Db2 Month
Db2 Month Trivia
This month at Planet Mainframe, we’re celebrating all things Db2, which has earned its place as one of the most trusted relational database management systems in mainframe environments. Organizations have trusted it for decades because when push comes to shove, it...
Unleashing the Future of Data Management: What’s New in IBM Db2
The database world is shifting. Between skyrocketing data volumes, evolving cyber threats, and the rise of AI, traditional tools no longer cut it. That’s why IBM’s latest updates to Db2 are on target and timely. The three new Db2 tools – Db2 12.1.2, Db2 Intelligence...
Db2 for z/OS: Clearing Up Some Matters Pertaining to PGSTEAL(NONE) Buffer Pools
I have written a few entries for this blog in which I provided information about Db2 for z/OS buffer pools defined with PGSTEAL(NONE), including one from a few years ago in which I differentiated the PGSTEAL and PGFIX buffer pool specifications, and another...
Where do Db2 Containers Come From and How are they Used
In my last post, I wrote an overview of running Db2 in containers. Today, I’d like to talk a bit about where we get Db2 containers and several common ways they are used. Catch my next post about a critical mistake I think IBM is making with containerization. Ways...
The Developer-DB Love-Hate Relationship
There’s a reason why database administration or engineering remains a separate specialty. There are a large number of rabbit holes you can go down. I’m well aware that there’s probably 40% of Db2 LUW alone that I don’t know, even though I’ve spent 20 years working...
Accelerating Your Db2 Database
Your Db2 database The IBM mainframe and its Db2 database is the transaction processing workhorse for the world’s biggest banks, insurers and financial services companies. It was designed to execute their high-intensity transaction processing workloads very...
Db2 for z/OS EXPLAIN: What an Access Path Is, and What it Would Be
The EXPLAIN functionality of Db2 for z/OS, by which the query optimizer's access path determinations are externalized, has been around as long as I can remember, and Db2 people, by and large, are familiar with the concept. In recent weeks, however, I discovered that...
Db2 12 for z/OS Buffer Pools – Recommendations for PGSTEAL, PGFIX and FRAMESIZE
Not too long ago, I received a note from the leader of a Db2 for z/OS database administration team, asking for my take on a Db2 12 buffer pool configuration set-up that his team had devised. An interesting characteristic of the configuration was the use of the options...
Db2 Month
Capacity Planners and Big Data
I was at a regional CMG meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina, giving a presentation on Big Data to a group of about forty Capacity Planners (big turnout for North Carolina a week after Hurricane Matthew hit). The group was interested in understanding the impact the...
It’s about time!
DB2 z/OS V12 is in the Early Support Program mode. This means the larger Independent Software Vendors (BMC, CA, Compuware, etc.) have a version of DB2 z/OS V12 in house so they can modify their products to support and/or exploit the new features of DB2 z/OS V12. This...
DB2 for z/OS – Taking the Best Data Server on a Transformational Journey
Business transformation and agility are critical in today’s fast moving world. Clients demand insights faster, more often, and with greater accuracy based on up-to-the-second transactional data that is frequently housed in mainframe systems. The dependency on...
The DB2 Performance Advisor – SQL Performance Tuning Basics
When asked what is the single most important or stressful aspect of their job, DBAs typically respond “assuring optimal performance.” Indeed, a Forrester Research survey of critical DBA concerns indicates that performance and troubleshooting tops the list of most...
DB2 to the Rescue!
DB2 for z/OS applications continue to be a workhorse for large IT shops. Of course the DB2 applications have Service Level Agreements for availability and performance. These are largely based on requirements that drive customer satisfaction and transaction throughput....
The DB2 Performance Advisor – What is Performance
Assuring optimal application and system performance is one of the most important goals of IT professionals. And for DB2 developers and DBAs, tuning and monitoring are often daily tasks. But there are many factors involved in DB2 optimization and performance monitoring...
Automated SQL Quality Assurance
To leverage available skill sets and to save on costs, many large IT organizations have been moving their DB2 development efforts to off-platform programmers. These programmers are not mainframe developers, and may not even have mainframe logon accounts. They write...
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Upcoming Events
Events
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Virtual Db2 User Group | My All-Time Db2 Top Ten Lists
Virtual MeetingDate: November 17, 2026 - 11:30am ET Presenter: Craig Mullins What do Db2 performance, application development, database administration, and David Letterman have in common? Top Ten lists, of course! Join […]
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Virtual Db2 User Group | November 17, 2026
Zoom - Virtual Meeting -
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Virtual CICS User Group | Latest Update on Security in CICS TS 6.3: The Journey to Zero Trust
Zoom - Virtual MeetingCICS has been advocating zero trust principles and introducing security-focused enhancements since CICS TS 6.1. This session will explore the latest security capabilities available in CICS TS 6.3 and how […]
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Virtual IMS User Group | December 15, 2026
Zoom - Virtual Meeting
❓Think You Know Mainframe AI
Mainframes have powered intelligent decisions for decades. Today, artificial intelligence (AI) takes that role further – spotting fraud as transactions happen, anticipating workload demands, helping developers understand legacy code, and strengthening system...
Next-Generation Dual-Architecture Processor, Advances in AI Enablement for Application Modernization, and more
IBM Unveils Next-Generation Dual-Architecture Processor for IBM Z and LinuxONE BMC Survey Finds 94% Confidence in the Mainframe as Enterprises Scale AI With Human Oversight Rocket Software Advances AI Enablement for Application Modernization Across Mission-Critical...
Partnership to Accelerate Secure AI Deployment, Introduction of New Agentic Modernization, and more
IBM Partners with OpenAI to Accelerate Secure AI Deployment for Enterprises Across Core Operations Kyndryl Introduces New Agentic Modernization Services-As-Software Scaled Through Kyndryl Bridge BMC Achieves the AWS AI Competency Kyndryl Named 2026 CIO 100 Award...
Mainframe Jargon Challenge
Every technical field develops its own language, and the mainframe world is no exception. Whether we’re talking about the alphabet soup of multi-letter acronyms or terms that have been part of the platform for decades, mainframe jargon serves as a kind of shorthand...
AI Ranked as Top Priority, Lightwell at No Cost to Universities, and more
Rocket Software Study Reveals 94% of Financial Services Leaders Rank AI as a Top IT Priority IBM Study: One in Four Malicious Breaches are AI-Enabled, Costing Companies $6 Million on Average IBM and Red Hat Offer Lightwell at No Cost to Universities, NGOs and Think...
❓Mainframes at the Movies
With summer blockbuster season upon us, it’s time to turn our attention away from the workaday world of the datacenter to its fictional representation. Mainframes have made memorable appearances on both the big and small screen for decades—sometimes portrayed as...