Businesses are increasingly adopting cloud storage strategies to reduce costs, improve scalability, and enhance operational efficiency. Yet, integrating the cloud with your IBM Z infrastructure presents challenges, especially in maintaining control and ensuring seamless data accessibility.
Introducing IBM z/OS DFSMS Cloud Data Manager (DFSMScdm) 1.2—revolutionizing cloud storage strategies. This latest release enables users to share z/OS data across sysplexes and with hybrid cloud applications in other environments. Key new capabilities include:
- Seamlessly transfer data to and from cloud storage at scale
- Leverage hybrid cloud environments to optimize storage
- Connect to any S3-capable cloud provider without requiring additional server infrastructure
While cloud strategies drive cost efficiency, they shouldn’t compromise data control or accessibility. With DFSMScdm 1.2, you can confidently embrace cloud storage, knowing your critical data remains fully accessible.
Key Benefits of DFSMS Cloud Data Manager 1.2:
Seamless data transfer to and from cloud storage
DFSMScdm utilizes IBM z/OS DFSMSdfp Cloud Data Access (CDA) to facilitate the transfer of vast amounts of data between your mainframe and any cloud provider with ease. Whether you need to move data to the cloud or bring it back to the mainframe, DFSMScdm ensures the process happens seamlessly and at scale.
Writing z/OS data to the cloud and retrieving data from the cloud to a z/OS environment is quick and straightforward. This capability enables seamless sharing of z/OS data with client sites, applications on other platforms, or remote replication and recovery sites.
Data integrity
When transferring data to cloud storage, DFSMScdm ensures all metadata, including data set name and allocation characteristics, is attached to each data set. DFSMScdm then uses the metadata to accurately store data when it is moved back to a z/OS environment.
Additionally, when a file being transferred to the cloud requires UTF-8 compatibility, DFSMScdm performs the necessary data translation before sending it to cloud storage. This ensures that hybrid cloud applications can access and read the data seamlessly.
No need for additional server connections
DFSMScdm integrates seamlessly with existing IBM Z platform infrastructures, eliminating the need for additional server connections. With existing cloud storage, DFSMScdm allows you to manage cloud storage directly from the mainframe without the complexity of extra middleware or server connections. This reduces both costs and administrative overhead, simplifying your cloud storage strategy.
Multiple users sending data
Since DFSMScdm operates with a started task, multiple requests can be made to either retrieve or transfer data to the cloud without:
- Impacting a user’s address space
- Requiring users to wait for responses from cloud providers
- Requiring management of cloud credentials for each user
DFSMScdm supports both asynchronous and synchronous data transfers, enabling users to focus on other tasks while the system manages data operations in the background. DFSMScdm also has flexible methods for sending and retrieving data from the cloud. The commands can be scheduled in a batch job, or a user can utilize the ISPF panels to send selected data sets to the cloud provider.
All the great benefits of DFSMScdm 1.1 are still included
The latest release of DFSMScdm builds upon the robust features introduced in the 1.1 release. It continues to support the migration of DFSMShsm Migration Level 2 (ML2) data sets to Migration Level Cloud (MLC), while maintaining HSM management of the data and retaining key metadata, including the original migration date and date last referenced. This functionality also helps reduce million service unit (MSU) consumption by eliminating the need for time-consuming recycle functions.
Summary
With DFSMScdm, cloud storage becomes a seamless extension of your mainframe infrastructure. It enables you to harness cloud scalability and cost savings while maintaining the core strengths of mainframe reliability and data availability. DFSMScdm ensures your data stays secure and accessible, whether in the cloud or on the mainframe.
Want to learn more about DFSMScdm and other cloud storage solutions for z/OS? Join us for our webcast on 12 December at 11 AM Eastern Time (ET).
https://ibm-zcouncil.com/events/cloud-storage-dec-12/