Data set backup using NEWNAME

The NEWNAME parameter of the (H)BACKDS command allows you to create a data set backup copy and store it under a different, specified data set name. This functionality allows you to keep a permanent copy of data (for example, a year-end copy of a critical data set) as long as a unique new name is specified for the permanent version. The command can be used for many other purposes, such as to create special backup copies to be used for disaster recovery, or to populate a test environment with backup versions of data sets copied to that system under a different name.

You can also use the (H)BACKDS dsname NEWNAME(newdsname) command to convert backup copies created with a competitive product to be DFSMShsm-managed backup copies by following the steps below:

Restore all backup versions from the competitive product with temporary names
(H)BACKDS the oldest temporary version of the data set using the original name in the NEWNAME parameter (No allocation of the original data set required.)
(H)BACKDS the next oldest temporary version of the data set with original name in the NEWNAME parameter. Repeat until the most recent version has been backed up
Delete the temporary data set copies

To preserve the original creation date and time of the backup copy, specify the DATE and TIME parameters on the (H)BACKDS NEWNAME command. If DATE is not specified, the current date will be assigned to the backup copy. If DATE is specified, DFSMShsm will use the date to chronologically position the backup copy in relation to other existing backup versions. If DATE is specified without TIME, the current time will be assigned to the backup version. If the TIME keyword is not specified, and a backup copy with the data specified on the command and the current time already exists, the command will fail.