zFrame® Technical References
This page has a collection of various kinds of reference information, about the zFrame and related topics. IBM® Redbooks, White Papers, Presentations, whatever we can find that may be of use to you to better understand the zFrame, it's technology, and how to exploit it. Technical Whitepapers "Exploring the I/O Performance Characteristics of Intel® Based FLEX-ES® Servers for z/OS ": This Whitepaper, written by Dr Pat Artis of Performance Associates, looks at the disk I/O performance capabilities of the zFrame. His findings, and the zFrame performance, are impressive. IBM Redbooks SG24-6215 "IBM NUMA-Q Enabled for S/390 Technical Introduction": Although written for the now withdrawn NUMA-Q EFS, this is probably the best source of general information about FLEX-ES based systems, how it works, and numerous real-life examples. SG24-6498 "EFS Systems in a Linux® Base: Channel Adapters": This Redbook covers the use and configuration of FSI Channel adapters, both Parallel and ESCON™. One section also discusses the use of channel adapters in a FLEX-CUB (Control Unit Behavior) mode. SG24-6501 "S/390 Partners In Development: Netfinity®: Enabled for S/390": This Redbook covers many aspects of installing and running FLEX-ES on a Netfinity (now xSeries) Server. It gives a very good idea of the components of the system and how it is put together and configured. SG24-6507 "S/390 Partners In Development: ThinkPad® Enabled for S/390": Similiar to the Redbook about Netfinity based FLEX-ES, but for ThinkPads, which use Linux instead of SCO UnixWare. SG24-6507 "S/390 Partners In Development: EFS Systems on a Linux Base": An expansion on the topic of FLEX-ES on Linux, that was initially covered in SG24-6507 above. This Redbook also discusses running FLEX-ES on Linux on a IBM Netfinity (xSeries) server rather than a Thinkpad. (Note that as of this time, IBM and FSI have not yet authorized the sale of FLEX-ES on an xSeries/Linux base.) SG24-6507 "S/390 Partners In Development: OS/390 and z/OS New Users Cookbook": A good overview of the pre-configured z/OS system, supplied on CDs, for the PWD members. Especially good for first time users or those needing an introduction to the system. SG24-7008 "EFS Systems on a Linux Base: Additional Topics": A discussion of some of the more advanced topics related to using and exploiting FLEX-ES and zFrame systems . Excellent for users who want to get a little deeper and not just for Linux based systems. Presentations "zFrame: A technical Overview and Update:" Given at the Sept. 2005 IBM zSeries Technical Conference, this presentation provides a brief overview of FLEX-ES and the zFrame family and provides a summary of some of the recent enhancement and additions to the product line. "Implementing Virtual Tape in a little Itty-Bitty 64 Bit World" This presentation given at SHARE (Feb. 2005) by Dr. Pat Artis of Performance Associates discusses his experiences in testing and benchmarking an early version of Fundamental Software's AFLIB. The focus is on using a remote server, connected via NFS, as the VTS "server" but general concepts are also covered. Alternatives for the Under-60 (MIPS) Crowd" A presentation given at the World-Wide VM and VSE Users Group (WAVV) in April, 2002. It provides some historical perspective (mainframes, P/390s) and describes UMX/VMF, Hercules, and FLEX-ES. It naturally focuses on FLEX-ES and the Cornerstone zFrame systems. (Caution: 3.8 MB in size.)