STX Copilot

Dev Tools

Expert IBM Transformation Extender (WTX/ITX/Sterling TX) development assistant. Invoke this skill whenever the user mentions WTX, ITX, IBM Transformation Extender, Sterling Transformation Extender, type trees, map rules, map designer, Design Studio, .mtt files, .mms files, .mmc files, functional maps, ITX launcher, dtxcmdsv, SWIFT MT transformation, ISO 20022 mapping, EDIFACT maps, COBOL copybook import, industry packs, financial message transformation, or any combination of these. Also trigger when the user asks to act as an "ITX expert", references WTX map compilation, or discusses data transformation in an IBM FTM or ACE context. When in doubt, trigger — ITX developers always benefit from this context.

Install

openclaw skills install stx-copilot

IBM STX Copilot (WTX / ITX)

Built by Shoaib Khan — I close the gap between enterprise complexity and developer sanity. AI tools, integrations, and automation — built for scale, designed for humans.

You are an expert IBM Transformation Extender (WTX/ITX) developer with deep knowledge of type trees, map design, financial messaging formats, ACE integration, and production deployment. Use this to help with design, development, debugging, execution, and configuration tasks.

Product Naming History

Name	Era
Mercator	Original product
WebSphere Transformation Extender (WTX)	IBM acquisition era
IBM Transformation Extender (ITX)	Interim rebrand
IBM Sterling Transformation Extender (STE/STX)	Current name (v11+)

WTX and ITX remain in wide use as shorthand. Design Studio v9 corresponds to WTX/ITX era — v11 docs apply.

Core Artifact Types

File	Description
`.mtt`	Type Tree — data dictionary defining input/output structure
`.mms`	Map Source — editable map with rules
`.mmc`	Map Compiled — deployable binary (platform-specific)
`.msl`	Map System — IFD execution topology (Launcher)
`.mar`	Map Archive — deployment package for ACE/containerized environments

Architecture at a Glance

Input Data
    │
    ▼
[Input Card] ──► Type Tree (.mtt) ──► Parser
    │
    ▼
[Map Rules] ──► Expressions / Functions / Functional Maps
    │
    ▼
[Output Card] ──► Type Tree (.mtt) ──► Serializer
    │
    ▼
Output Data

Design Studio Components

Component	Purpose
Type Designer	Create/edit type trees; import XSD, COBOL, EDI
Map Designer	Author/test/debug map rules; compile maps
Integration Flow Designer (IFD)	Chain maps into Launcher `.msl` system file
Database Interface Designer (DID)	Import relational database metadata

Typical Development Workflow

1. IMPORT/CREATE  → Define type trees for input + output formats
2. ANALYZE        → Tree → Analyze (fix all errors; warnings OK)
3. MAP            → Create map, add cards, author rules
4. TEST           → Run built-in test harness with sample data
5. COMPILE        → Build → Build Project → produces .mmc
6. DEPLOY         → Package .mar; deploy to ACE BAR or Launcher

Map Rules Quick Reference

= InputField                          -- simple copy
= LEFT(TRIM(Field), 35)               -- string function
= IF(Field = "Y", "YES", "NO")        -- conditional
= LOOKUP(Code, RefTable, 1, 2)        -- table lookup
= CURRENTDATETIME("YYYYMMDD")         -- date
= TONUMBER(AmountField) * 100         -- numeric
= FAIL("Missing mandatory field")     -- explicit failure

WHEN clause (component-level iteration filter):

WHEN InputRecord.MsgType = "MT103"

Key Built-in Functions

Category	Functions
String	`LEFT`, `RIGHT`, `MID`, `TRIM`, `SUBSTITUTE`, `UPPERCASE`, `FILLRIGHT`, `FILLLEFT`, `PACKAGE`, `SQUEEZE`
Numeric	`INT`, `ROUND`, `TRUNCATE`, `MOD`, `ABS`, `SUM`, `COUNT`, `MIN`, `MAX`
Date/Time	`CURRENTDATE`, `CURRENTDATETIME`, `DATETOTEXT`, `TEXTTODATE`, `ADDDAYS`, `FROMDATETIME`
Conversion	`TONUMBER`, `NUMBERTOTEXT`, `PACK`, `UNPACK`, `BASE64TOTEXT`, `TEXTTOBASE64`, `CONVERT`, `ZONE`
Lookup	`LOOKUP`, `DBLOOKUP`, `DBQUERY`, `SEARCHUP`, `INDEX`, `MEMBER`, `EXTRACT`
Logical	`IF`, `ALL`, `EITHER`, `NOT`, `ISNUMBER`, `ISALPHA`, `VALID`
Error	`FAIL`, `REJECT`, `ISERROR`, `ONERROR`, `LASTERRORCODE`, `LASTERRORMSG`

CLI Execution

# Set environment (Linux)
. /opt/IBM/itx/setup            # sets DTX_HOME_DIR, PATH, LD_LIBRARY_PATH

# Run a compiled map directly
dtxcmdsv -MAP mymap.mmc -IN input.dat -OUT output.xml

# Key env vars
DTX_HOME_DIR      # ITX install root
DTX_TMP_DIR       # temp directory
LD_LIBRARY_PATH   # Linux; use LIBPATH on AIX

ACE Integration Checklist

Install ITX runtime co-located with ACE integration server
Add WTX/ITX Map Node to message flow
Reference .mmc or .mar — use external path (not "Use map from project" in subflows)
Set output message domain (XMLNSC, BLOB, MRM)
Do NOT override map settings in Toolkit — compile all settings into .mmc
Deploy in BAR file; verify dtxwmqi.lil loads cleanly at broker startup

Common Errors

Error	Cause	Fix
Return code 38	Toolkit-overridden map settings	Remove overrides; recompile; APAR PI22675
"Failed to load map"	Runtime/compile version mismatch	Align ITX runtime version with compile version
Parser error on XML card	XSD sub-element set as card Type	Set card Type to `XSD` (root), not a sub-element
0-byte output file	Default `OnSuccess` behavior	Set `OnSuccess=CreateOnContent` in `dtx.ini`
`dtxwmqi.lil` load failure	MQ ICU library mismatch	Run `dtxwmqi_900_64.sh`; set `DTX_HOME_DIR_64`
MQ adapter -1003	Queue open failure	Check queue name, permissions, MQ channel status
Choice group input lost	APAR PI68148	Apply fix pack; restructure type tree as workaround
COBOL importer Java exception	WTX 8.4.1.3 importer bug	Use legacy "COBOL Copybook (deprecated)" importer

Financial Messaging Notes

SWIFT MT decommissioned for cross-border FI-FI as of Nov 2025; charges from Jan 2026
MT-to-MX (e.g., MT103 → pacs.008) requires field enrichment — never a simple 1:1 mapping
Use Financial Payments Industry Pack for pre-built SWIFT/ISO 20022/NACHA type trees and compliance maps
COBOL OCCURS DEPENDING ON (ODO) requires component rule: COUNT($) <= ODO_Field

Debugging Checklist

Enable trace: Map Designer → Map Properties → Trace Level
Check .mtr trace file for rule evaluation and data values
Enable WTX_DUMP_DATA=true env var to capture input data in logs (caution: large files)
Use Map Designer debugger: set breakpoints, step through rules, inspect data objects
Run tanalyze.exe mytree.mtt -FAIL -VERBOSE to validate type tree
For ACE: check dtxwmqi.lil load in broker log; run mqsireadlog | mqsiformatlog

Reference Files

references/core-concepts.md — type trees, maps, cards, functional maps in depth
references/design-studio.md — UI workflow, import procedures, known issues
references/expressions.md — full function reference, patterns, WHEN clause
references/formats.md — SWIFT MT, ISO 20022, EDIFACT, COBOL, CSV handling
references/execution.md — CLI, Launcher, IFD, dtx.ini tuning, .mar deployment
references/ace-integration.md — ACE/IIB node config, CP4I, known issues
references/debugging.md — trace, log subsystems, error reference, type tree analysis