Performance & Tuning Month
z/OS UNIX Tuning: What New USS Practitioners Should Know
This article offers a practical USS tuning primer for new mainframers, developers moving into z/OS UNIX, and technical leaders who need to understand the basics before changing system settings.z/OS UNIX tuning can feel familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. USS...
An Undocumented CICS Fix That Boosts Throughput and Cuts CPU
IBM has an undocumented fix to the CICS WEB interface that can optimize throughput and response time while also saving CPU. This article explains how to make it work for you. In the course of my current project, I had the pleasure of working with Ole Olsen at JN Data...
Cheryl Watson’s Tuning Letter Delivers z/OS Tuning, Hardware Picks, and Performance Tips
We are delighted to announce that Cheryl Watson's Tuning Letter 2025 No.2 is now available. If you haven't already subscribed, now is your chance to discover the most comprehensive body of practical and impartial z/OS, and MVS tuning and measurement advice ever...
The Evolution of IBM OMEGAMON for CICS: AI Insights, DB2 Correlation, and zIIP Optimization
Sign up today! CICS Virtual User Group – Tomorrow, July 29, 2025 Join us on Tuesday, July 29, for the next installment of the CICS User Group series. Colin Pearce, z/OS and CICS Systems Programmer at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, will present. Register for the...
Understanding and overcoming common CICS challenges
IT environments are increasingly complex to manage, and overburdened administrators are tasked with refining them, keeping them secure, and preventing downtime.Mainframes are critical to that infrastructure, as they process and store billions of transactions worth of...
Mainframe Security Isn’t What It Used to Be – How CICS and LE Are Fighting Back
This article updates a 2022 piece in Cheryl Watson’s Tuning Letter, “LE Non-Executable HEAPS and CICS User Experiences” by Mario Bezzi. Current Tuning Letter subscribers can read the original article online. Think your mainframe is immune to modern cyber threats?...
Inside Db2 for z/OS: How Optimized B+ Trees Power High-Speed Indexing
High-quality indexes are critical for fast data access and returns. IBM Db2 for z/OS relies on an advanced data structure called the Optimized Balanced Plus Tree to power high-speed indexing. This structure, an evolution of the classic B+ Tree, helps Db2 deliver...
The Race to Cool the World’s Data
“Managing heat generated by data centers will become progressively more challenging – and, at the same time, necessary.” Chris Frye, Director of Chiller Sales, LG Electronics U.S.A. Inc. According to McKinley, global demand for data center capacity could rise between...
Performance & Tuning Month
Understanding and overcoming common CICS challenges
IT environments are increasingly complex to manage, and overburdened administrators are tasked with refining them, keeping them secure, and preventing downtime.Mainframes are critical to that infrastructure, as they process and store billions of transactions worth of...
Mainframe Security Isn’t What It Used to Be – How CICS and LE Are Fighting Back
This article updates a 2022 piece in Cheryl Watson’s Tuning Letter, “LE Non-Executable HEAPS and CICS User Experiences” by Mario Bezzi. Current Tuning Letter subscribers can read the original article online. Think your mainframe is immune to modern cyber threats?...
Inside Db2 for z/OS: How Optimized B+ Trees Power High-Speed Indexing
High-quality indexes are critical for fast data access and returns. IBM Db2 for z/OS relies on an advanced data structure called the Optimized Balanced Plus Tree to power high-speed indexing. This structure, an evolution of the classic B+ Tree, helps Db2 deliver...
The Race to Cool the World’s Data
“Managing heat generated by data centers will become progressively more challenging – and, at the same time, necessary.” Chris Frye, Director of Chiller Sales, LG Electronics U.S.A. Inc. According to McKinley, global demand for data center capacity could rise between...
The Mainframe’s Martini Moment
The mainframe is a must-have for enterprise IT, but for many development teams, ready access to it can feel frustratingly out of reach. Now, fresh innovation aims to change that, offering a “Martini moment” for mainframe delivery teams. The Inspiration Behind...
Runtime Fees: The Hidden Tax in Your Tech Stack
In COBOL environments, runtime-based licensing imposes recurring costs each time an application is executed—costs that persist well beyond the initial compiler purchase. While initially tolerable in controlled, limited use environments, runtime-based licensing fees...
Pivoting to Optimal Mainframe Performance with Actual Intelligence
Enterprise Performance Strategies, Inc. (EPS) has a long and deep history with all things mainframe performance and capacity planning. EPS experts have worked extensively in z/OS design, development, and measurement architecture, as well as having worked with hundreds...
How the Right Tech Platform Mix Can Maximize Value Amid Rising IT Costs
It finally happened: IT inflation has hit 4.8%, exceeding GDP growth, the consumer price index, and both U.S and global inflation rates. IT inflation is even outpacing the rate of increase in IT spending for most organizations. Businesses are stretching...
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Upcoming Events
Events
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Virtual IMS User Group: Modernizing IMS Backup and Recovery – The Strategic Shift to Cloud Storage
Zoom - Virtual Meeting📅 July 14, 2026 🕦 11:30 AM ET As enterprise data volumes continue to grow and cyber threats become increasingly sophisticated, organizations are rethinking how IMS backup and recovery environments […]
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Virtual Db2 User Group | Mastering Access Path Management in Db2 for z/OS – Simplify, Optimize, Succeed
Zoom - Virtual MeetingThis session explores strategies for simplifying and optimizing access path management in Db2 for z/OS environments. Attendees will gain insight into techniques for improving query performance, reducing operational complexity, and […]
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Accelerating Mainframe Efficiency: Training and Onboarding Webinar
FeaturedReady to transform your mainframe training strategy? Join the second installment of the PopUp Mainframe Persona Webinar series for a dynamic exploration of cutting-edge mainframe training, featuring renowned industry experts […]
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SHARE Pittsburgh 2026
FeaturedSHARE Pittsburgh brings together mainframe IT professionals for five days of education, networking, and knowledge sharing. The conference program features expert-led sessions, hands-on learning, and forward-looking insights designed to help […]
Accelerate Agent-Drive Transformation, a New AWS Transform Integration, and more
Kyndryl Launches AI Orchestration for Business to Accelerate Agent-Driven Transformation Rocket Software Joins HPE Unleash AI Partner Program to Accelerate AI Adoption IBM Launches Global AI Builders Challenge With IBM Bob for University Students, Expanding...
❓Everything CICS Trivia
While most people you know probably haven’t even heard of CICS, anyone that banks, travels, or does business in the modern world has benefited from this cornerstone of enterprise transaction processing. Evolving alongside changes in hardware, operating systems,...
A New AWS Deployment, Project Glasswing, and more
IBM installs €11.5m Mainframe at South East Technological University to Mark 70th Anniversary in Ireland Precisely Powers Customer Communications with AWS Deployment IBM Brings Its Most Advanced AI-Powered Security Portfolio to Clients, and is Strengthened by Ongoing...
❓Windows Meets the Mainframe
When Microsoft Windows emerged in the 1980s, it represented a very different vision of computing from the centralized, highly structured world of the mainframe. Windows powered the rise of personal computers and client-server systems, while mainframes continued...
Think 2026, Vertica Acquisition, and more
Think 2026: IBM Positions Mainframe Environments as Governed AI Infrastructure Rocket Software Completes Acquisition of Vertica®, Expanding High-Performance Analytics and AI for Mission-Critical Systems Kyndryl unveils agentic AI capability that proactively prevents...
❓The Unix Legacy Trivia
Like so many transformative innovations, the creation of UNIX was the unintentional outcome of a failed experiment—specifically with a time-sharing operating system called Multics for the GE-645 mainframe. While it was originally developed as a side project with...