cics lunch and learn feb 17 2015 - three cics open betas

CICS Transaction Server V5.3 open beta

• Service Agility

• Operational Efficiency

• Cloud with DevOps

2

Service

Agility

Enhanced support for Java and the

WebSphere Liberty profile

Cloud with

DevOps

Operational

Efficiency

IBM CICS Transaction Server V5.3 open beta

enterprise grade mixed language application serving

Performance optimizations,

enhanced metrics and additional

security

New cloud and DevOps support to

automate CICS deployments

• Additional Liberty features

• Enhanced interoperability

• Simplified management

• Enhanced Java SE support

• Web service optimizations

• Performance improvements

• Enhanced metrics

• Additional security options

• Automated builds

• Scripted deployments

• UrbanCode Deploy support

• Enhanced cloud enablement

Planned open beta availability : 23rd Mar 2015

3

Additional Liberty

profile features

Enhanced

interoperability

Simplified

management

Enhanced Java SE

support

CICS TS V5.3 open beta : Service Agility

Enhanced support for Java and the WebSphere Liberty profile

A set of new Liberty profile features provides support for a wider range of Java

web APIs and application frameworks. The following Liberty profile features

are included in the CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering:

• Contexts and Dependency Injection (CDI)*

• Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) Lite subset

• Managed Beans*

• MongoDB*

• OSGi Console*

• Session Persistence (JDBC type 4 driver only)*

Existing Liberty profile features are enhanced, specifically by adding EAR

support for bundles, adding SQLJ support for use with the DB2 type 2 driver

data sources, and adding transaction support to the Blueprint feature.

These newly supported and enhanced features make Java-based web

applications hosted in the Liberty profile JVM server even more capable and

portable.

* Also available in CICS TS V5.2 via APAR PI25503.

4

Additional Liberty

profile features

Enhanced

interoperability

Simplified

management

Enhanced Java SE

support



The CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering also includes a technology preview of

the ability for Java programs in a Liberty profile JVM server and non-Java

programs to call each other using standard CICS API calls. This technology

preview enables:

• Java applications to use the standard JEE Connector Architecture (JCA)

to invoke CICS programs in any supported language.

• Non-Java CICS programs to issue an EXEC CICS LINK to call a Java

application running in a Liberty profile JVM server.

Additionally, the Liberty z/OS Connect feature is now supported by the CICS

TS V5.3 open beta offering*. This provides RESTful APIs and accepts

JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) payloads between CICS, mobile devices,

and cloud environments.


5

Additional Liberty

profile features

Enhanced

interoperability

Simplified

management

Enhanced Java SE

support



Java Management Extensions (JMX) can be used to monitor Java

applications and JVM system objects. The following JMX-related Liberty

profile features are now supported:

• Local JMX Connector*

• Monitoring*

• REST connector (for JMX)*

Users of the Liberty profile JVM server can now manage and monitor

applications and system objects locally by using the JMX client API, or

remotely by using the JConsole monitoring tool included in Java SE.

Additionally, administration of the JVM servers is enhanced by simplifying the

process of managing log files that include controls for the maximum number of

zFS logs, the ability to redirect log files to the MVS JES log, and the

standardization of timestamps.


6

Additional Liberty

profile features

Enhanced

interoperability

Simplified

management

Enhanced Java SE

support



Enhanced support is provided for Java SE developers who need access to

WebSphere MQ. Java SE programs that run in a CICS OSGi JVM server can

now use the WebSphere MQ classes for the Java Message Service (JMS), as

an alternative to the proprietary WebSphere MQ classes for Java.

Developers familiar with the JMS API can easily access WebSphere MQ

resources. The CICS MQ attachment facility is enhanced to support the

necessary new commands.

Support is limited to Java programs that run in an OSGi JVM server. There is

no support in a Liberty profile JVM server.

Support from WebSphere MQ that use the WebSphere MQ classes for JMS is

provided in WebSphere MQ for z/OS V7.1 and V8:

• V7.1 requires MQ APAR PI29770 (built on fix pack 7.1.0.6) or later

• V8.0 requires base APAR PI28482 and fix pack 8.0.0.2 or later

• CICS TS V5.2 is also supported and requires APAR PI32151

7

IBM CICS Transaction Server z13 exploitation

Statement of Direction

IBM intends that a future release of IBM CICS Transaction Server for z/OS will support 64-bit

SDK for z/OS, Java Technology Edition, Version 8 (Java 8). This support will enable the use

of new facilities delivered by IBM z13 which are exploited by Java 8, including 'Single

Instruction Multiple Data' (SIMD) instructions for vector operations and simultaneous

multithreading (SMT).

IBM's statements regarding its plans, directions, and intent are subject to change or withdrawal without notice at IBM's

sole discretion. Information regarding potential future products is intended to outline our general product direction and it

should not be relied on in making a purchasing decision. The information mentioned regarding potential future products is

not a commitment, promise, or legal obligation to deliver any material, code, or functionality. Information about potential

future products may not be incorporated into any contract. The development, release, and timing of any future features or

functionality described for our products remains at our sole discretion.

8

Web service

optimizations

Performance

improvements

Enhanced metrics

Additional security

options

CICS TS V5.3 open beta : Operational Efficiency

Performance optimizations, enhanced metrics and additional

securityWeb services are one of the most popular methods of interacting with CICS

applications. The CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering delivers a number of

significant optimizations in this area.

The pipeline processing of HTTP requests has been improved, removing the

need for an intermediate web attach task (CWXN transaction) in the majority

of use cases. This will reduce the CPU and memory overhead for most types

of SOAP and JSON-based HTTP CICS web services.

This optimization can also be used for inbound HTTPS requests, where SSL

support is provided by the Application Transparent Transport Layer Security

(AT-TLS) feature of IBM Communications Server. CICS TCPIPSERVICE

resources can be configured as AT-TLS aware to obtain security information

from AT-TLS.

HTTPS implementations that use CICS-provided SSL support still use the

CWXN transaction. However, multiple TCB switches have been eliminated for

these scenarios. Therefore, these implementations should also see

performance improvements.

9

Web service

optimizations

Performance

improvements

Enhanced Metrics

Additional security

options



securityInternal performance improvements are made in many areas of the CICS TS

V5.3 open beta offering to help reduce CPU overhead. These include the

exploitation of a number of the new hardware instructions introduced with the

IBM z9, cache alignment of some key CICS control blocks, the use of

prefetch, reduced lock contention within monitoring algorithms, improvements

to the MRO session management algorithms, and further tuning of internal

procedures.

Improvements in efficiency have noticeable improvements in the CICS trace

facility, the CICS monitoring facility, and for MRO connections with high

session counts.

10

Web service

optimizations

Performance

improvements

Enhanced metrics

Additional security

options



securityCICS transaction tracking identifies relationships between tasks in an

application as they flow across CICS systems, and can be visualized in CICS

Explorer. Transaction tracking in the CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering has

been extended to transactions started by the CICS-WebSphere MQ bridge.

This expands the scope of transactions that can use transaction tracking to

help with problem determination, reporting, and auditing.

Additionally, a number of metrics are added into the global CICS statistics for

transaction CPU time measurements and are captured without the need for

CICS monitoring to be active. This allows greater insight into the CPU

resource usage of the CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering's regions, without the

overhead of collecting and processing SMF 110 monitoring records.

11

Web service

optimizations

Performance

improvements

Enhanced metrics

Additional security

options



securityThe CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering also includes the following new and

enhanced security options:

• New support for the Enhanced Password Algorithm, which was

implemented in RACF APAR OA43999, to allow stronger encryption of

passwords.

• Enhanced support for Kerberos to provide an EXEC CICS SIGNON

TOKEN command, avoiding the need to flow a password. This enables

applications to validate a Kerberos security token (as determined by an

external security manager) and associate a new user ID with the current

terminal.

• A new EXEC CICS REQUEST PASSTICKET API that can be used for

outbound requests from the current task, where basic authentication is

required, thereby avoiding the need to flow passwords. The command

requests an external security manager (ESM), such as RACF, to build a

PassTicket.

Additionally, enhancements are made to further off-load authentication

requests to open TCBs. This reduces contention on the resource owning (RO)

TCB.

12

Automated builds

Scripted

deployments

UrbanCode Deploy

support

Enhanced cloud

enablement

CICS TS V5.3 open beta : Cloud with DevOps

New cloud and DevOps support to automate CICS deployments

Cloud applications and bundles are a convenient way to package and manage

components, resources, and dependencies in CICS.

The CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering introduces the CICS build toolkit, which

provides a command-line interface for automating the building of CICS

projects created using the CICS Explorer. CICS cloud applications and

bundles, as well as OSGi Java components, can now be automatically built

from source code.

Builds are created by calling the CICS build toolkit from scripts, which can

automatically run when developers make application updates. A build script

would typically check out the latest application version from source control,

along with its dependencies. It would then call the CICS build toolkit to build

the projects that form the application. Finally, the script would copy the built

projects to a suitable location, such as an artifact repository or a staging area

on zFS.

The CICS build toolkit is supported on z/OS, Linux, and Microsoft Windows

operating systems, and supports CICS TS V4.1 and later.

13

Automated builds

Scripted

deployments

UrbanCode Deploy

support

Enhanced cloud

enablement

A built CICS project, which resides in zFS, can now be programmatically

deployed across CICS systems by using a set of scripting commands in the

CICS TS V5.3 open beta offering, and can simplify and automate application

deployments.

DFHDPLOY is a new batch utility to support the automated provisioning of

CICS bundles, OSGi bundles within CICS bundles, and CICS applications by

using the following simple commands:

• SET APPLICATION

• SET BUNDLE

• DEPLOY APPLICATION

• UNDEPLOY APPLICATION

• DEPLOY BUNDLE

• UNDEPLOY BUNDLE

DFHDPLOY commands can be used against artifacts in an automated

deployment script to deploy them across CICS systems, and set them to a

desired state, such as 'enabled' or 'available'. It can also be used to undeploy

and remove them when they are no longer required.



14

Automated builds

Scripted

deployments

UrbanCode Deploy

support

Enhanced cloud

enablement

IBM UrbanCode Deploy orchestrates and automates the deployment of

applications, middleware configurations, and database changes. An updated

CICS TS beta plug-in for UrbanCode Deploy supports the deployment of

CICS applications as part of these orchestrations.

Using UrbanCode Deploy, multiple deployment steps can be coordinated in a

single action. Deployment processes can be reused for similar applications

and environments, such as development systems or more tightly-controlled

test and production environments.

The CICS TS beta plug-in for UrbanCode Deploy provides functions for

installing and removing resources, NEWCOPY and PHASEIN for programs,

and performing a pipeline scan. Batch utilities, like DFHDPLOY, can be

reused using the z/OS utility plug-in.

An updated version of the UrbanCode Deploy plug-in for CICS TS V4.1 and

later is available to download from the UrbanCode Deploy plug-in website.

Visit

https://developer.ibm.com/urbancode/plugin/cics-ts/



https://developer.ibm.com/urbancode/plugin/cics-ts/

15

Automated builds

Scripted

deployments

UrbanCode Deploy

support

Enhanced cloud

enablement

In addition to the major new DevOps capabilities delivered by this beta

offering to help reliably and repeatedly deploy CICS cloud and CICS Java

applications, a number of enhancements are made to the core CICS cloud

capabilities.

Support for threshold policies is enhanced by providing the ability to supply a

threshold policy for the number of WebSphere MQ requests, DL/I requests,

named counter requests, and shared temporary storage requests issued by a

CICS task. This brings the total number of thresholds against which an action

can be triggered to 14.

Support for transaction entry points has been added for CICS cloud

applications, in addition to program and URIMAP entry points that are already

provided. This provides the ability to scope policies to be specific to a

particular transaction ID.

Recovery of the application infrastructure is enhanced, so that the available or

unavailable state of an application is automatically recovered across CICS

restarts.



16

IBM CICS Transaction Server z13 exploitation

Supporting the latest IBM z Systems

All in-service releases of IBM CICS Transaction Server for z/OS (CICS TS) will support the

z13 hardware. This gives CICS TS customers at an appropriate level of z/OS the potential to

benefit from facilities of z13, including:

• Use of simultaneous multithreading (SMT) on zIIP processors by CICS Java applications.

• Greater data compression and reduced data transfer time provided by enhanced zEnterprise Data

Compression (zEDC), which could be exploited by CICS SMF data when using SMF log streams

• CICS TS transactions using SSL or TLS could take advantage of cryptographic acceleration with the

Crypto Express5s cryptographic adapter.

• Planned availability of Large Memory on z/OS, up to 4 TB per z/OS image, could be useful to

customers requiring more real memory to back large amounts of virtual storage, such as large, or large

numbers of, CICS Shared Data Tables, CICS main temporary storage above-the-bar, and JVM server

heap storage.

CICS TG V9.2 Open Beta

• Increase development agility with continuous integrations testing

• Find bugs earlier in the development cycle

• By using CICS TG to virtualize the CICS backend, significantly

higher test loads can be run without impact MLC costs

17

The CICS TG V9.2 open beta offering builds on the mobile

applications support delivered in CICS TG V9.1, through JSON

web services, by enabling the continuous integration testing

and virtualization of mobile CICS workloads

What is Rational Test Virtualization Server?

18

Deliver Enterprise Modernization with RTVS

App

Server

z based

Protocols

z based

Protocols

z based

Protocols

Test Mainframe Services

Use RTW to send proprietary messages

into CICS / IMS / MQ and validate the

responses, query the state of DB2, exercise

web services

Virtualize Mainframe Dependencies

Use RTVS to stand in for dependent

components in SUT, such as 3rd party

interfaces

Virtualize the Mainframe

Use RTVS to stand in for mainframe based

services in testing scenarios. Earlier and

more flexible testing

19

IBM Rational Test Virtualization Server V8.0.1

Build and automate test cases for ECI requests

• COMMAREA and Channel/container payloads

• Import COBOL copybooks

Record and replay CICS Transactions via CICS TG

• COMMAREA only

• RTVS-supplied request monitoring (RM) exit for Gateway

daemon, or Java/JCA client

• SSL connections supported

Workload generation/ performance tests

• Simulate real workloads based upon built-out test cases

CICS

RTVS(s)

CICS

Transaction

Gateway

RM

exit

Client calling

transaction

AnnouncementENUS212-490

Today: Continuous integration testing –isolated testingAbility to “virtualize” CICS back-end

• The Gateway intercept plug-in is available with

• CICS TG V9.1 products

• SupportPac CA5F (built upon V8.0 Java + JCA API run-time

components)

• Provides client side base classes and ECI resource adapter with

an optional plug-in

• Allows application development to test Java or JCA applications

before hitting the real test systems

• The RTVS V8.0.1.1 plug-in allows use of “real” recorded data to

simulate CICS

• Dynamic pass-through on a request-by-request basis 20

The Gateway intercept plug-in with V9.1

“virtualized” CICS back-end using RTVS

21

CICS

TG

TG

JAR/

RAR

RTVS

Gateway

intercep

t

plug-in

Java / JCA

application

CICS

CICS

application

RTVS(s)

CICS

application

response

data

The Solution topology

Introducing the CICS intercept plug-in

22

CICS

TGTG

JAR/

RAR

Java

application

.NETapplication

TG .NETDLL

RTVS

CICS

intercept

plug-in

C / C++ application

TG ECI V2DLL

C / C++ application

TG ECI V2DLL

JSON WebServices

C / C++ application

TG ECI V2DLL

RTVS(s)

CICS

application

response

data

CICS

CICS

application

IBM Confidential

until February 17, 2015

CICS TG V9.2 Open Beta

CICS Transaction Gateway V9.2 open beta

• CICS Transaction Gateway for z/OS V9.2 open beta• z/OS 1.13, or later

• CICS Transaction Gateway for Multiplatforms V9.2 open beta

• Windows, Intel Linux (RHEL, SLES, Ubuntu)

• Effectively a time-limited “free trial” of the latest CICS TG

technology, including potential new function

Delivers

• CICS intercept plug-in

• Compatible with IBM Rational Tester Virtualization Server V8.x

• Zero MIPS continuous integration testing option for integrated CICS

solutions

23

IBM Confidential

until February 17, 2015

CICS Operational Insights open beta

• New Cloud based Service to identify opportunities to tune your CICS

• Understand your operational characteristics to target improvements

• Upload a snapshot of operational data and get a Threadsafe

Assessment (more insights to follow)

• Threadsafe can help you get more efficient and save money

• Free of charge during open beta

Try it out at

https://cicsoi.mybluemix.net/

Have your say on new insights on

https://ibm.biz/cicsoi-forum

Generally available February 23

https://cicsoi.mybluemix.net/

https://ibm.biz/cicsoi-forum

cics lunch and learn feb 17 2015 - three cics open betas

Software

liberty profile jvm

java applications

liberty zos

nonjava cics programs

new liberty profile

websphere liberty profilecloud

nonjava programs

websphere liberty profilea