Storage locations are those places outside the removable media library where you send removable media. Storage locations can be destinations for disaster recovery related activities or any other purpose your installation chooses.

DFSMSrmm provides shelf-management of storage locations by assigning bin numbers to shelf locations within a storage location. You can specify that DFSMSrmm make bins available for reuse when volume moves have started or make bins available only when volume moves have been confirmed.

DFSMSrmm automatically provides shelf-management for the built-in locations. This means that DFSMSrmm assigns bin numbers to each volume in a built-in storage location. You can request shelf-management of installation defined storage locations when you create your location definitions using the parmlib LOCDEF command.

You can also specify media names in the parmlib LOCDEF command to provide a way to segregate shelf locations in an installation defined storage location. The media names you specify for a storage location should be the same as or a subset of the media names you specify for pools in your removable media library. See Defining pools in parmlib member EDGRMMxx for information about pooling.

The movement and retention of volumes in and out of storage locations is done during DFSMSrmm inventory management. During vital record processing, DFSMSrmm sets the required location for each volume using information from vital record specifications. The volume does not move to the required location during vital record processing. During storage location management processing, DFSMSrmm sets the destination for a volume using the required location information if that volume can be moved. If a move is required, and the move is to a shelf-managed storage location, DFSMSrmm assigns an empty bin in the target location to the volume based on the media name and LOCDEF information. If no empty bin numbers of the required media name are available, DFSMSrmm issues message EDG2403E, and inventory management processing continues.

When the volume is returned from the storage location, the bin number is identified for reuse as part of move confirmation processing. See Performing inventory management for information about inventory management vital record processing and storage location management.

When stacked volume support is enabled, DFSMSrmm sets the destination for a stacked volume at the completion of export processing. There is no destination set for logical volumes. Logical volumes use the stacked volume destination.

You can also override the inventory management processing of specific volumes by manually assigning destinations.