Have your own personal mainframe

It was the year that I first started working on mainframes. Can you guess when it was? Leg warmers became fashionable. The first Happy meals were available from MacDonald’s. Walkmans became available from Sony. Trivial Pursuit became available. Pink Floyd released “The Wall”. Margaret Thatcher became prime minister in the UK. The USSR invaded Afghanistan.

Lots more happened, and the year was 1979.

The first mainframe I ever worked on had lots of flashing lights on it and it looked the way mainframes did in films and on TV. It was soon replaced by a 4341 model. Those were the days of removable DASD and lots of tape decks. We even had a paper tape reader and one user who sent stuff on paper tape to be input into the computer. And, yes, the paper tape did rip from time to time. Of course, there was also a card reader and a card punch. And lots of 11-inch multiline stationery going through the printers. And people would come along and collect their printouts.

It was such a different world.

The reason I’m taking you on this trip down memory lane is because, it seems, you can now recreate your own MVS Version 3.8 system. I think Version 3.8 came out in 1981.

If you go to https://wotho.ethz.ch/tk4-/, you can get hold of The MVS 3.8j Tur(n)key 4- System. The documentation tells us that MVS 3.8j Tur(n)key 4- ("TK4-") is a ready to use OS/VS2 MVS 3.8j system built specifically to run under the Hercules System/370, ESA/390, and z/Architecture Emulator. It is an extension of the original MVS Tur(n)key Version 3 System ("TK3") created by Volker Bandke in 2002. This version was written by Jürgen Winkelmann, between November 2013 and September 2016.

Now, someone calling themselves rattydave has created a Docker container containing a fully-running MVS 3.8j. You can find it here. Rattydave also has a fully-running Version 3.0 of IBM's Time Sharing System/370. You can find that here. Obviously, and fully credited, this Docker version uses the work of Bandke and Winkelmann.

The 'usage' section explains how to connect a 3270 terminal. It also describes how to add a full-function console when running in unattended mode. It uses a TN3270 emulator. The notes describe how to get basic TCP/IP support, and there are some useful getting started notes.

I just thought it would be quite interesting to know that you could use Docker, a very modern way of working on a mainframe to recreate a 3033 mainframe environment from the early 1980s. It seemed like a piece of coding fun that mainframers might well be interested in – particularly if they remember working on MS 3.8 back in the day.

It’s worth mentioning Hercules, which is an emulator that allows mainframe software to run on other computer hardware, eg PCs. It works with Linux, Windows, and even on Macs. It’s written mainly in C, and development started in 1999 by Roger Bowler.

Although it works with all mainframe operating systems, licences are required to run newer versions of mainframe operating system.

Interestingly, I’ve seen that it’s possible to run the software on a Raspberry Pi and recreate an old-time mainframe on one of the smallest computer platforms around.

IBM has its ZD&T Personal Edition, which lets a user run an IBM Z distribution on a PC running Ubuntu. The software can create an environment for mainframe application demonstration, development, testing, and education. It enables z/OS, middleware, and other z/OS software to run on Intel and other compatible computers. ZD&T Personal Edition emulates z/Architecture with virtual I/O and devices.

And, of course, you can now run mainframes in the cloud with IBM’s Wazi as a Service. The set-up is only available for development and testing, but it is another way of accessing mainframe systems from a completely different system and without an actual mainframe being involved.

I just thought it was interesting to see how mainframes could be emulated on other platforms, and how old ‘timey wimey’ (as Dr Who used to say) systems could be brought back to life.

Can I use Wazi as a Service?

The answer is to that question now seems to be yes. And, just like in films where characters are suddenly whisked through a portal to a different world, it has happened. IBM mainframes now run in the cloud.

OK, maybe it’s not time for the full orchestra to start playing evocative and exciting music, but it is a step in an interesting direction.

So, what am I talking about? Well, back in March (see Mainframe as a Service), we looked at IBM’s announcement from February that it planned to make a mainframe development and testing environment available to customers in the cloud. And at the end of June the cloud-based mainframe arrangement became available.

If you want to read more details, including the availability date, you can find it here.

We’re told that the service won’t be visible in the IBM Cloud console except for IBM clients who have used “the IBM sales process to be allow-listed and to access the function”.

Once users have overcome that hurdle, they will be able to create and run custom images of their on-premise mainframe. And, certainly for the time being, they can develop and test applications on their cloud-based mainframe.

As we highlighted back in March, it’s an easier and faster way for organizations to develop and test mainframe applications. These applications can then be moved back to the physical on-prem mainframe and put into service there. This keeps developers happy, because they can get on with their job. It also keeps IBM very happy because so much of their income comes from mainframes and the processing that takes place on those mainframes. As we all know, mainframe pricing is typically based on consumption.

The other benefit for IBM – as we mentioned in March – is that it will increase its share of the cloud market, which is currently estimated at only around 4 percent. AWS is the largest player with around a third of the market.

Basically, how it works is that users create virtual machines in the cloud using Wazi as a Service. At the moment, these virtual machines can be created in London (UK), Tokyo (Japan), Toronto (Canada), and Sao Paulo (Brazil), with more expected.

So, there are benefits for mainframe users, and there are benefits for IBM. Is this test-dev cloud-based mainframe arrangement using Wazi as a Service as far as IBM is going with the project? The answer looks definitely like yes – for now. I would guess that IBM is not keen to change its tried and tested revenue stream and would be unwilling to let cloud-based mainframes take over as its primary source of revenue. However, things change all the time and a couple of years hence, IBM may well find that different criteria apply, and offering a cloud-based mainframe is the best way to not only stay in business but grow that business. We shall see.

In the meantime, it will certainly be interesting to hear what users of this new cloud-based mainframe system – Wazi as a Service – have to say about it.

The latest z/OS enhancements

The end of June saw the second quarter enhancements to z/OS. In case you missed them, here are the key features from the announcement.

• z/OS Parallel Sysplex^(R) enhancements for the IBM z16TM CFLEVEL 25: Enhancements include z/OS support for the new z16TM coupling facility, CFLEVEL 25, which provides a variety of enhancements for improved Parallel Sysplex performance, scalability, and resiliency.
• CFRM support for 4096 CF structures in a Parallel Sysplex: Previously announced support for up to 4096 CF structures in a sysplex has been temporarily disabled/withdrawn, pending a complete resolution to issues found with the support.
•  z/OS support for System Recovery Boost: Enhancements to accompany the IBM z16 can provide boosted processor capacity and parallelism for specific recovery events. Client-selected middleware starts and restarts may be boosted to expedite recovery for middleware regions and restore steady-state operations as soon as possible. SVC dump processing and HyperSwap^(R) configuration load and reload may be boosted to minimize the impact to running workloads.
•  z/OS upgrade improvements for IBM z16: The z/OS IBM z16 Upgrade Workflow has been provided in a program temporary fix (PTF) to help position z/OS for usage on the new IBM z16 server.
• z/OSMF ServerPac update: Because the z/OSMF Software Management data set merge function is now available and the z/OSMF ServerPac Portable Software Instance has enabled it, the CustomPac Dialog installation method is planned to be removed.
• IBM z/OS Management Facility (z/OSMF) enhancements: New capabilities allow users to better leverage existing CFRM Policy Editor functions, support creating or deleting USS symbolic links, and easily validate the connection status of managed systems.
• Cloud Provisioning and Management for z/OS: Enhancements expand the type of potential configurations a user can modify during the provisioning process.
• z/OS Management Services Catalog enhancements: Numerous enhancements to the user experience flow have been delivered to efficiently create and manage z/OS management services. In addition, two new sample services are provided.
• z/OS Job REST Completion Notification to eliminate Common Information Model (CIM): The asynchronous job completion notification function of the REST jobs API has been enhanced to eliminate the dependency on CIM and Common Event Adapter (CEA). 
• z/OS Container Extensions (zCX) enhancements: A new performance improvement has been delivered to reduce the chances of lock contention in high frequency code paths.
• Data Set File System: The new physical file system renders traditional z/OS data sets accessible by programs, shell scripts, and end users of z/OS UNIX^(R) System Services.
• COBOL-Java^TM interoperability: The IBM Semeru Runtime Certified Edition for z/OS has been enhanced to provide the 31-bit/64-bit interoperability support.
• New IBM Open XL C/C++ 1.1 compiler: A new component for z/OS V2.4 and V2.5 adds C/C++ language standards support, ideal for z/OS UNIX users porting applications from distributed platforms.
• Resource Measurement Facility (RMF) and Advanced Data Gatherer (ADG) enhancements: Support has been added to report on the new Crypto Express 8S card of the IBM z16 and allow machine configurations with up to 256 physical processors.
• MEMLIMIT diagnostics for CICS^(R) and Java enhancements: Serviceability is enhanced for MEMLIMIT diagnosis in high virtual memory.
• z/OS Encryption Readiness Technology (zERT) Network Analyzer enhancements: Passphrase support is added, and usability is improved for database connection authentication.
• RACF^(R) Database Encryption: This function allows an installation to encrypt a VSAM data set that is used as a part of a RACF database as well as share that data set among z/OS systems in certain configurations to help further strengthen the overall security posture of the z/OS platform.
• Compliance support for z/OS: z/OS has been enhanced to modernize compliance data reporting. This support enables the collection of compliance data from numerous IBM z16 and z/OS products and components, and simplifies auditing by publishing z/OS hardening guideline.

The enhancements should be available now.

Z/OS Version 2.5 runs on the following mainframe models:

• IBM z16 Model A01
• IBM z15^TM Models T01 and T02
• IBM z14^(R) Models M01-M05
• IBM z14 Model ZR1
• IBM z13^R)
• IBM z13s^(R)

It’s great to see IBM embracing quarterly updates on z/OS and many of its other products. And it’s also great to see the useful updates that are being produced each quarter.

Just to mention, the latest version of IMS is now available. According to IBM, Version 15.3 “streamlines your journey to the cloud”. You can read the details here.