Overview

This three-day course examines the fundamental mechanics of IBM's parallel sysplex architecture at a detailed level. It will provide attendees with a full and comprehensive understanding of today's sysplex, an environment that can provide continuous availability for a huge variety of workloads. The course describes in considerable detail the three sets of services involved.<br>This vital course should be considered the technical 'foundation stone' for all involved with a sysplex at a technical level.<br><br>This course is available 'on demand' (minimum 2 students) for public presentation and for one-company, on-site presentations.
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Prerequisites

Attendance of the course Parallel Sysplex Concepts & Facilities, or equivalent experience.
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Delegates will learn how to

  • describe the Cross-systems Coupling Facility
  • describe XCF services
  • explain the principles of data sharing
  • explain how connection services work
  • explain how data sharing works
  • explain how cache, lock & list services work
  • describe Workload Manager services.
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Outline

Introduction to the Parallel Sysplex

What is a parallel sysplex?; XCF, the Cross-systems Coupling Facility; Multisystem environments; It's not just signalling!; But what about data sharing?; The Coupling Facility; Coupling Facility data - Structures; Data sharing services; OK, so WHY parallel sysplex?; How big!?!; A single image environment; A sysplex is just a bigger multiprocessor!; Dispatching work; Recovery and expendability; Continuous availability; Why the fuss about continuous availability?

XCF Services

Managing the sysplex; member status and attributes; joining a group; interrogating XCF; sending and receiving messages; advanced message services; large messages; User Status tracking; Group Status tracking; leaving a group; Abend handling; ARM concepts, policies and exit routines; Sample Application; JESXCF; JESXCF services.

Data Sharing

CF data sharing; Coupling Facility data structures; CF sharing mechanics; products supporting data sharing; XES services; application protocols.

Connection Services

connection services overview; permissions to use a structure; allocation of structures; first connection; allocation parms; connection failures; LISTEN exit; Connection States; connection & structure persistence; structure rebuilds; Structure Alter and Disposition; disconnecting from a structure; CF management services.

Cache Services

Elements of a cache system; elements of a cache structure; allocation parameters; event suppression; managing the local cache buffers; Local Cache Vector; casting out data; cast-out Classes, Storage Classes, Reclaims and Reclaim Vectors; Cache Types; synchronous and asynchronous services; physical CF access processing; changed CF requests.

Lock Services

Elements of a Lock Structure; allocation parameters; requesting a Lock; Resource Request Queue states; contention & false contention; handling contention; exit processing; Recovery Management; services and synchronization.

List Services

Elements of a List Structure; List Controls and List Entry Controls; allocation parameters; referencing list entries; serialised lists and lock processing; LOCKCOMP processing; synchronous and asynchronous processing; handling lock contention; list transition monitoring; sublists and monitoring; event queues and event monitoring; list services extensions; secondary keys; IXLLSTE, IXLLSTM and IXLLSTC; JES checkpoint.

Workload Manager Services

The continuous availability environment - a review so far; WLM's role in the sysplex; WLM service definition; setting goals; Work-unit types; classifying work; WLM Work Manager services; Execution Delay Monitoring Services; CICS and CICSplex SM; enclaves and the enclave services; enclave vs address space level work; SWUQ; enclaves and preemptable SRBs; independent enclaves; dependent enclaves; multisystem enclaves; Application Environments; AE - the Queuing Manager Model; AE - the Routing Manager Model; Defining Application Environments; DB2 and the Distributed Data Facility; Sysplex Routing Services; DDF Workload balancing; UNIX System Services fork support; VTAM generic resources; scheduling environments; WLM-managed Initiators.

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