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The Mysterious QP0ZSPWP Jobs
February 15, 2019
QP0ZSPWP jobs are created by spawn() and fork() functions. But what do they do?
ArticlesSystem Software Maps Provide Quick Answers on OS Support
February 12, 2019
IBM Support has system software maps for AIX, IBM i, VIO server, SUSE, Red Hat and Ubuntu Linux. Use this map to locate all the supported IBM Power Systems operating systems.
ArticlesQSQSRVR Job Considerations
February 10, 2019
The QSQSRVR prestart server jobs run in the QSYSWRK subsystem by default, but you can configure the subsystem for these jobs
ArticlesPowerVC-Based Tool Rebalances Workloads
February 5, 2019
Using the PowerVC Dynamic Resource Optimizer to automatically rebalance AIX workloads on IBM Power Systems servers.
ArticlesClient Special Registers Are Special
February 2, 2019
Client special registers are very useful for understanding who requested work for database server jobs (QZDASOINIT, QSQSRVR, and QRWTSRVR)
ArticlesA Lifetime IBM Champion
February 2, 2019
Rob McNelly blogs about being one of eight recipients of the IBM Champion Lifetime Achievement Award.
ArticlesThe Case for a Database Engineer
February 1, 2019
Q: What’s a database engineer and why do I need one? Part of my job encompasses helping clients understand how to improve their IBM i ROI. Most clients can take simple and inexpensive steps—and one of those is hiring a database engineer (DBE). The DBE role has existed for about a decade. This is […]
ArticlesData Backup Options Balance Risk and Cost
February 1, 2019
Technical Editor Rob McNelly outlines data backup options.
ArticlesWhy RPG Developers are Adopting RDi
February 1, 2019
In more and more shops, Rational Developer for IBM i (RDi) is rapidly taking over as the development platform of choice for RPGers
PodcastsSue Romano Discusses SQL Development
February 1, 2019
Paul Tuohy: Hi everybody and welcome to another iTalk with Tuohy. I'm delighted to have with me today someone that I've been trying to grab an interview for quite a while, Sue Romano. Hello, Sue. Sue Romano: Hi. Paul: So Sue is one of the, for anybody who hasn't come across Sue's name before, is―well […]
ArticlesTime to Look at System Maintenance and Replacing Equipment
February 1, 2019
Once a year, it’s important to review the hardware that’s installed—and also the levels of the software that’s installed on those servers. It’s important to stay as current as possible to ensure you have the best security and performance. It’s also critical to be on hardware and software that is still in service. This means […]
ArticlesMartha McConaghy on SHARE and Women in Technology
February 1, 2019
Reg Harbeck: Hi, this is Reg Harbeck and I'm here today with Martha McConaghy who is a vice president at SHARE and has been a very active mainframer for quite some time and is involved in some really new exciting initiatives as well. Martha, welcome. Maybe if you can tell us, how did you end […]
ArticlesIBM Infrastructure Plays a Critical Role in Cloud, AI and Security
February 1, 2019
Cloud, artificial intelligence (AI) and security all have underpinnings in infrastructure—the servers, storage and software that power an organization. A purpose-built architecture is critical to achieving the performance needed for current and future business requirements. “Technology alone can’t transform a company, but it’s a very essential ingredient in business transformation,” says Tom Rosamilia, senior vice […]
ArticlesThere’s Even More to the POWER9 Story
January 29, 2019
If you need to make an argument for Power Systems hardware running AIX, IBM i or Linux with the latest processors, this is tremendous ammunition.
ArticlesA Red Hot Reddit Discussion of AIX and Linux
January 22, 2019
AIX isn’t imperiled by the prevalence of Linux. Even so, it’s always great to encounter passionate defenses of our favorite OS, and this thread from the AIX Reddit feed (r/aix) is chock full of them.
ArticlesRetrieving the Current SQL Statement for a Job
January 17, 2019
IBM i makes it relatively easy to identify and review jobs that may be using a lot of CPU or driving a lot of I/O
ArticlesReplicating Changes Across Multiple HMCs
January 15, 2019
For any environment with multiple HMCs, data replication generally makes sense. IBM’s Customizable Data Replication service can help you accomplish this, no matter how your HMCs are set up.
ArticlesMore on VIOS 3.1
January 8, 2019
Rob McNelly follows up on a recent post about VIOS 3.1.
ArticlesPrestart Jobs and Connection Pooling
January 5, 2019
Connection pooling is most often used for database connections to the QZDASOINIT or QZDASSINIT (secure server) jobs. It can also be used for other prestart server jobs
ArticlesPrestart Job Messages
January 4, 2019
This article reviews the messages sent by various types of prestart jobs and provide examples of how to gather useful information from these messages
Articles10 Amazing Things that Happened in 2018
January 4, 2019
In 2018, Jesse Gorzinski predicted that it would be a breakthrough year for open source on IBM i, and his prediction held true.
ArticlesStress Tests Validate Systems and Strain Analysts
January 1, 2019
In conjunction with a client insurance company, I have the dubious distinction and privilege of being an early pioneer in the discipline of stress testing computer systems. Thanks to the wise experience of an IBM Consulting Systems Engineer named Don Lund who took me under his wing and passed his wisdom to me—and mostly kept […]
ArticlesDevOps Tools for z/OS
January 1, 2019
Can DevOps tools work for z/OS? Yes, and there are two current methodologies which can enable using tools like Eclipse, Jenkins, GIT and many others. One methodology, which most of the mainframe community has likely heard about, is Zowe. Zowe is the first open-source framework for z/OS and was announced at SHARE in St. Louis. […]
ArticlesMusic, Meaning and the Mainframe
January 1, 2019
Since watching the Beatles debut on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” Jeffrey Frey has been captivated by music. He paid his way through college as a drummer in various bands, where his musical interests expanded even further. “My interest in music was always expanding, not just in terms of playing the music and the artistry itself, […]
ArticlesDevSecOps Matters for the Mainframe
January 1, 2019
Today’s customers want new services and they want them now. To remain competitive and keep up with customer needs, organizations are seeking ways to innovate rapidly around some of their most valuable assets—customer data and enterprise data. At one time, the mainframe was viewed as an isolated system. Data was often moved to a different […]