IBM Interactive System Productivity Facility

Improve productivity of IBM Z systems development and administration

IBM Interactive System Productivity Facility (ISPF) is a multi-faceted development tool set for IBM Z®. It provides host-based software development, including software configuration management. 

With ISPF, you can manipulate source code and data stored on a host and work with interactive applications called dialogs. Programmers can use ISPF to develop and document batch and interactive programs. IBM Z systems administrators and systems programmers can use ISPF to monitor and control program libraries and communications with IBM z/OS®.

What's new

Enhancements with z/OS 3.1 ISPF

Benefits Save time

Develop user dialogs and display capabilities by using ISPF Dialog Manager, without having to code display functions.

Increase efficiency

Work directly with source code and data stored on the host through Program Development Facility (PDF), a panel-driven menu interface and service facility.

Enhance flexibility

Use the Interactive ISPF Gateway to enable applications to run programs that are interactive, issuing TSO/ISPF conversational mode commands.

Features
ISPF Dialog Manager to develop user dialogs

ISPF Dialog Manager provides services to dialogs and users, including display, variable services, input and output and more. It controls the interaction of dialog elements and can issue requests. You can verify, process and store input and output as well as use ISPF as a simplified data management system. It offers an edit-recovery service and enables you to edit or browse data that is not a sequential or a partitioned data set (PDS).


PDF panel-driven interface

With PDF, you can bypass the browse mode on view entry and edit entry panels. PDF features Edit Recovery Handling to recover work and Browse Interface and the Edit Interface to allow dialogs to provide their own I/O. It enables functions such as edit/browse of data other than PDS or sequential files, edit/browse of in-storage data and pre- and post-processing of edited or browsed data. Library access services interact with browse and edit services to access libraries and data.


Support for z/OS UNIX directories and files

In addition to support for IBM z/OS® data sets, ISPF provides a powerful z/OS UNIX Directory List Utility that supports processing of directories and files in a z/OS UNIX directory structure. With the release of z/OS V2R2, this includes the capability to view mounted file systems in an expandable/collapsible format.


Interactive ISPF gateway

ISPF provides a thin gateway service that enables applications to start a TSO address space, send a TSO or ISPF command as input and receive a response as output. Callers of this service will typically be applications that are serving remote clients that want to issue TSO or ISPF commands. New in z/OS V2R2 is the Interactive ISPF Gateway that provides an improved ISPF gateway service that can be used to run programs that are interactive, issuing TSO/ISPF conversational mode commands.


ISPF PDSE V2 member generations enhancements

ISPF support for PDSE V2 member generations are enhanced to allow the specification of generation numbers in the Edit and View panels and on the Edit and Browse primary commands BROWSE, EDIT and VIEW. Also, a generation list can be viewed for members with generations, allowing the use of line commands to access commonly used functions for wanted generations. Select ISPF services are also enhanced with more member generations information.


ISPF enhancement for Pervasive Encryption data set allocation

Support for Pervasive Encryption is improved in z/OS 3.1 by allowing the provision of the data set key label on the ISPF Allocate New Data Set and Define Cluster panels.


Case-insensitive sort for ISPF UNIX directory list

Viewing of large UNIX directory lists in ISPF is simplified by providing an option for a case-insensitive sort for the z/OS UNIX Directory List Utility.

Resources ISPF User’s Guide, Volume I

Learn how to use the interface, commands, actions, libraries, data sets and more.

ISPF User’s Guide, Volume II

Learn how to use the interface, commands, actions, libraries, data sets and more.

Explore more ISPF documentation in PDF form
Related products IBM z16

The latest iteration of IBM Z mainframes with on-chip AI inferencing and industry-first, quantum-safe technologies.

IBM z/OS operating system

A rich in security and scalable operating system for running mission-critical applications.

IBM z/OS Management Facility

Streamline z/OS management with automation and self-service interfaces.

Next steps

Discover IBM Interactive System Productivity Facility. Schedule a no-cost 30-minute meeting with an IBM Z and LinuxONE representative.

More ways to explore Documentation Support IBM Redbooks® Support and services Global financing Flexible pricing Education and training Community Developer community Business Partners Resources