Very similar level of sharing here. We used to have some application sharing
across sysplex boundaries, but it caused far too many problems versus what it
solved, so we replicated the data and apps spend a few minutes on the BDT
pipe over FCTC's or the ftp pipe over Hipersockets.
We share IODF, IPLPARM, and SMP/E & z/OS installation data for the site
using a shared catalog on it's own 3390 ("mini"), four multi-level aliases, and
all the data is isolated to a half-dozen volumes or so. No active production
sharing. We manage with RESERVE/RELEASE, and because we have a
dedicated "maintenance" person (mostly), we have very little contention. We
partition our VTS and have separate VOLCAT's and TMC's, though it would
likely make our lives easier if we shared...
To reinforce and add to what others have mentioned thus far:
1. Limit the sharing to non-production, installation-like data.
2. Isolate the user catalog to its own volume to minimize RESERVE/RELEASE
impact. Limit the number of ALIAS entries relating to this catalog.
3. If you CONVERT SYSZVVDS in GRS (a good idea), make sure you code an
EXCLUSION for your shared catalog, or you lose integrity.
4. If you CONVERT SYSVTOC/SYSZVVDS (in a STAR), make sure you code
EXCLUSIONs for your shared volumes.
5. Review your SYSDSN/SYSVSAM CONVERSIONs/INCLUSIONs/EXCLUSIONs.
We did not do anything special, but I'm not 100% certain we don't have an
opening for trouble.
Bottom line: It can be done if you're careful, understanding and mitigating
the
risks. RESERVE/RELEASE has been around for a very long time, and while not
the most efficient for throughput, it is iron-clad integrity.
Regardless of how cheap DASD gets, I argue there is still a case for limited
sharing if you are supporting multiple images that cannot be in a Sysplex. The
costs add up - tapes for backup of the redundant data, network bandwidth,
batch/online processes to keep it in sync, people to manage it, yadda yadda...
Then again, I'm just a tourist, what do I know?
Regards,
Art Gutowski
Ford Motor Company
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