System Installation Choices › SMP/E Analysis › SMP/E Consolidated Software Inventory (CSI)

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SMP/E Consolidated Software Inventory (CSI)

Each SMP/E database has one or more consolidated software inventory (CSI) data sets. These data sets are VSAM key sequenced data sets (KSDSs). They control SMP/E processing and keep records of the structure of the operating system. SMP/E uses the CSIs to control and track the installation of systems software changes. CA Auditor uses information contained in these data sets to analyze whether SMP/E is correctly tracking maintenance in system libraries.

CSI data sets are logically divided into zones. Each CSI can contain one or more of three types of zones: the global, target, and distribution zones.

Each zone tracks one or more z/OS component or program product.

Global zone

Each SMP/E database contains a single global zone. This zone is an index to its associated target and distribution zones in the SMP/E database. It contains entries that describe the changes waiting to be installed and system utilities that SMP/E uses to install changes.

The CSI that you specify for CA Auditor processing must contain the global zone. You can search all of the zones by default or limit processing to a particular zone. If you limit processing, you must select the global zone as one of the zones. We recommend that you select all of the zones if you do not know which ones to process. The SMP/E Zone Selection screen displays when you limit processing on the CSI Selection Display (0.5.2 or 2.3.1).

Target zones

Each CSI can have multiple target zones. These zones contain entries that describe the contents and construction of target libraries. Target libraries contain the executable programs that make up system components and program products.

Distribution zones

Each CSI can have multiple distribution zones. These zones describe the contents of the distribution libraries that contain the master copy of all components of the operating system. They are used, for example, to restore target libraries when maintenance was improperly applied. Distribution zone entries are similar to target zone entries.