During a z/OS deployment with DevOps Deploy, you can use the Generate Multiple Artifact Information step to create custom information based on your artifacts which is further used in post-processing steps of the deployment.

This step uses multiple JSON inputs to define filters and a template. Based on these inputs, it generates text output that can include:

• Database BIND commands

• CICS new copy lists

• SYSIN commands

The example below shows the Generate Multiple Artifact Information step. It generates BIND commands and CICS new copy member lists using the property names bind-commands and cics-new-copy-members.

The example shows that a template JSON is defined for each property, along with two filters: the target dataset name and the deploy type. At first glance, it is difficult to get a clear view of a single property, along with its defined template and filters. Navigating within each input JSON to check a property's value is not user-friendly. To address this, a new step was developed called Generate Multiple Artifact Information YAML. This step uses a single input in which the property template and filters are defined at one place, and multiple properties can be added sequentially, as shown below.

As the example shows, a single YAML input significantly improves the readability and maintenance of the property filters and template used to generate artifact information.

Below are the JSON input and its equivalent YAML attribute in the new step.

• Container Name Filter JSON => sourceContainer

• Target Data Set Name Filter JSON => targetContainer

• Resource Name Filter JSON => resource

• Deploy Type Filter JSON => deployType

• Custom Properties Filter JSON => customProperties

• Template JSON => template [Mandatory input]

• Deployment action Filter JSON => deployAction

The new step Generate Multiple Artifact Information YAML offers below advantages over the older Generate Multiple Artifact Information step with multiple JSON inputs

• Improved readability, as all settings are in one place

• The ability to add comments

• Familiarity with YAML syntax, as it is commonly used in CI/CD applications

• Easily manage multi-line template outputs

To use the new Generate Multiple Artifact Information YAML step, download the latest version of the z/OS Multi Generate Artifact Information plugin from the following page:

https://urbancode.github.io/IBM-UCx-PLUGIN-DOCS/UCD/zos-multi-generate-artifact-info/downloads.html