps that we have taken to move our internal virtualized operations away from VMware to KVM has opened the door to dialogues with others. “If you don’t care to pursue VMware, you no longer need to when considering your move to vNS,” said Any Vasey. “We have become the experts with KVM.”
When TCM was approached to support ITUGLIB – home to contributions of software and documentation from Connect members as well as from HPE personnel – it proved to be a no-brainer to embrace vNS. Coming directly from a Nonstop community stalwart supporter who was closely associated with this project, Bill Honaker, “When the older J-series hosting ITUGLIB needed replacement, TCM stood up to offer hosting on a server at their site. The migration went quite smoothly, and we’ve been hosted on a Virtual Nonstop since then. We wouldn’t be where we are without their strong support… and that continues.”
When it came to supporting other Nonstop vendors, TCM’s choice of KVM for vNS, proved a good fit for supporting XYPRO’s development and test environment. This project has gone well for XYPRO. Steve Tcherchian, XYPRO Technology CEO, shared the sentiment of Connect when he said, “TCM has been a true extension of our team, consistently providing the expertise, responsiveness, and reliability we need to deliver a best-in-class experience for our customers.”
Where we see many Nonstop customers struggling for resources and where the knowledge we have gained with our own modernization pursuits, sets the stage for what is to come. AI has moved from quiet conversations among technologists to where it is more broadly discussed at all levels of the enterprise. Some consider AI, as Casey Taylor noted, like the transformation that came with the arrival of the railroads but, for us at TCM, it’s more like the industrial revolution. To that end, coming to terms with what, and how, your current Nonstop system is operating (and whether it is ready for modernization), has led to TCM launching a new tool that is proving to be a smarter way to elevate your Nonstop to become better suited for what lies ahead.
“For years, TCM InSight has helped organizations understand their Nonstop systems with clarity and precision. But as the needs of system managers evolve — and as the demand for continuous improvement grows — it’s time for the tool itself to evolve,” said Andy Vasey. “At E-GTUG, we introduced the Nonstop community to TCM Optimiser+: the next generation of Nonstop system assessment. It isn’t so much as just a name change. It’s a shift in mindset. A move from fault-finding to future-building. From audit to optimization.” As of right now, TCM Optimiser+ is being well received and it’s encouraging to the TCM team to see such positivity. To read more about TCM Optimiser+ follow this link – https://tcm.co.uk/optimiser/
As we drive Nonstop applications down new tracks and head towards deployments, essentially, unthinkable a short time ago, TCM is providing leadership through knowledge and experience. Virtualization is real! AI is learning fast! And Nonstop holds critical information that without awareness, hallucinations will likely follow. If you missed us at E-GTUG and would like to know more about those “railroad tracks” so beloved by all and that we Scots delivered that have led to the new tracks we follow today, then look for us this September at the upcoming Nonstop Technology and Business Conference, 2026 in Orlando, Florida.
Looking forward to seeing you wherever the Nonstop community gathers next. Reach out to us should you need to know more of the services and products we provide. Check our website and don’t forget to follow us on our LinkedIn group.
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