Shmuel Metz wrote:
>There are several issues that you will need to deal with in order to
>get a running system.
>[....]
>2. Licensed internal code for the CEC, which may or may not
>need an upgrade

I’d say this part doesn’t matter. Whatever level(s) of LIC firmware are on the 
machine are probably going to be good enough for Enzo’s purposes.

>[....]
>5. A tape drive and controllwe

Not required. Are you thinking of initial startup/OS installation? On this 
vintage machine there should be non-tape IPL (startup/“bootstrap”) options, 
notably HMC DVD. Such options were standard well before the z114. Assuming Enzo 
gets a working HMC with the z114, and assuming the HMC was ordered/shipped with 
the z114 (rather than an older carry forward HMC), it should also support USB 
flash memory drives. And there are some network-based options with the HMC. 
Without the HMC startup is “much more interesting” at least.

>6.  A cluster controller and 3270 terminals, with licensed internal code

Fun perhaps but not at all required. A cluster control/3270 terminals were 
vintage way before the z114 debuted. And if the z114 has OSA-Express 1000BASE-T 
adapters (likely) then it should be capable of OSA-ICC if that’s even needed.

>9. An operating system. I doubt that you can get a license for anything
>that will run on a box that old...

Standard commercial licensing IBM z/VSE 6.2 (and VSEn 6.3 I believe) licensing 
and delivery are still available for the IBM z114 without any unusual or 
exceptional steps.(*) Standard commercial z/TPF 1.1 licensing and delivery 
might also be possible depending on how the z/TPF team packages/ships their PUT 
levels. (Not sure.)

>and I don't know whether the free DOS/VSE, OS/VS or VM will run on it.

Not without a lot of contrivance.

A MUSIC/SP hobbyist license is possibly available if you know the right party 
to ask, but I really can’t speak to that and don’t actually know. MUSIC/SP 
would probably work on an IBM z114 since that model machine can start in 
ESA/390 mode, something that MUSIC/SP requires. MUSIC/SP might be more likely 
to do more useful things (such as network I/O) on an IBM z114 when it runs 
under z/VM 6.4.

>It's likely to be less expensive to use one of the IBM offerings.

Perhaps, but it depends on what the objectives are. If for example Enzo would 
like to get into the commercial z/VSE or VSEn service bureau business then a 
used z114 machine might be a reasonable entry point.

(*) OK, granted, it’s unusual for a student to apply for an IBM credit check, 
one of the usual procedural steps to obtain a z/VSE license since IBM 
understandably wants reasonable assurance its bills will be paid. I assume it’s 
even more unusual for a student to pass that credit check. But I’m responding 
to your technical point. :-)

— — — — —
Timothy Sipples
Senior Architect
Digital Assets, Industry Solutions, and Cyber Security
IBM zSystems and LinuxONE
[email protected]


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