Gil, The RACF database is BDAM (Basic Direct Access Method) and has, to my knowledge, always been so since it was first released in 1976. The index records are stored in the database with the profile (data) records, so it is completely self-contained. I know of no other product using this structure.
Live databases should be allocated as PSU. Unmovable prevents the database from being moved while in use. RACF is weird. It opens its databases at IPL and then immediately closes them. RACF uses direct disk address I/O to read and update its databases thereafter. If databases are not allocated as U, a data management utility, seeing they are not "open", might compress or move the databases, unaware they are in use - with disastrous results. Live databases should be copied/backed up using the IRRUT200 utility. This utility freezes update activity to the database before making a copy. The offline copy can be copied using IEBGENER or the like, or it can be FTPed. I haven't tried FTPing a RACF database, but I suspect you would want to do so using BIN. It is generally best to pre-allocate the disk dataset to which the database it is to be copied, and it must have exactly the same UNIT, SPACE, and DCB characteristics as the source database, including CONTIG. The copy needn't be PSU unless you plan to RVARY SWITCH to it so that it becomes live. Regards, Bob Robert S. Hansel *** Celebrating 30 years working with RACF *** Lead RACF Specialist RSH Consulting, Inc. 617-969-8211 www.linkedin.com/in/roberthansel http://twitter.com/RSH_RACF www.rshconsulting.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Upcoming RSH RACF Training - WebEx - RACF Audit & Compliance Roadmap - SEPT 11-15, 2017 - RACF Level I Administration - DEC 5-8, 2017 - RACF Level II Administration - NOV 13-17, 2017 - RACF Level III Admin, Audit, & Compliance - OCT 2-6, 2017 - RACF - Securing z/OS UNIX - OCT 23-27, 2017 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -----Original Message----- Date: Sun, 21 May 2017 14:19:39 -0500 From: Paul Gilmartin <paulgboul...@aim.com> Subject: Re: Sample JCL for file transfer using NJE/TCPIP On Sun, 21 May 2017 05:12:00 -0500, Elardus Engelbrecht wrote: > >>RACF (I'm less sure) is VSAM. > >No, it is PSU (PS and Unmovable). Other attributes are mandated by IBM. > "Unmovable" would seem to imply uncopyable; the copy would have to go in a different place. But there must be some provision for backing it up, and little point in trying to move it to another system with such as FTP. Why not VSAM? Performance? Antiquity? It feels as if RACF has a built-in DB engine. -- gil ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to lists...@listserv.ua.edu with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
