Introduction

Introduction

The information in the CA MICS database can be used for
performance and service reporting, capacity planning, and
accounting and chargeback. The information can be presented
as standard line reports, color graphics, or data extracts.

The CA MICS database can be customized to meet your business
and organizational needs. The data is summarized into common
timespan structures that allow both short-term and long-term
views of resource management activities and utilization.

This guide shows you how to meet the challenges of providing
information that affects IT management decisions.  It
provides an overview of basic reporting features and tools,
along with some common SAS language and CA MICS-based
facilities that will assist you in retrieval and reporting.

The ISPF-based MICS Information Center Facility (MICF) and
the Windows-based Query and Reporting Workstation (Q&R)
augmented with a color graphics package are reporting tools
provided at no additional cost to CA MICS users. (See your CA
MICS administrator to install and gain access to these
tools.)  Each tool has guides explaining it, so this guide
focuses on high-level retrieval concepts applicable to
both tools. (While not recommended due to the dynamic nature
of CA MICS configurations, static batch reporting concepts
are also discussed briefly.)

MICF provides standard database inquiries that can be
executed to produce reports and data extracts even if you do
not know anything about the CA MICS database or SAS.  Use the
tutorial in the MICF User Guide to learn how to produce
standard reports from the shared catalog of database
inquiries, how to view available queries with their abstracts
and sample output, and how to copy selected queries to your
private catalogs.

Note: Your administrator may have adjusted the catalog
display if SAS color graphics are not supported at your data
center. The administrator may have also increased the number
of available queries displayed at the shared level.

Q&R Workstation also provides many sample reports that will
help you understand retrieval and display concepts.

Note: For more information, see the Q&R Workstation Getting
Started and Administration Guide.

Both MICF and Q&R ensure that inquiries you develop can be
easily modified when database reconfiguration occurs, so you
can avoid tedious JCL and code changes. Both tools provide
the ability to share the inquiries as well as the output
with other users. This approach avoids having to share
altered jobs with users who are using static JCL and code
that may be outdated or incorrect.

Once you learn how to use MICF or Q&R and understand the
structure of the CA MICS database, you will be able to
generate a wide range of reports by specifying files and data
elements to be manipulated, along with the analysis method,
report, and format to be used.

You will be able to do all of this without SAS language
knowledge, but since CA MICS information retrieval tools are
based on the SAS language, your reports can be extended to
encompass any SAS-based code structure or procedure provided
by the language provider. To do more extensive analysis,
contact your SAS language provider.

The following topics are covered in this guide:

  - Understanding SAS
  - Understanding the CA MICS Database
  - Planning a CA MICS Report Job
  - Common Techniques Used in Reporting
  - Reporting Examples
  - What To Do Next

This section contains the following topics:

1.1 CA MICS Structure and Terminology

1.2 Customizing CA MICS to Meet Your Needs