CICS Batch Application Control

IBM CICS Batch Application Control V1.1.1 makes it easier to manage batch processes that have to coexist and share resources with one or more CICS online transaction systems.

Many customers have to schedule batch processing around the online CICS Service. In this environment, the tasks that the CICS systems administrator has to handle have become increasingly complex, especially when dealing with many CICS systems running on many processors in a complex network. Often several terminals are needed to access all the information required to control the CICS systems, and these terminals can be remotely located.

CICS Batch Application Control enables batch programs to dynamically change the state of CICS system-owned VSAM files, transient data queues, programs and transactions. For example, a batch job can deallocate resources from an online CICS application at the beginning of a batch stream and reallocate them when batch processing is complete. CICS Batch Application Control tracks all requests for state changes (made within and from outside CICS regions) and ensures that, at region startup, each resource is in its correct state.

Because the application-development team can define all the resources relevant to each application in groups and application lists, your operations team can also more easily manage applications without having to worry about which resources are a part of each application.

This automation frees operators and system programmers for more vital tasks. It may reduce the time required for the nightly batch window or remove the need to take down the CICS region, thereby moving CICS applications closer to 24x7 operation.

CICS Batch Application Control:

• Simplifies and automates the transitions between batch and CICS application access to the same resources

• Enables batch jobs to the change the state of CICS resources

• Tracks resource state change requests across participating CICS systems and batch streams and helps ensure each resource is in its correct state when CICS regions start

• Helps reduce errors and abends related to batch processing

• Minimizes manual interventions by operators and system programmers

• Moves your CICS applications closer to 24x7 availability

• Helps you lower the total cost of ownership of your zSeries platform

New in CICS Batch Application Control V1.1.1

• CICS TS V3.2 support PTF

• Security enhancements

• ISPF-based administration interface

CICS Batch Application Control runs with:

• CICS TS for z/OS V3.1 and V3.2 (5655-M15)

• CICS TS for z/OS V2.2 and V2.3 (5697-E93)

• CICS TS for OS/390 V1.3 (5655-147)