Brian Westerman replied: >I think you are missing the point, why sell something and >then before you sunset that box, make it so that you can't >upgrade the software? That's completely against IBM's >original method of operation.
I'm not sure what you mean here by "sunset that box." IBM withdrew all z13s feature codes from marketing years ago. However, IBM continues to provide support, maintenance, and repair services for IBM z13s servers, and IBM continues to support the vast bulk of its z/OS software product portfolio on IBM z13s servers. (Although sometimes there are functions within otherwise supported products that require a higher model machine.) There's currently no announced End of Service date for IBM z13s machines AFAIK. IBM offered z/OS 2.5 with the classic installation option to all z/OS licensees, including licensees with small capacity IBM z13s machines, at no additional charge. IBM urged all such customers to place any such orders before the end of January, 2022. Lots of customers did exactly that (including many reading this forum), and they either have z/OS 2.5 installed now or they have it sitting on the shelf, ready to install. z/OS 2.5 is the last release of z/OS that can run on IBM z13 generation machines. z/OS 2.5 is currently orderable and installable with the z/OSMF-based installation on all machines compatible with z/OS 2.5. The z/OSMF-based installation steps may run longer on certain capacity models, but it's still installable. CBPDO-based installation is also still available. Over the past several decades of history IBM has eventually dropped software support for older models. z/OS 2.5 doesn't run on IBM 4341 machines, for example. Sometimes a model drop occurs at a version or release boundary, occasionally not. In the newer "continuous delivery" style of software delivery the machine model drops between version/release boundaries are getting somewhat more common, industry-wide. But in this case IBM hasn't even dropped support for z/OS on IBM z13s machines, not yet. (z/OS 3.1 will.) All IBM did was drop one installation method in z/OS 2.5 and only for orders placed after January, 2022. IBM gave advance notice it would. IBM offered delivery of z/OS 2.5 with that installation option to any licensee that cared to order it by January, 2022, and at no additional charge. ————— Timothy Sipples Senior Architect Digital Assets, Industry Solutions, and Cybersecurity IBM zSystems/LinuxONE, Asia-Pacific sipp...@sg.ibm.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to lists...@listserv.ua.edu with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
