How to create a copy of the ACF2 database from one system to another

Products

• ACF2 - z/OS

Issue/Introduction

Need to copy ACF2 database to another lpar

Environment

Release : 16.0

Component : CA ACF2 for z/OS

Resolution

Determine the Primary or active clusters

• Issue ACF command 'SHOW DDSN' to list the active, primary and alternate database clusters

Backup the active (primary) clusters. The ACF2 backup file is a sequential dataset that contains all the same information that the VSAM database does

• When ready to begin this process, issue 'F ACF2,BACKUP' at the MVS operator console.
• This backs up the primary (or currently active) clusters to the primary backup files (or corresponding active backup files).
• These clusters and backups may be defined in the ACFFDR, or may be specified in the ACF2 startup JCL procedure.
• CA recommends that the primary and alternate clusters, along with their backup files, be defined in the ACFFDR, using @DDSN group names.
• As a warning, the backup command could possibly repro the sequential file into your alternate database depending on the GSO BACKUP record.

FTP the sequential dataset in BINARY to the new system

Allocate and define new VSAM clusters

• Ensure that the DEFINE of the new clusters matches the record size(s) of the primary clusters from the originating system.

Then do an IDCAMS REPRO into the new VSAM database file.  The JCL used to populate the Alternate databases can be used as a sample. 

•  CA supplies a sample JCL procedure in the CAIPROC library, member ACFBKUP. This JCL performs an IDCAMS delete of the alternate ACF2 clusters, redefines these clusters, and then performs an IDCAMS REPRO of the primary backup files to the redefined alternate clusters.
• Use the sample to perform the IDCAMS REPRO of the sequential backup file to the recently defined cluster

Once completed, both LPARs would have identical VSAM databases from the time of the backup.