IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision 1.2.0 introduces a new era for IntelliMagic Vision
IBM acquired IntelliMagic back in February 2024, combining the world-class mainframe-leading expertise of IBM with the best-in-class performance management software of IntelliMagic Vision. To say we hit the ground running from day 1 of the acquisition would probably be an understatement.
By now it has been almost 22 months since we are a part of IBM. Time has flown by with new colleagues, new access to information, new collaboration, new procedures, a different focus on outcomes, and also with things that haven’t changed. For example, I am so pleased that we have continued to maintain the monthly product releases the customers of IntelliMagic Vision have come to love and expect, but it is not just the quantity of the releases, but the quality which I am most happy about.
Now, almost 2 years after the acquisition, we are releasing IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision 1.2.0. And let me tell you, there is a lot to like about this release.
New Name, Same Great Product
The first notable change with this release is a slight name change. Previously, IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision for z/OS, we are now IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision.
While the slight name change might stand out most on the surface, digging into the details, this is certainly nowhere near the most substantive. IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision 1.2.0 delivers all the enhancements that have been created since the acquisition of IntelliMagic by IBM. I’ll cover the most important below.
Part of the Same Great Product is also that experts explain Z on the IBM Z IntelliMagic Academy webinars that happen many times every year. Recordings of past IBM Z IntelliMagic Academy webinars can be found in the AIOps Performance and Management Library.
IBM IMS Support
IMS is among the most important subsystems in use on the mainframe. For those customers that rely on IMS, IMS is core to the business. Insights for the IMS subsystem has long been a requested area for IntelliMagic Vision support. Our initial support for IMS released with v1.1.1 back in October 2024 and has subsequently been enhanced and broadened.
Through IntelliMagic Vision, insights are currently available based on IMS Transaction Manager statistics and IMS Resource Usage or Checkpoint statistics. Critical IMS components are automatically assessed using the health insights functionality, as shown in this image.
The below image shows the CPU time used for the 10 Transaction codes that use most CPU. The report also shows the CPU usage for all other Transaction codes, giving a perspective on relevance of the top 10 for assessing total CPU usage.
Business Perspective and Apptio
Performance and Capacity management is primarily performed from the perspective of the subsystems and the workloads. Only for charge-back systems, business mappings are typically introduced. IntelliMagic Vision integrates business mappings such that performance and capacity managers can use the same information in daily work. Customers that have already implemented business views in IntelliMagic Vision, are typically finding jobs that can be optimized and sometimes even removed from the system.
The business mappings are also made available for charge-back systems. Integration with IBM Apptio is available for IBM Z only and also for enterprise-wide charge-back reporting.
Mainframe TCO - Apptio
Support for IBM z17
IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision brings support for IBM’s latest z17 processor model. Besides the standard support available for every IBM Z processor, support for the power consumption measurements has also been introduced. Standard reports provide insights into power consumption from the perspective of the Central Processor Complex (CPC) and LPAR. Power consumption is also attributed to the level of Service Classes, Workloads and Report Classes. When business mappings are defined to the level of Report Classes, power consumption is also attributed to the level of the business.
Integration with watsonx Assistant for Z and Introduction of IntelliMagic Agent
In October of this year, I announced the integration of IntelliMagic Vision with watsonx Assistant for Z and the introduction of the IntelliMagic Agent. Customers who have already used the IntelliMagic Agent are incredibly excited about its ability to quickly find desired reports through conversational queries. Users can ask the IBM IntelliMagic agent for Z questions like “Am I using zIIPs efficiently?” or “Do I have a problem with Db2 logs?”. The agent will point to relevant reports that answer the question. The reports provided also provide context around the answer, helping both seasoned and less experienced performance analysts to draw more informed conclusions.
Topology
IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision provides extensive topology reports that show connections between hardware and software.
Topology views are available that graphically show the usage of IBM CICS, MQ, and Db2 for workloads that use CICS and trigger activity in MQ and Db2.
Topology views are available for Db2 workloads. The views display all defined Db2 data sharing groups, the CPCs and z/OS systems on which they reside, the Auth IDs in use, and the CICS transactions used.
Topology views display large sets of related items presented as dots due to screen space limitations. IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision provides options to filter topology views such that the most important information is easily made accessible and insights can be derived.
More Exciting Changes on the Way
As always, and even with all of the above exciting and helpful enhancements, there are still many more improvements and enhancements on the way that customers can continue looking forward to. For over 20 years, IntelliMagic Vision has been designed by a team dedicated to delivering the best performance management solution in the world to our customers, and I am proud to say that hasn’t changed.
IBM Z IntelliMagic Vision 1.2.0 is another step towards solving the ever-changing and dynamic challenges of our customers. Stay tuned for our monthly updates for even more exciting changes and enhancements. Thank you for continuing with us on this journey.