By John Campbell and Paul McWilliams . This post is part of a series that provides John Campbell's perspective on new capabilities in Db2 12 for z/OS.   Dynamic SQL statements are more susceptible to creating performance problems than static SQL. A full PREPARE occurs for every miss in the dynamic statement cache, and such SQL statements might go through query optimization several times per day. Whereas, with static SQL, the access paths are determined at bind time and the access path is stabilized and reused until the next BIND or... [More]

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By Guilherme Saueressig and Paul McWilliams . IBM is working to transform our tools for GDPR readiness . As part of that effort Enhanced Customer Data Repository (ECuRep) servers, including the IBM Boulder Test Case Data Repository ('testcase') servers, now require an authenticated log-in using an IBM Support File Transfer ID and password (token), and they support only secure transfer protocols.   Beginning on May 24, 2018, to exchange data with IBM using either the 'testcase' or ECuRep servers, you  must now use an... [More]

Don't miss this live event - June 19th at 11:00 AM EST REGISTER AT:  http ://b it.l y/Db 2_Ju ne1 9   GDPR compliance (General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union) went into effect on May 25th of this year. GDPR has many facets and affects many things from how you manage your customer data to providing backup and recovery services.   This webcast looks at GDPR and other topics that provide more data security and protection, such as Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), Transparent Data Encryption (TDE), and auditing... [More]

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By John Campbell and Paul McWilliams . This post is part of a series that provides John Campbell's perspective on new capabilities in Db2 12 for z/OS.   One of the biggest challenges for application developers is writing good SQL for pagination — returning a portion of a result set based on data position—that performs well for both pseudo conversational transactions and also for batch programs, when starting from an intermediate commit point. Several possible solutions exist, ranging from the use of... [More]

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By Paul McWilliams and Mo Townsend .   We announced the general availability (GA) of Db2 12 for z/OS in October 2016. With the release of Db2 12, we also announced that continuous delivery of new capabilities in a single service stream. The adoption of new capabilities is controlled by the activation of function levels, replacing our traditional three-year cycle for the next Db2 release.   As of this writing, we've released two Db2 12 function levels after Db2 12 GA. Function level 501 introduced the LISTAGG built-in function, and... [More]

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Watch more videos on the World of Db2 channel   Related information Now available in Db2 12: Db2 for z/OS support for z/OS data set encryption Encrypting your data with z/OS DFSMS data set encryption Db2 12 function level 502 (V12R1M502) z/OS: Using the z/OS data set encryption enhancements Pervasive Encryption for IBM Z   Always get the latest news about Db2 for z/OS from the IBM lab! How to subscribe Follow us on Twitter: @DB2zLabNews

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By John Campbell and Paul McWilliams . This post is the first in a series that provides John Campbell's perspective on new capabilities in Db2 12 for z/OS.   Fast index traversal is one of the the most important new performance features in Db2 12 for z/OS. It is an in-memory index performance optimization that enables Db2 to do fast index lookup, by avoiding expensive index B-tree traversal. To benefit from fast index traversal, data access must use a random pattern. However, SELECT, INSERT, DELETE and UPDATE... [More]

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By Paul McWilliams and John Lyle . We're proud to announce that  function level 502 (V12R1M502) is now available in Db2 12! As you've probably heard or read, we introduced continuous delivery of new capabilities and enhancements in Db2 12 for z/OS. In continuous delivery, new capabilities and enhancements are delivered in an ongoing basis in Db2 12, in a single service stream along with ongoing maintenance. You control the adoption and use of the new capabilities by activating function levels with -ACTIVATE... [More]

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By Jim Pickel , Gayathiri Chandran , and Emily Alameida . Starting in both Db2 11 and 12 for z/OS, we recently introduced support for z/OS DFSMS data set encryption , part of the Pervasive Encryption for IBM Z solution, to address the problem of access to data by unauthorized internal personnel. With DFSMS data set encryption, you can encrypt your data without application outages. Using this solution can significantly reduce the people and hardware costs associated with protecting data and achieving compliance mandates.  ... [More]

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By Tim Hogan Do you or other members of your organization have a need for IBM Z or Db2 for z/OS-focused education? Are you interested in earning IBM-approved credentials in technical areas that are key to your business? Do you want a way to share your certified skills with others in the mainframe technical community? If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, then the IBM Open Badge program may be for you! IBM has partnered with several training companies, including LearnQuest, Tech Data, Global Knowledge, Ingram Micro, Arrow,... [More]

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By Terry Purcell and Paul McWilliams . Db2 12 improves how the Db2 optimizer uses the NPGTHRSH subsystem parameter for default statistics. However, we've found that very few clients are even familiar with the NPGTHRSH subsystem parameter, and the current default value disables its function. Many clients are familiar with the VOLATILE table attribute , which was introduced in Version 8 to address the same problem: Db2 often scans a table space, even though index access is possible. For example, a table... [More]

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By Jeff Josten .    For many large enterprise clients, IBM Z and Parallel Sysplex with Db2 data sharing provides unmatched value, delivering a shared, consolidated data infrastructure along with high scalability and availability.  To protect against site outages (planned or unplanned) that can affect an entire Sysplex, several replication-based options exist.  Synchronous replication can deliver zero data loss, but with distance limitations.  Asynchronous replication can provide unlimited distance, but with some data... [More]

The Db2 for z/OS Development organization is excited to announce that Maureen Townsend has joined our team as Director of Software Development. In this role, Maureen, or Mo as she prefers to be called, is responsible for the delivery of new capabilities in Db2 for z/OS as well as leading the teams who support our clients. Her focus will be on growing the Db2 business, nurturing client relationships and satisfaction, and strengthening her team, whose innovation helps Db2 for z/OS to solve client problems daily.   Mo started her career with... [More]

Want to learn more about continuous delivery in Db2 12 for z/OS? Check out the new IBM Redbooks Red paper: Exploring IBM Db2 for z/OS Continuous Delivery by Chris Crone. This IBM® Redpaper™ publication provides key information about continuous delivery in IBM Db2® 12 for z/OS®. It discusses how continuous delivery works and the changes that have been made in Db2 12 to support continuous delivery, such as adding a new catalog table and changing existing catalog tables. Also the paper covers the... [More]

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