A build system for the native QSYS objects
The Object Buiderl for i or TOBi was known as Better Object Builder, or Bob until 2025 when we hit a name collision with the very popular IBM Project Bob. TOBi is a free and open source build system for the IBM i platform that is used to build native "QSYS" objects. It was originally developed by S4i Systems, a leader in Electronic Document Management, to build their own software. In 2021, IBM began to make major investments in making TOBi span multiple directories and handle pseudo-source and a buildable project definition. TOBi is now hosted in IBM's public gihub and is under active development. It is released under the Apache 2.0 license to the open source community so that others can contribute and benefit.
Here's what makes TOBi different.
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🚀 Speed. TOBi only compiles objects that need recompiling, like from new or changed source code.
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🛠 Reliability. TOBi understands the relationships between your objects, so if an item changes, then it and everything depending on it will be rebuilt.
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💎 Industry standard. Object dependencies are specified using standard makefile syntax, and the actual build engine is GNU Make -- exactly like tens of thousands of Linux and Unix software projects.
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🔧 Flexibility. Most objects defined to TOBi typically build using your default values. Have a program that requires a custom activation group or a data area that needs to be created with a certain value? No problem, overriding compile parameters is trivial, and writing custom recipes for special objects is very straightforward. If you can code it, you can build it.
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🌟 Ease of use. Invoking a build of an entire codebase is done with just a single command. Or, if the Rational Developer for i integration pieces are installed, a single button click.
Learn more about installing and using TOBi in the documentation.