IBM CICS Configuration Manager helps you keep resource definitions under control
Streamlines CICS system configuration and updates
from CCR2, Issue 5 - 2005
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Dr. Paul Johnson, chief architect for CICS Configuration Manager, contributed to this article. |
CICS® systems and applications evolve as companies worldwide rely on CICS to handle key business processes and customer data. Updates to these systems and applications bring changes to resource definitions—and opportunity for error—along with increases in performance and function. Accurate and up-to-date CICS resource definitions are essential for maintaining the high availability expected of the CICS environment.
CICS Configuration Manager for z/OS® Version 1.1 provides comprehensive change management to control and streamline resource definition administration, helping your staff implement more accurate changes faster. CICS Configuration Manager provides facilities to define, update, and move resource definitions individually or en masse, across multiple CICS regions either manually or under approval control. The tool provides powerful reporting, auditing, migrate and backout capabilities and comprehensive attribute value transformation.
Whether you seek to simplify migration to CICS Transaction Server 3.1 or are trying to improve workflow processes and minimize human error, whether you have a single CICS region or definitions spread across CICS regions and CICSPlex® System Manager, the following highlights will help you learn more about CICS Configuration Manager.
Simplify changes by packaging definitions and moving en masse
Resource definition administration of today's highly complex CICS systems can be arduous. With CICS Configuration Manager, IT staff and management gain an integrated point of control over all resource definitions across CICS regions, including those managed by CICSPlex System Manager (SM). CICS Configuration Manager makes it easy to manually add individual resource definitions or group definitions into change packages.
CICS Configuration Manager can follow rules you set to adjust resource attributes when moving packaged resource definitions to the targeted environment. A single command can migrate a package of resource definitions across environments, automatically transforming environment specific attributes, which dramatically speeds implementation while eliminating manual entry errors.
Keep change management under control
CICS Configuration Manager keeps changes under control with a flexible integrated approval management process. IT managers set approval requirements for an individual resource definition package or create an assortment of standard approval requirements for likely scenarios. A resource definition change only will be made if it successfully completes its approval cycle. This approval process provides opportunities for participants to catch mistakes before they affect system availability.
With approval control in place, other stakeholders can have limited access to the change process. For example, an application developer could enter resource definitions for a project, and place the request in the approval queue for IT approval. If approval is granted, the requested changes are implemented immediately.
Gain insight and the power to reverse change
Sometimes you need to track down the cause of a problem created by a resource definition or gain insight into resource definitions in use and their relationships. CICS Configuration Manager provides powerful auditing and reporting facilities.
An audit log records every new or modified definition or package along with its date, time and list of approvers. In addition, you can reverse changes, reverting back to previous definitions, even several enhancement states back. You gain the power to test a migration and back out.
A flexible reporting facility provides custom resource definition reports. You can generate reports to identify redundant definitions and resources that are defined multiple times. You can also compare resource definitions from multiple CICS configurations as well as search and filter by criteria such as name, type, group and attribute values. CICS Configuration Manager can display resource definition attribute values side-by-side with highlighted differences.
CICS Configuration Manager enhances CICSPlex System Manager
Through its online management interface, CICS Configuration Manager provides a single system view of your resources that is completely independent and transparent to the underlying repository. This means you can freely view, update, and migrate resource definitions between CICSPlex SM and CICS regions in both directions.
The CICS Configuration Manager integrated view and reports add tremendous value in mixed environments where some definitions are managed by CICSPlex SM and some are not. It also reduces risk when first using CICSPlex SM by allowing you to back out resource definitions moved to CICSPlex SM.
Work the way you want
CICS Configuration Manager will accommodate your established procedures through two alternate interfaces. The primary option is to use the online Time Sharing Option (TSO) and Interactive System Programming Facility (ISPF) interface. The alternate option is to manage resources in a traditional batch interface using JCL as part of a z/OS jobstep. This batch interface is chiefly provided to support migrate and backout.
You can also tailor CICS Configuration Manager to your existing management system or add definition management to automation processes using CICS Configuration Manager XML Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) application programming interface (API) over TCP/IP sockets.
Migrate to CICS Transaction Server V3.1 quicker
CICS Configuration Manager is especially valuable when you adopt a new version of CICS Transaction Server. You can make initial productivity gains using the tool to migrate your existing definitions to the test system on the new release of CICS Transaction Server. Later, you can gain repeated benefit: first, as you migrate definitions to production systems, and later as CICS Configuration Manager becomes part of your normal workflow management processes.
CICS Configuration Manager, a member of the IBM CICS tools family, enhances management of CICS resource definitions and fully supports Transaction Server Version 3.1. Transaction Server users can gain additional productivity improvements with CICS Interdependency Analyzer and CICS Performance Analyzer.
For more information
To learn more about IBM CICS Configuration Manager for z/OS, Version 1.1, contact your IBM representative or IBM Business Partner.
Or visit: ibm.com/software/htp/cics/tools/
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