I would imagine there are lots of programs that only use S/370 instructions, and use base / index registers. And there are lots of sites with System z processors but not z12s. How about a version to where during the install you specify what is the lowest processor you might run on? And in case you try to run on a machine without that instruction, the invalid instruction abend is trapped and executed with a replacement instruction sequence? Slows you down but keeps you running. And since this is machine code, why would this be limited to Cobol? It should be able to handle any language as long as you can analyze the run time libraries too.
On Sun, Nov 22, 2015 at 11:54 PM, Timothy Sipples <[email protected]> wrote: > I would like to draw your attention to an important new technology now > available: a new binary optimizer for COBOL programs called "IBM Automatic > Binary Optimizer" (ABO for short). IBM ABO's Program Number is 5697-AB1. A > trial edition is available using IBM Program Number 5697-TR1. Both are > available through Shopz now (or through your country's IBM ordering service > if your country doesn't have IBM Shopz). The announcement is available > here: > > http://www.ibm.com/common/ssi/rep_ca/7/897/ENUS215-407/ENUS215-407.PDF > > The no charge trial license is restricted to non-production environments. > > Suppose you have hundreds, thousands, or even one million or more COBOL > programs compiled with Enterprise COBOL Version 3 and/or Version 4. These > older COBOL compilers targeted "ARCH(0)," meaning they didn't take > advantage of any of the new, high performance instructions available on > zEC12, zBC12, and particularly z13 machines. They're a long, long way from > ARCH 11 (z13) -- a couple decades off. Perhaps some of your COBOL programs > are vendor-supplied, and you don't have the source code. Or (let's hope > not!) perhaps you've lost some source code. > > IBM ABO can take that existing, compiled binary code and run it through an > optimizer that, like magic, results in new binary code that exploits the > new processor instructions and thus performs much better. Results naturally > vary, but double digit percentage performance improvements are common. You > don't need to change any JCL. ABO takes advantage of new z/OS operating > system support to load the optimized modules automatically without > requiring JCL changes. Though some testing is merited (as always), you > shouldn't have to do much testing, and your testing should focus on > performance and scalability assessments. IBM (and third party) problem > determination tools such as IBM Debug Tool, IBM Fault Analyzer, and IBM > Application Performance Analyzer continue to work just fine. > > Prerequisites include at least one LPAR with z/OS 2.2 and at least one > zBC12, zEC12, or z13 machine. ABO will yield its performance benefits on > such LPARs and machines, though you can continue targeting backlevel LPARs > and machines, such as older DR machines, with your existing binaries if you > wish (or with recompiled Enterprise COBOL V5.2 binaries of course). ABO is > not a replacement for Enterprise COBOL Version 5.2. Instead, ABO is a > recommended, complementary technology. If you're not quite ready to > recompile all your COBOL programs -- or, as mentioned, if you have > vendor-supplied COBOL binaries -- then ABO can still help you enjoy at > least some of the performance benefits achievable on new mainframe > processors. During the normal course of your code maintenance activities > Enterprise COBOL Version 5.2 recompiles will then take over. Going forward > my expectation is that the combination of the latest COBOL compilers and > the latest ABO technologies will help you better stay on track with future > processor improvements and COBOL innovations. > > If you still have COBOL programs compiled before Enterprise COBOL Version > 3, that's fine. They will continue to run. However, IBM ABO will not be > able to improve their run-time performance. I recommend that you also start > recompiling such programs with the latest Enterprise COBOL compiler > (currently Version 5.2 as I write this), at least through the course of > ordinary code maintenance tasks. > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Timothy Sipples > IT Architect Executive, Industry Solutions, IBM z Systems, AP/GCG/MEA > E-Mail: [email protected] > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, > send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN -- Mike A Schwab, Springfield IL USA Where do Forest Rangers go to get away from it all? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
