FAVER2 for z/VSE's Versatile COPY/MOVE Utility
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FAVER2 for z/VSE's Versatile COPY/MOVE Utility

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Article ID: 54938

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Updated On:

Products

FAVER VSAM Data Protection

Issue/Introduction

Faver2 for z/VSE COPY/MOVE commands can be used to make disk to disk copies or transfers. COPY/MOVE also has the added benefit of duplicating or transferring data between different or like file types, such as VSAM to VSAM or VSAM to SAM.

 

Environment

Component: FAVER2

Resolution

For users needing to quickly move or copy VSAM datasets,  FAVER2 VSAM Data Protection for z/VSE has just the ticket.  FAVER2 for z/VSE has, in addition to its 'Store and Load' backup reorg utility, a COPY / MOVE utility for VSAM and NON-VSAM datasets. The COPY command allows you to copy a dataset directly to another destination without having to first back it up to a backup location before sending it to the new destination. For VSAM, this is especially useful for creating duplicate copies of datasets that need to be moved to a test catalog for destructive testing while retaining the original intact.

For a VSAM to VSAM copy or move, generic name specifications are allowed, enabling a large number of datasets or even an entire catalog to be copied or moved with simple control statements. Another useful function COPY and MOVE will perform is automatic space re-allocation. If the target cluster's CI size is different or if the destination device is different from the source device,  FAVER2 for z/VSE will convert the allocation to fit the new target device automatically, eliminating any over- or under-allocation that might exist using the original space allocation.

In the following example, FAVER2 for z/VSE copies all clusters that contain the starting node 'TEST' in catalog USERCAT.ONE to catalog USERCAT.TEST. In addition, it places the clusters on volume VOLTST:

 COPY CAT(USERCAT.ONE) - 
 DSN(TEST. *   CLUSTER (VOLUME(VOLTST) ) -
 CATALOG(USERCAT.TEST) )

You can also use most options available for use with FAVER2 for z/VSE Store and Load executions, in particular Extent Consolidation (XTC). This parameter instructs COPY or MOVE to use the consolidated allocation value, i.e. the original primary value plus the sum of all secondary extents. MEMP is another useful option for Copy or Move. By default, Copy and Move do not copy or move empty clusters. If you would like an empty dataset's definitions copied then MEMP could be a useful option. Another option is NO_DATA. If you have a data filled cluster and want to have just the VSAM definition moved or copied then option NO_DATA will perform the IDCAMS DELETE/DEFINE but no records will be written to the target cluster.

Some options improve the performance of the COPY / MOVE utility. If you are moving or copying to a new catalog or new dataset name, then you will have no need for the IDCAMS Delete step. Option NO_DELETE eliminates the unnecessary delete. The same is true for AIX and PATHs. By default, alternate indexes and paths are moved or copied along with their base clusters. If you have no need to move or copy the attached AIX or PATH then specify option NO_AIX and/or NO_PATH. Also, all FAVER2 for z/VSE options for Buffering are available. Buffering values can be set with BUFND, BUFNI, DISK_BUFFERSPACE, and DISK_BUFFERNUMBER. With the above options you can attain even better performance for your COPY or MOVE executions.

This example copies cluster TEST.KSDS into catalog USERCAT.TEST. Since it is switching catalogs, the IDCAMS Delete is not needed so NO_DELETE is specified. In addition, the AIX and Path will be dropped and the allocation extents consolidated into the primary:

 OPTION  XTC  NO_DELETE  NO_AIX  NO_PATH
 COPY CAT(USERCAT.ONE)  DSN(TEST.KSDS   - 
 CLUSTER (VOLUME(VOLTST) )  -
 CATALOG(USERCAT.TEST) )

Another useful function exclusive to COPY and MOVE is the ability to copy or move across file types. This could be helpful, for example, if you need to create a flat file version of your VSAM dataset to be used in another application.

Below are the allowable combinations of source and destination file types:

  • VSAM to VSAM
  • VSAM to Non-VSAM
  • Non-VSAM to Non-VSAM
  • Non-VSAM to VSAM

This example moves cluster TEST.KSDS to Non-VSAM file SAM.FILE on volume VOL227. (Note: for this example, we assume the TEST.KSDS has fixed-length records that are 100 bytes each.)

 // ASSGN SYS099,227
 // DLBL DD1, 'SAM.FILE',0,SD
 // EXTENT SYS099,VOL227,1,0,2040,200
 // EXEC FAVER2,SIZE=AUTO
  MOVE   CAT(USERCAT.ONE)  -
  DSN(TEST.KSDS  RECFM=FB    -
                      LRECL=100    -
                      BLKSZ=1000)  -
  TO_DDN(DD1)

 

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