Migrating Between Versions of CICS TS, DB2, or Operating System?

Then Read On….

By

Don Fowler, MCE, Inc., April 2004

Please note: In August 2004, the Migration Starter Kit was renamed to Migration Support Kit to more accurately describe the tool. This is a reprint of original article on MSK with the name changed to the new name.  

Migrations In General

With IBM’s latest product announcements, many mainframe professionals are faced with another round of migrations. From the newly available DB2 Version 8 with its awesome enhancements to CICS TS 2.3 and its major performance improvements, users are facing accelerated migration pressures. 

 

If the user is not an existing DB2 Version 7 enterprise, then the migration to DB2 Version 8 will require an initial migration to DB2 Version 7. Thus these users face two version migrations to worry over and plan.

 

With OS 390 2.10 quickly exiting supported status, users are now migrating to z/OS Version 1.  Many of the other software products, such as CICS TS V2.3, require a pre-requisite of z/OS 1.4.  A current OS 2.10 user may option to move to CICS TS 2.2 to obtain the new JAVA and web enabling functions and then migrate to z/OS later.

 

Any way you cut it, a migration of one or more major components of your mainframe environment are looming over the enterprise.     

 

Most mainframe professionals don’t have the necessary time to read all of the technical “how to” materials required to stay current and properly plan these migrations.  This is especially true in enterprises that have a very large and diverse inventory of various vendors’ software products to provide business solutions and technology management.

 

In some cases, mainframe skills are eroded, thus making it difficult to properly plan and execute a product migration.    

 

Migration support Kits

Your IBM Business Partner sponsoring this newsletter is offering a no charge Migration support Kit to you when you are migrating to a new version of DB2, CICS TS, or z/OS.  

 

Migration Support Kits are a significant step as a solution for the above issues.  A MSK provides not only a clear, detailed set of migration task lists for both IBM and most major 3rd party software vendors, but it also provides automated acquisition of relevant vendor documentation for each task.    

 

 

Generic MSK

The standard generic MSK for any of the software products provides all of the relevant tasks for the IBM product and 3rd vendor products you select (if any). It has each task assigned to a one of four dummy individuals. The task hours are a national average of how long it takes technical professionals of different skills levels to perform the task.

If one is not specified in the MSK order form, the project start is set to the beginning of the week following the shipped MSK date.  Delivery of the Migration support Kit will be either a HTML or Microsoft Project 98 file format (or both), depending on which option is selected on the MSK order form. 

 

The user is granted sixteen (16) hours of remote (phone and/or email) support as part of the shipment.

 

The shipment is made as file attachments to the receiver’s email address. This is the email address specified on the MSK order form. You will receive an initial email stating that your requested MSK is being shipped in a subsequent email as an attachment. If you do not receive the second email, notify the sender of the first email and other arrangements will be made for shipping. This multiple email scheme is used because some email servers will not accept large attachments or will not accept attachments at all.  This shipping technique is used for both the generic and the custom version of the MSK.      

           

Custom MSK

You may also identify up to four technical professionals and the MSK will be further customized through assigning the migrations tasks to these individuals. If you indicate the skill level of each of the identified technical professionals, the assigned tasks’ hours will be adjusted to reflect the skill level.

 

You may further select from a wide inventory of 3rd party products that include most of the Computer Associates products, Compuware products, and many other vendors’ products. The unique and relevant 3rd party selection inventory is presented as part of the MSK order form for the IBM product you are installing. 

 

Other customization features you can request are:

1.      Delivery of the Migration support Kit as either a HTML or Microsoft Project 98 file format (or both), 

2.      Set a project start date and cascade the task lists off of that date, and

3.      Add unique 3rd party products not in the current selection inventory.          

 

Customized MSK users receive 24 hours of remote support. Shipment is the same as the generic MSK described above. 

MSK Detailed Description

The MSK task list begins with the tasks required for ordering of the product Server Pac from IBM.  So you will want to order the MSK approximately two weeks before you plan to order the IBM software. This will give you time to utilize the MSK as an aid in developing the Server Pac order.

       

In order to appreciate the depth of the MSK task list and the automation of acquiring relevant vendor documentation about a specific task, the remainder of this section will provide live examples of a MSK and its usage and capabilities. 

       

                Figure 1 – MSK Main Page (CICS TS 2.3 MSK Example)

 

Using Figure 1, Item A denotes the start of the MSK task list. It contains the various licensing information required to properly provide a copy to a specific enterprise for a specific project.

 

Item D shows the person assigned to the task as a Gantt chart format. Since this is Microsoft PROJECT this area can be in GANTT, PERT, or other chart types by simple selection.

 

Item B shows the World Wide Web link icon. By clicking this icon for this task, you will be automatically taken to the required web page to read the why and how of the task.

This web page could be an IBM manual, IBM Red Book, SHARE presentation, technical briefing paper, or any other document deemed appropriate for defining and executing the associated MSK task.

We will demonstrate this function in a later graphic.

 

Item C points to a Project notes field. When there is more than one document required to support the associated MSK task, the note field will contain each URL required for reaching each web page.

 

Note that Items B and C will only function if the PC where the MSK is executed has INTERNET access.  Also note that since web addresses change all of the time, the longer the MSK sits on the shelf before use, the more likely that some number of this web page links will either be redirected or fail to find a valid web page. Therefore, only order and obtain the MSK when you are ready to order the product and begin the migration.

 

         

                Figure 2 – Example of MSK Web Link

 

Using Figure 2, we will show the effect of clicking on a Web Link (item A) for the MSK task “Authorize CPAC CPP LOADLIB in Production PROGxx (if necessary)”.  When this URL is pointed to and clicked, you will be taken to the associated manual, chapter, and page required for the task (see Figure 3).  In this case you are taken to Chapter 65 of the IBM Initialization and Tuning manual at the IBM Boulder library server.

 

 

 

 

    

  Figure 3 – Resulting Web Page from Web Link

To return to the MSK task list after reading or possibly printing the displayed web page of reference material, simply click on the browser back button.        

 

Figure 4 demonstrates what the multiple web reference notes field will look like. By selecting one of the web URL addresses in the task note, the user will be taken to that documentation.  The user clicks the notes icon in the relevant MSK task and is presented the Project notes item for that task. In this case, we see that there are two SHARE presentations noted. By simply clicking the URL in the note for the SHARE paper you wish to view, you will be presented that document. This might be a PDF file, and HTML file, or some other browser display friendly document.    

 

To return to the MSK task list after reading or printing the presented material, simply click the browser back button.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

            Figure 4 – MSK Example of Multiple References for a Task

 

How To Obtain a MSK

CICS TS MSK can provide the migration tasks from CICS 4.1 to CICS 2.3 or any release in between. Some users may need to go from CICS TS 1.3 to 2.2 as an example. Other users may need to go from CICS TS 1.3 to 2.3. Any migration combination is acceptable.

 

The DB2 MSK can provide the migration tasks from DB2 V5 through V7. A separate DB2 V8 MSK is underdevelopment.

 

The z/OS MSK can provide the migration tasks from OS 2.10 up through 1.5 or any intervening release. There is also some older migration MSK lists for OS 2.7 and up.

  

Your IBM Business Partner will provide the authorization for fulfilling any order for a MSK.

 

If you wish to submit an order, simply select the appropriate MSK from the MSK Ordering Facility web page and the MSK order form (as an EXCEL document) will be downloaded to you.   

 

Simply follow the buttons and fill in the requested information on the form. At the end of the form preparation, you will be in an email “Send To” function that will send the completed form back to the fulfilling location. In the body of the email at this point, please indicate in free form text, what version/release you are coming from and what version/release you are migrating to. Also indicate any environment information you deem appropriate that was not covered in the order form’s various sections.

 

To obtain the MSK order form for CICS TS, DB2, z/OS, click on this URL:

    http://www.mardon-y2k.com/Migration%20support%20Kits.htm

 

Summary

The MSK concept has proved to be extremely valuable to today’s technology professionals in planning and executing software product migrations. The capability of clicking on a task and immediately seeing the vendor documentation on the “why and how” for that task saves the technical professional hours of research.

 

The embedded research that has already been done on the most commonly used 3rd party products as to maintenance and release requirements for compatibility and exploitation also save the migration team hours of research. 

 

The task lists are proven approaches to successful migrations and provide an excellent starting point for a migration. The user will still need to account for specific environmental characteristics that affect the MSK plan, and other 3rd party products not provided by the MSK.   

 

If you have a situation where you are migrating versions of one product but another product needs a release upgrade as a pre-requisite or co-requisite, your Business partner needs to be contacted to approve free shipment of the release-to-release MSK in support of the version-to-version MSK. When you place the orders for the two MSK files, this approval process will be triggered, if you have not already spoken with your IBM Business Partner.