This product update forwards updates to both software and documentation. The software update is Release 10.1 of CPExpert. The release number indicates that it is the first release of 2000.

This release (1) provides support for OS/390 Version 2 Release 9 (V2R9), (2) provides additional performance analysis for the WLM Component, (3) enhances the DB2 Component; (4) provides additional performance analysis for the CICS Component; (5) provides additional performance analysis for the MVS Component, (6) provides updated documentation on CD-ROM, and (7) corrects errors that have been reported.

• OS/390 Version 2 Release 9. OS/390 Version 2 Release 9 was made Generally Available (GA) by IBM at the end of September. Since Computer Management Sciences is a Partner in Development with IBM, I normally can provide support for new releases of MVS within 30 days of GA of the new IBM release.
• All CPExpert components have been updated to provide support for OS/390 Version 2 Release 9.
• All CPExpert documentation has been updated with references to applicable OS/390 Version 2 Release 9 documents from IBM.
Recall that all references in CPExpert documentation refer to IBM documents contained in IBM BookManager format. I will be happy to provide a cross-reference to hard-copy of IBM documents if any user does not have access to IBM documents in BookManager format.

• Provides additional performance analysis for the WLM Component. Additional analysis has been provided for the WLM Component in the following areas:
• WLM-managed initiator analysis. Prior to OS/390 Version 2 Release 9, only the SMF Type 26 records contained an indication as to whether a job was assigned a job class with MODE=JES or MODE=WLM. Since SMF Type 26 records are not often kept in a performance data base (and are not available until after a job has ended) analysis of conflicts between JES-managed and WLM-managed initiators was not feasible.

  Consequently, I requested that IBM place an indicator in the SMF Type 30 records so that potential problems with WLM-managed initiators could be analyzed. With OS/390 Version 2 Release 9, IBM created the SMF30WMI indicator as a part of the SMF30PF1 (performance section flag byte) variable.

  As a result of the new indicator, CPExpert now can distinguish between JES-managed initiators and WLM-managed initiators. The following new rules have been added to analyze your WLM-managed initiator/job class assignment scheme:

  • A rule to analyze whether JES-managed and WLM-managed job classes conflict by being assigned to the same service class period, with a resulting lack of efficient management by the Workload Manager.
  • A rule to analyze whether WLM-managed job class were assigned to multiple service classes, with a resulting lack of efficient management by the Workload Manager.
  • A rule to analyze whether job(s) or job class(es) might not be suitable for assignment to WLM-managed initiators, due to the tendency of the execution queue delay to dominate total execution time.
• System logger analysis. The system logger is an MVS component system logger component resides in its own address space on each system in a sysplex. Applications can log data from one system or from multiple systems across the sysplex. One significant advantage of the MVS system logger design is that any system in a sysplex can recover data in the log stream. This feature prevents data loss in case of failure of one system.

  The system logger was introduced with MVS/ESA SP5.2, but no CPExpert user had requested analysis of this area until this year. With CPExpert Release 9.2, I began some rudimentary analysis of the log stream for CICS applids, based on the information contained in IBM's CICS Performance Guides. After reviewing the analysis that was available for CICS log streams, Paul Gordon (Bank of America, VA) asked that I expand the analysis. Based on Paul's suggestions, I developed code for the CICS Component to analyze system logger problems for both coupling facility log streams and DASD-only log streams. Bryant Osborn (Bank of America, VA) provided test data for the new analysis, and IBM Poughkeepsie provided additional test data.

  After developing the system logger analysis for the CICS Component, I decided to include the analysis in the WLM Component and the MVS Component. Consequently, The following new rules have been added to the WLM Component to analyze performance problems with your system logger:

  • A rule to analyze when the log stream coupling facility structure was full.

• A rule to analyze when the log stream staging data set was full.
• A rule to analyze when the log stream structure offloads occurred because the coupling facility structure was 90% full.
• A rule to analyze when interim storage was not efficiently used for log stream.
• A rule to analyze when local storage buffers were not efficiently used, for a DASD-only log stream.
• A rule to analyze when the DASD staging data set high threshold was reached for a log stream.
• A rule to analyze when frequent log stream DASD-shifts (with concurrent unnecessary overhead) occurred.
• A rule to analyze whether a log stream caused a coupling facility structure to reach the high threshold (HIGHOFFLOAD).
• A rule to analyze situations when a log stream consumed most of a coupling facility structure's resources.

Please note two important aspects of this analysis:

• You must collect SMF Type 88 records and have the TYPE88 file available in your MXG performance data base, in order for the WLM Component to analyze system logger performance problems.
• By default, CPExpert will expect the TYPE88 records to be present in the MXG performance data base! Whether CPExpert analyzes the TYPE88 records is controlled by the SMFTYP88 guidance variable.

  The default value for the SMFTYP88 variable is "YES". If you do not have TYPE88 records available in your MXG performance data base (or do not wish CPExpert to analyze log stream problems) you must specify %LET SMFTYP88=NO; in either USOURCE(GENGUIDE) or USOURCE(WLMGUIDE).