CICS Transaction Server Performance & Tuning

Objectives
On successful completion of this course, attendees will be able to:

• explain how performance is effected by parameters and design concepts
• manipulate CICS facilities to optimise performance
• describe the impact of MVS facilities on CICS performance
• explain the impact of network features on performance.

Who Should Attend
Systems Programmers.
Prerequisites
CICS systems programming experience.
Duration
4 days

Course Code
CPT
Contents
Introduction
Performance objectives; What are your tuning objectives?; Response times; Types of transactions; Types of waits; Resource load; Why tune?; Poor response time; Increased workload; Hardware considerations; Methodology; Successful tuning requires; Understanding CICS and the applications; Preliminaries; Measurement tools; Collecting tool; Benchmarking tools; What resources to tune; Storage; CPU; I/O; Terminal I/O; Checklist for tuning; Understand serialization; Making a change; Processor cycle (CPU) checklist; Virtual storage checklist; Real storage checklist; I/O tuning checklist.


z/OS interface
Introduction; Resource hierarchy; CPU; Storage; I/O; Central storage; Auxiliary storage; Address space; Operating system; CICS private area; CICS region layout; Data spaces; Checking the z/OS storage; Coupling facility; VSAM record level sharing; Coupling facility data tables; TS datasharing concepts; TCBs; Open Transaction Environment; MAXOPENTCBS; FORCEQR={NO¦YES}; MAXOPENTCB changes; OPENTCBS; CICS utilization; CICS & real storage; Other OS areas; Recommendations.


Dispatching
CICS dispatching; Kernel task; CICS task; CICS transaction; CICS dispatching; Dispatcher chains; Double chains; Use of TCBS; Mode switching; MXT; Purpose; Recommendations; Statistics; Transaction CLASS (TCLASS); V4.1 and above TRANCLASS; Group; MAXACTIVE; PURGETHRESH; Task priority & PRTYAGE (SIT); Transaction priority; Formula; Empiric evidence; Transaction priority (PRTYAGE); Recommendations; Region exit interval ICV; Runaway task time ICVR; DTIMOUT; SIT parameters; Limit conditions; Reliability features; Trace; Monitor; Other conditions; Other transaction definitions; Storageclear; Transaction dump; Transaction isolation; Dispatcher statistics; End of day statistics; Output from stat transaction.


Storage management
Problems with storage; Virtual storage constraint; 31bit storage; MVS nucleus and extended nucleus; Prefixed Save Area (PSA); System Queue Area and extended SQA; Link Pack Area and extended LPA; z/OS common service area; Private and extended private area; Region size; RMF monitor III common storage; Common areas; The CICS private area; High private area; LSQA; Scheduler work area; Subpool 229 230; The CICS region; z/OS storage above the CICS region; z/OS storage within the CICS region; CICS kernel storage; Static tasks; Dynamic tasks; Kernel changes; Kernel stacks; DSAS CICS V3; Subsystem storage protection; Additional administration; DSAS CICS V410 onwards; Improved storage management; DSA limits; DSALIM; EDSALIM; DSA extent sizes; DSA parameters; DFHSMUTL; Storage fragmentation; CICS PAM examples; Solutions to DSA problems; CICS JVM execution environment; CICS LE/370; CICS LE/370 CEEROPT; CLER transaction.


Loader
Loader domain; Events proceeding SOS; Events when SOS; CICS program compression; New philosophy; Target calculation; Introduction; Compression trace; Virtual Lookaside Facility (VLF); Library LookAside (LLA); Loader statistics.


Network
Network performance; Introduction; Network components; Data flow sequence; HPO; RAPOOL; Statistics; Receivesize/sendsize; IOAREALEN; MSGINTEG; ICV; SIT parameter; Autoinstall; AIQMAX, AILDELAY, AIRDELAY, AIEXIT; Autoinstall statistics; CATA/CATD transactions; Problems with shutdown; Data compression; Unsolicited statistics; XSTOUT; Network review.


MRO/ISC
Introduction; MRO sessions; ISC sessions; System entries; Workload management; Dynamic routing; The dynamic routing program, DFHDYP; Generic resource names; MRO long running mirrors; MROLRM=YES; Mirror priorities; MROBTCH.


TCP/IP services
Accessing CICS from the web; 3270 bridge; CWS overview; The listener transaction (CSOL); CWXN - web attach processing; Alias transaction; Performance study; CWS RDO; CWS Secure Sockets Layer; SSL enablement; SSL SIT parameters; Encryption; SSLDELAY; SSLTCBS; FULL SSL handshake; DOCTEMPLATE.


VSAM
File structures; KSDS; ESDS; RRDS; Alternate Index; VRRDS; LDS; VSAM basics; Control Area; VSAM myths and legends; Obsolete parameters; IMBED/REPLICATE are obsolete; Keyranges not supported; VSAM KSDS; FREESPACE; CI lock; Disk space utilization; VSAM LISTCAT; Important LISTCAT fields; Premature Control Area splits; N.S.R.; Default buffering; Eliminating index I/O; Additional data buffers; Local shared resources; Data tables; CICS maintained; User maintained; Shared data tables; Performance benefits; VSAM RLS; RLSACCESS (NO|YES); Coupling Facility Data TAbles (CFDTs).


MVS Logger
Introduction; Known problems; SIT parameters; Log manager concepts; Coupling facility; Primary storage; DASD-only logging; Secondary storage; Offload process; For all log streams; For the CICS system log only; Statistics available; CICS/TS activity keypointing; Journal models; Coupling facility example; DASD model example; Logger statistics; SMF 88 record fields.


Transient data
Introduction; Extrapartition; Intrapartition queues; Recovery serialization; Sample statistics; Buffers and strings.


Temporary storage
Introduction; Temporary storge; Main vs Aux vs coupling facility; Auxiliary; TST replacement; TS coupling facility pool; TS list structures; CFRM policy; Small queues versus large queues; TS server JCL; Statistics; Temporary storage tuning area; TS MAIN versus TS AUX; Server stats.


CICS DB2 interface
CICS / DB2 connection; Defining DB2 connections with CEDA; CICS/TS TCB allocation; Defining DB2 entries with CEDA; Example TRACE FORCEQR=YES; Example Trace Program Concurrency(THREADSAFE); Performance; OTE exploitation; THREADSAFE code; THREADSAFE CICS commands; CICS API & SPI; Load module summary report; Detail report; Example DFHEISUP; Summary; Detail; Accounting pre CICS/TS 2.2; Accounting from CICS/TS 2.2; DB2CONN; TCBLIMIT; Wait types; migration; Statistics.