2. PERFORMANCE REPORTING ANALYSIS › 2.8 Sysplex Analysis › 2.8.4 Parallel Sysplex Concepts › 2.8.4.2 Controlling the Sysplex Environment

2.8.4.2 Controlling the Sysplex Environment

While there are a number of SYS1.PARMLIB members that define
and affect a sysplex, the primary means of controlling a
sysplex is through the specifications made in the COUPLExx
PARMLIB members, and through the establishment of "policies"
that control management decisions spanning two or more
systems.

The COUPLExx members contain the critical definitions of
Signaling Paths and Transport Classes.  XCF Groups (groups
of related members) should be assigned to transport classes
based on message lengths, frequency, and performance
requirements.

The policies that control a sysplex are not defined in
SYS1.PARMLIB, but instead, each of the needed policies reside
in a couple data set.

A policy is a set of rules and actions that govern the
behavior of systems in a sysplex when using certain MVS
services.  Each policy provides a means for MVS to manage
specific resources in compliance with your workload and
system requirements.  A policy can be set up for just a
single system, several systems, or all systems in the
sysplex.

There are three types of policies that can be defined.  You
can define more than one policy of each type, but only one
policy of each type can be active at a time.  For example,
you might define a workload management policy (one of the
three types) for prime shift, and another for off-prime
shift.

The following three policy types can be used to control the
system management in a sysplex:

   o   The coupling facility resource management (CFRM)
       policy defines rules and actions for MVS management of
       coupling facility resources.

   o   The sysplex failure management (SFM) policy determines
       how MVS is to manage system failures, signaling
       connectivity failures, and actions that reconfigure
       PR/SM.

   o   The workload management (WLM) policy allows you to
       define service goals for your various workloads (for
       example, batch, TSO, CICS.)

Workload management policies are not presently addressed by
the CA MICS Performance Manager Option Sysplex Analysis.
Consequently, the discussion here is limited to the following
topics:

    1 - Planning for Signaling Services
    2 - Coupling Facility Resource Management
    3 - Sysplex Failure Management