Draft Document for Review April 7, 2004 6:15 pm

6947ch07.fm

￿Business applications are “data sharing nabled” and cloned across images to allow workload balancing and to prevent loss of application availability in the event of an outage.

￿Many operational and recovery processes can be automated, reducing the need for human intervention.

Parallel Sysplex is a way of managing a multi-system environment, providing the benefits of:

￿Continuous (application) availability

￿High capacity

￿Dynamic workload balancing

￿Simplified systems management

￿Resource sharing

￿Single system image

Continuous (application) availability

Within a Parallel Sysplex cluster it is possible to construct a parallel processing environment with high availability. This environment is composed of multiple images which provide concurrent access to all critical applications and data.

You can introduce changes (such as software upgrades) one image at a time, while remaining images continue to process work. This allows you to roll changes through your images at a pace that makes sense for your business.

High capacity

The Parallel Sysplex environment can scale, in a nearly linear fashion, from 2 to 32 images. This can be a mix of any server or operating system that supports the Parallel Sysplex environment. The aggregated capacity of this configuration meets every processing requirement known today.

Dynamic workload balancing

The entire Parallel Sysplex cluster can be viewed as a single logical resource to end users and business applications. Work can be directed to any like operating system image in a Parallel Sysplex cluster having available capacity. This avoids the need to partition data or applications among individual images in the cluster or to replicate databases across multiple servers.

Workload management permits you to run diverse applications across a Parallel Sysplex cluster while maintaining the response levels critical to your business. You select the service level agreements required for each workload, and the z/OS or OS/390 Workload Manager (WLM), along with the subsystems such as CP/SM or Websphere, automatically balances tasks across all the resources of the Parallel Sysplex cluster to meet your business goals. Whether the work is coming from batch, SNA, TCP/IP, DRDA®, or MQSeries® (non-persistent) messages, dynamic session balancing gets the business requests into the system best able to process the transaction. This provides the performance and flexibility you need to achieve the responsiveness your customers demand, and it is invisible to users.

Systems management

The Parallel Sysplex architecture provides the infrastructure to satisfy a customer requirement for continuous availability, while providing techniques for achieving simplified systems management consistent with this requirement. Some of the features of the Parallel Sysplex solution that contribute to increased availability also help to eliminate some systems management tasks. Examples include:

￿z/OS or OS/390 Workload Manager

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IBM 990 manual Continuous application availability, High capacity, Dynamic workload balancing, Systems management
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990 specifications

The IBM 990 series, often referred to in the context of IBM's pioneering efforts in the realm of mainframe computing, represents a unique chapter in the history of information technology. Introduced in the late 1960s, the IBM 990 series was designed as a powerful tool for enterprise-level data processing and scientific calculations, showcasing the company's commitment to advancing computing capabilities.

One of the main features of the IBM 990 was its architecture, which was built to support a wide range of applications, from business processing to complex scientific computations. The system employed a 32-bit word length, which was advanced for its time, allowing for more flexible and efficient data handling. CPUs in the IBM 990 series supported multiple instructions per cycle, which contributed significantly to the overall efficiency and processing power of the machines.

The technology behind the IBM 990 was also notable for its use of solid-state technology. This provided a shift away from vacuum tube systems that were prevalent in earlier computing systems, enhancing the reliability and longevity of the hardware. The IBM 990 series utilized core memory, which was faster and more reliable than the magnetic drum memory systems that had been standard up to that point.

Another defining characteristic of the IBM 990 was its extensibility. Organizations could configure the machine to suit their specific needs by adding memory, storage, and peripheral devices as required. This modular approach facilitated the growth of systems alongside the technological and operational demands of the business environments they served.

In terms of software, the IBM 990 series was compatible with a variety of operating systems and programming environments, including FORTRAN and COBOL, enabling users to access a broader array of applications. This versatility was a significant advantage, making the IBM 990 an appealing choice for educational institutions, research facilities, and enterprises alike.

Moreover, the IBM 990 was engineered to support multiprocessing, which allowed multiple processes to run simultaneously, further increasing its effectiveness in tackling complex computing tasks.

In summary, the IBM 990 series represents a significant advancement in computing technology during the late 20th century. With a robust architecture, versatile configuration options, and a focus on solid-state technology, the IBM 990 facilitated substantial improvements in data processing capabilities, making it a cornerstone for many businesses and academic institutions of its time. Its impact can still be seen today in the continued evolution of mainframe computing.
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