It has been over three years since the introduction of the MRI Db2 for z/OS Solutions Report. This report helps you quickly assess the complexity and size of your Db2 environment, provides zPARM recommendations for performance enhancements, and offers various other useful metrics. The report helps database, management, and storage administrators, and application developers with future migration planning such as readiness for Db2 13 migration. You can enable trend reporting to track and graph comparative historical data over time.
To ensure the optimal experience with the Db2 for z/OS Solutions Report, we have gathered feedback from our customers and built a list of tips and tricks. This list can help you save time during troubleshooting or common usage. The MRI Db2 for z/OS Solutions Report consists of two parts: data collection in JSON format from the mainframe using the MRI Toolkit, and graphical visualization of this data in the MRI web front end.
Here are the top five tips for the mainframe Toolkit part:
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Be Up To Date. Before scanning Db2 subsystems, ensure that you are using the latest version of the MRI Toolkit. The latest version contains enhancements and bug fixes. The latest version may also be required to collect data when a new report chart was added since the last release of the Toolkit. To verify your version:
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Locate the Mainframe Resource Intelligence version string in the copyright section of the MRIDBSET customizing JCL.
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Log in to https://mri.broadcom.com.
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Select the Db2 for z/OS Report tile to access the Db2 for z/OS Report Assessment page.
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Select Collect Data on Your Mainframe. The Select and Download Toolkit pop-up appears containing a list of available assessments and their version.
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(Recommended) If the version of the listed Db2 for z/OS Report is more recent than your version, perform an reinstallation.
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Use the Toolkit Installation Scripts. The Toolkit is provided in the .zip file which contains binary XMIT files. Step-by-step instructions on how to install the Toolkit on the mainframe are provided. To speed up and simplify the installation process, we also provide installation scripts in the .zip file, PowerShell for Windows and Shell for Linux/Mac. For more information, see the MRI Toolkit documentation.
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Use the SMS-Managed Volumes. Allocate output data sets on SMS-managed volumes to use an automated file tailoring process. This process helps you prepare the sets of scanning JCLs for each Db2 subsystem. Ensure that the correct storage class is assigned in the MRIDBSET customizing JCL or contact Broadcom support for assistance.
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Review Prerequisites. Before executing a Db2 scan, review necessary prerequisites, such as APF authorization for the Toolkit load library as well as the security authorizations to collect data from the Db2 catalog or via stored procedures. The scanning JCL contains a Health Check that tests your environment before executing a scan. To understand which Db2 catalog tables are queried and which authorizations are required, see the Prerequisites documentation. This documentation includes an example of granting privileges.
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Merge JSONs for Transfer. The scanning tool produces one JSON file per each Db2 subsystem. Use the MERGE utility to create a single JSON data set for easier transfer from the mainframe via FTP. The utility also performs basic validation of each JSON file to ensure data integrity. For more information, see the documentation on how to use the MERGE utility.
We hope that you find these tips beneficial for optimizing your experience with the MRI Db2 for z/OS Solutions Report. Should you have any questions or require assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Lukas Patera
Software Engineer