> -----Original Message-----
> From: IBM Mainframe Discussion List
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Timothy Sipples
> Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2006 7:48 AM
> To: IBM-MAIN@BAMA.UA.EDU
> Subject: Re: VSAM replication to Oracle?
>
>
<snip>
>
> I would say that the main appeal of the event publishing
> technique is the
> quick/no programming/plug-and-play characteristics. Cheap
> should be pretty
> quickly determinable, at least in price terms. (Total cost is another
> question and, as said so many times, can diverge wildly from
> price.) There
> will be more CPU instructions -- somehow you have to get the
> data from VSAM
> into Oracle -- so I think that's unavoidable until IBM
> releases the zRCP (z
> Reverse Charging Processor) which spits out one gold coin for each
> 1,000,000 instructions. (Yes, IBM engineers are working on that. :-))
> Seriously, if you're sensible about setting event trigger
> rules then it's
> fine. (And CPU instructions aren't free on any platform.
> Folks just can't
> measure them very well without SMF. :-))
>
> So (architect hat on) I'd look at that technique as one of
> the options to
> consider.
>
> I can think of yet another way: transparency. That is, for
> the VSAM files
> that have content that must be replicated to Oracle, you migrate those
> specific files to DB2 (using VSAM Transparency for example)
> then use any of
> the replication solutions (IBM's II Q Rep as an example, and there are
> others, even at IBM) to Oracle. That path is probably worth
> exploring if
> you're a DB2 shop (or want to be) and you have plans to store
> data in DB2
> anyway. Transparency means your applications aren't changed
> -- there's
> that cheap/quick/no programmer part again. The applications
> still think
> they're talking VSAM. A slight variation
> ("semi-transparency") is that you
> go ahead and EXEC SQL code the most I/O intense sections (for
> performance
> reasons) and leave everything else alone -- a 90/10 type of approach.
>
> If you only have to kick out a limited amount of data and could make
> minimal code changes to get the job done, that's another way. Oracle
> Access Manager for CICS provides an EXEC SQL interface to allow CICS
> programs to write directly to Oracle Database, to pick an
> example. (OAM4C
> is an Oracle product. Might be another Oracle z/OS network
> piece required
> to access an offboard Oracle server, and maybe also Oracle's "Pro*"
> precompiler, but that's the idea.) Not as simple/quick/no
> programmer for
> the z/OS programmer, however. And it's not very clean in the
> sense that
> you'll have to be in the perpetual coding business when
> (usually when) the
> business users decide they need something else kicked out for
> analysis next
> month.
>
> Yet another way, if the users want to run reporting tools
> directly against
> VSAM data, is to get an ODBC/JDBC interface to VSAM. All the popular
> reporting tools can access data via ODBC or JDBC, even
> including simple
> tools like Microsoft Access and Microsoft Excel. (Others:
> Crystal Reports,
> Cognos, Business Objects, IBI, etc., etc.) In the IBM
> catalog WebSphere
> IICF (Information Integrator Classic Federation) can do that,
> to pick an
> example. Another approach in the quick/no
> programming/plug-and-play zone,
> I would think. The workload impact will depend on the number
> of reports,
> frequency of reports, ad hoc nature of the reports, etc.
> That could get
> very interesting very quickly if those reporting numbers are large.
>
> Lots and lots of ways, each with pros/cons which will be situationally
> dependent.
>
> John, I think you're in Texas, so if you want to bounce ideas off a z
> architect type then I'd suggest Ken Wilson in Austin. Holler
> if you don't
> know him and need contact info, although the 800-IBM-4-YOU
> number should
> work with name and city.
>
> - - - - -
> Timothy Sipples
Thanks for all the ideas and the offer. I'm not in a position to take
you up on the offer due to the fact that it would likely land me in hot
water (poached sysprog, anybody?).
I wish DB2 were an option. However, between doctor visits, I'm
installing Oracle on z/OS right now. No choice. It was literally "no
charge" due to our Oracle license. I don't know what that license costs
us, but it truly is "unlimited" WRT where we can install an Oracle
server.
I do plan to use Oracle's AM4CICS. But directing data directly to a
remote Oracle database will require programming. And the usual question
of what to do if the remote server is down.
--
John McKown
Senior Systems Programmer
HealthMarkets
Keeping the Promise of Affordable Coverage
Administrative Services Group
Information Technology
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