Mainframe-as-a-Service
Get more value from the mainframe you depend on. Ensono combines flexible mainframe hosting, management and support with three delivery models designed to strengthen resilience, improve connectivity to the rest of your environment and create a practical modernization path.
Run the Mainframe for Today. Make it More Valuable for Tomorrow.
Ensono’s Mainframe-as-a-Service (MFaaS) changes who runs the platform, not what it does. It brings specialist expertise and established operational practices to keep critical systems running, while creating a foundation to evolve and modernize the environment around your priorities
Why Choose Managed Mainframe Services?
Reduce Costs and Operational Complexity
Avoid the cost and complexity of another mainframe hardware refresh, while simplifying software, licensing, maintenance and day-to-day operations. Ensono provides clearer accountability and more predictable costs, reducing the operational burden on your team and freeing up resources for higher-value priorities.
Add Expertise Across Your Wider Environment
Ensono combines deep mainframe expertise with cloud, application, data and security capabilities. This helps your teams address issues across platform boundaries and improve the environment you have, with the full estate in view to make evidence-based decisions about where modernization can create value.
Build Resilience into the Way the Environment is Run
Resilience is built into the operating model, not left to an SLA. Proactive monitoring, AI-assisted operations, and experienced specialists help identify and address potential issues before they cause disruption. The result is earlier intervention, faster recovery and continuous improvement in how the environment is run.
Mainframe Managed Service Options
Choose the right Mainframe-as-a-Service (MFaaS) operating model that reflects where you want your platform to run, who should own it and how much operational responsibility you want Ensono to assume.
Fully Managed Hosting
Reduce the operational burden on internal teams and free up resources for higher-value priorities.
Move your workloads to an Ensono data center and transfer infrastructure ownership and day-to-day operations. We manage the hardware, operating systems, tooling and agreed operational scope, providing clear accountability and a resilient foundation for ongoing optimization and modernization.
Best for: Organizations considering a data center exit, consolidating infrastructure, refreshing aging technology or transferring end-to-end platform responsibility.
Remote Hosting
Gain the benefits of a managed service model while maintaining your existing physical footprint.
Keep your mainframe in your existing data center while transferring platform ownership and day-to-day management to Ensono. This gives you a way to transfer responsibility without the cost and disruption of physically migrating the environment.
Best for: Organizations that want to transfer platform ownership and operational responsibility while keeping the mainframe in its current location.
Remote Infrastructure Management (RIM)
Reduce skills-related risk and strengthen day-to-day operations without changing your infrastructure strategy.
Retain ownership of your mainframe, facility and platform strategy while Ensono takes on defined operational responsibilities. Add specialist expertise, strengthen coverage and apply consistent operational practices while retaining the parts of your existing team and operating model that work well.
Best for: Organizations that want to retain ownership and control of the platform but need additional skills, coverage or operational support.
AI-Enabled Operations that Improve How the Service Runs
Ensono applies AI and automation within defined operational workflows to identify potential issues sooner, accelerate diagnosis and reduce operational risk. Mainframe specialists provide the expertise, oversight and decision-making that automation alone cannot. The result is earlier intervention, faster recovery and greater focus on optimization and continuous improvement.
The impact of this approach includes:
- Major incidents reduced
- Mean time to recovery improved
- Issues resolved before business impact
- Changes governed with operational risk controls
Transition with confidence
Whether you’re transitioning from an incumbent provider or managing the environment in-house today, Ensono brings a structured approach to knowledge transfer, tooling, processes and service management to maintain continuity and minimize disruption.
Frequently Asked Questions
Mainframe-as-a-Service (MFaaS) combines mainframe hosting, management, and specialist support within a defined service model. With Ensono, you can select Remote Infrastructure Management, Remote Hosting or Fully Managed Hosting depending on where you want your platform to run, who should own it and how operational responsibility should be divided.
Yes. You retain the business and technology decisions that matter to your organization. The model you select determines which platform responsibilities Ensono assumes. Remote Infrastructure Management retains client ownership and greater operational control. Remote Hosting and Fully Managed Hosting progressively transfer more ownership and operational responsibility to Ensono.
Yes. With Remote Hosting, the platform remains in your data center while ownership and day-to-day management transfer to Ensono. With Remote Infrastructure Management, you retain ownership of the platform and facility while Ensono assumes defined operational responsibilities.
Yes. Your operating model can evolve as your workforce, data center plans and modernization priorities change. We can help you transition from Remote Infrastructure Management to a hosting model using a structured approach designed to maintain service continuity and minimize disruption.
Beyond day-to-day operations, Ensono can help identify opportunities to optimize software and capacity, modernize development practices, connect applications and data through modern integration approaches, and determine which workloads should be improved in place or considered for migration.
Ensono uses AI and automation to correlate operational signals, identify abnormal conditions, accelerate diagnosis and support governed remediation. Mainframe specialists provide operational context, oversight and accountability for service outcomes.
Whether you’re transitioning from an incumbent provider or managing the environment in-house today, we use a structured transition approach designed to maintain service continuity and minimize disruption. The transition includes knowledge transfer, operational processes, tooling, service management and accountability, with minimal impact to day-to-day operations.
Security, compliance and disaster recovery requirements are incorporated into the agreed MFaaS model. Controls, monitoring, oversight, recovery objectives, testing and responsibilities are defined according to the selected service and your organization’s requirements.
Yes. MFaaS can provide a stable operating foundation while you optimize applications on the platform, modernize development and integration, make mainframe data more accessible or selectively move workloads. Modernization can take many forms, and a mainframe exit is only one possible path.
When comparing MFaaS providers, look beyond infrastructure and price. Evaluate their delivery models, transition approach, mainframe and hybrid IT expertise, operational resilience, AI and automation capabilities, skills strategy, cost transparency and commercial flexibility. You should also assess whether the provider offers clearly defined responsibilities and governance while giving you a practical way to adapt the service as your requirements change.
Client Success with Mainframe-as-a-Service
Case Study
Cost-effective Mainframe Helps Revitalize Large US Retailer
Learn how Ensono provided a Remote Hosted Mainframe-as-a-Service solution tailored to the client’s specific needs.
Case Study
Modernizing Mainframe Ops for Global Financial Stability
Discover how Ensono helps a top-tier financial services firm ensure 99.999% availability, modernize 125K MIPS operations, and expand secure, automated resilience.
Case Study
Health Insurer Future-Proofs Mainframe and Saves $50M with Ensono
See how Ensono helped a leading health insurer reduce mainframe costs by 40% and save $50M over five years, ensuring scalability and business continuity with Mainframe-as-a-Service.
Mainframe-as-a-Service Resources
Check out some of our latest resources now.
Analyst Report | Research Reports
Forrester Research: 75% of Enterprises Are Adopting Agentic AI but Few Are Scaling. Here’s Why.
Analyst Report | Research Reports
Gartner Research: Too Big to Fail – Why Mainframe Exit Projects Are Likely to Fail in the Age of Generative AI
Analyst Report | Inside Ensono
Ensono recognized as a Leader in 2026 ISG Provider Lens™ Mainframe – Services & Solutions
Get More from your Mainframe and Build a Clearer Path Forward
Choose from three Mainframe-as-a-Service delivery models, backed by specialist expertise, proven operational practices and commercial flexibility.