Products > CobolCloud Workbench®
CobolCloud Workbench®
CobolCloud Workbench is a modern, extensible IDE designed to unify COBOL development, testing, and deployment within the CobolCloud ecosystem. It gives developers full visibility and control over their applications, combining source analysis, debugging, and build automation — all connected through the multi-directional API to bridge legacy logic with modern engineering practices.
Integrating the CobolCloud multi-directional API with Microsoft VS Code
The CobolCloud Workbench is integrated with Microsoft VS Code, which has rapidly emerged as the cross-platform, open source development environment of choice. For more information on VS Code, please visit: https://code.visualstudio.com/docs
The VS Code environment is powerful and highly extensible, but what really sets it apart is the vast ecosystem of open source extensions that surrounds it. With a constantly expanding catalog, developers can build a workbench that perfectly fits their workflow. CobolCloud adds to this ecosystem with its own extension, seamlessly integrated into the VS Code experience.
Productivity for COBOL Development
The CobolCloud Workbench increases programmer productivity by providing an intuitive way to use the extensive configuration capabilities of the CobolCloud Compiler. It offers developers guidance and efficiency by:
- Simplifying the use of CobolCloud’s multi-directional API.
- Supporting the highly configurable compiler and runtime systems designed to accommodate a wide range of dialects and proprietary syntax.
- Providing a powerful COBOL debugger that integrates into complex enterprise stacks.
- Enabling advanced development utilities such as Profiling and Code Coverage.
Available on Linux and Windows, the CobolCloud Workbench allows mission-critical COBOL applications to run in the most widely used operating environments, both on-premises and in the Cloud.
Extensible and Cloud-Ready
The CobolCloud Workbench is not limited to COBOL — it integrates naturally into hybrid development environments. Within VS Code, developers can mix COBOL with C, Java, Python, or other languages, while using a single unified IDE for editing, debugging, and testing.
COBOL applications compiled with CobolCloud can be:
- Exposed as web services.
- Packaged into containers and orchestrated with Kubernetes or OpenShift.
- Integrated into CI/CD pipelines for continuous delivery and DevOps practices.
This ensures COBOL remains a stable, central component of enterprise IT, while aligning with modern development and deployment standards.
The CobolCloud Extension
The CobolCloud Extension provides the means of configuring and executing Compile, Run, and Debug operations, and adds valuable COBOL-specific enhancements to the VS Code editor.
Configuration Extensions
Workbench Settings
Allow configuration of compile, run, and debug operations. Includes designating the setup file, setting compiler flags, designating the compiler configuration file, using a precompiler, or attaching to a database. Enables Profiling and Code Coverage utilities, and provides editor features like colorization, navigation, and customizable shortcuts.
Configure Compiler for use with precompiler
The precompile compiler flag is linked to a script that takes a source file as input to a precompiler and produces output after precompilation.
Configure Runtime for use with database
Compiled objects can be pre-linked with database libraries at compile time. Database calls can be configured as static calls using the configuration file.
Enable Code Coverage
Reports on code used and unused during a runtime session.
Enable Profiling
Reports elapsed time and CPU time spent during runtime execution, either by paragraph/section or for external calls.
Debugger Extensions
Variables View
Displays all variables and their current values across the Working-Storage, File, Linkage, and Screen Sections of the Data Division.
Watch View
In a program with a very large number of Data Division variables, you may wish to disable the Variables View and selectively add only those variables you want to monitor. Variables in the Watch View can also be used to create expressions, such as CUSTOMER-STATUS = 00. An expression will cause the debugger to pause when the condition is met, and the Watch View will be updated.
Call Stack View
Displays the sequence of CALLs made during the runtime session. For each CALL, it shows which program invoked the current one, and where the CALL occurred.
Hex to ASCII Hover
Provides ASCII display of variables declared with Hex notation.
Debug Attach
Allows COBOL programs called from transaction monitors or other programs written in C to be paused and opened directly in the CobolCloud debugger.
Breakpoints View
Lists the program and line number where a breakpoint has been set.
Debug Console
Shows console output while running the debugger.
Debugger Toolbar
Provides quick access to functions like Continue, Step Over, Step Into, Step Out, Restart, and Stop. Integrated with VS Code keybindings for smooth developer workflow.
Keybindings
Assign keybindings to dozens of Code Editor behaviors. Keybindings can be customized, and XEdit-style bindings are supported.
Colorization
Assign distinct colors to keywords, literals, variable names, comments, and integers for better readability.
Code Editor Extensions
Code Editor Keyboard Shortcuts
Assign keybindings to dozens of Code Editor behaviors. Fully customizable.
IntelliSense for keywords
Provides code completion for COBOL keywords and intrinsic functions.
Snippets for keywords, intrinsic functions, and callable routines
Templates accelerate the creation of complex structures such as File I/O verbs, Evaluate/If statements, intrinsic functions, and callable libraries.
Peek at copybooks
Hover over copyfiles to see contents and definitions.
Remove comments
Enables comments in source code to be removed automatically.
Align storage items
Apply consistent coding standards for improved readability of storage items.
Explore Further
Talk to a CobolCloud expert. Discover how the Workbench helps your teams explore, adapt, and extend COBOL applications across modern technologies — powered by our multi-directional API.
