Verify the integrity of all IMS pointer values and analyze the space utilization of the database

IMS Fast Path Solution Pack provides the Analyze function of IMS Fast Path Advanced Tool and the Online Pointer Checker utility of IMS Fast Path Online Tools to verify the integrity of pointer values and analyze the space utilization of the DEDB areas. These functions analyze multiple DEDB areas and provide information about the DEDB areas in a single job step. The information reveals potential errors and provides space utilization statistics that can help you reduce the amount of time that you spend diagnosing and repairing problems. The Online Pointer Checker utility uses an online DEDB area as direct input, which means that the database area can remain fully accessible to users while pointer checking is being performed. Conversely, the Analyze function is used to evaluate offline DEDB areas. This function can process multiple DEDB areas concurrently. The Analyze function can process multiple DEDB areas more quickly than the Online Pointer Checker utility can. The Analyze function can also use image copy data sets as direct input, which means that you can run the Analyze function to take image copies of the online DEDB areas, use the image copies as input, and analyze the online DEDB areas through their image copies. By using this method, you can analyze online DEDB areas without affecting the online applications. With both functions, you can include image copy processing in the same job step to take image copies of the areas while the pointer checking process is running.

If you need to tune the database or if errors were revealed as a result of running these pointer checking functions, the following utilities can help you tune or repair your database:

• Use the FPA Tune function to tune your database. The FPA Tune function facilitates multiple iterations of the database tuning process, which allows you to select physical database attributes that meet your performance and space utilization requirements.
• Use the Database Repair Facility to repair the area. Database Repair Facility helps you repair the DEDB area that contains pointer or data errors.

The combined capabilities that are provided in IMS Fast Path Solution Pack provide a powerful set of productivity aids that help you detect and correct database errors quickly, and then repair them with minimum downtime to your IMS environment. These tools facilitate system tuning and optimization tasks and help you maintain the data availability you need to help your business thrive.