BEARS/IMS

BEARS/IMS is a comprehensive performance monitor for IMS systems. It is a simple-to-use monitor which can combine Full Function, Fast Path and Mixed Mode systems. In addition it keeps historical reports and yet has no overhead on the system it is monitoring. It also executes so quickly that it can keep pace with the largest and busiest of IMS systems in use anywhere.

BEARS/IMS processes and analyses the IMS Archived logs by using high performance Assembler routines utilising the latest MVS facilities. The SAS system is used for historical data storage and reporting.

BEARS/IMS is used by clients for many purposes. These include Application Performance Monitoring, IMS System tuning, Transfer Charging, Capacity Planning, Management Information and Audit functions. Use of the BEARS/IMS User Exit facility allows users to provide bespoke functionality.

BEARS/IMS supports all releases up to and including IMS 10.1.

• FULL FUNCTION RESPONSE MONITOR

BEARS/IMS supports all types of IMS transactions including MSC and ISC. There is full support for complex message switching. Statistics are given on Response times, CPU utilisation, DL/1 calls made, Input/Output Message lengths, etc.

• FAST PATH RESPONSE MONITOR

BEARS/IMS gives full statistics on Fast Path Response times, Buffer utilisation, Input and Output message lengths, Call statistics, CI contentions, Buffer waits etc.

• MIXED MODE RESPONSE MONITOR

Should a transaction access a mixture of IMS Full Function and Fast Path resources, as is often the case, then IMS records it as two transactions. BEARS/IMS will successfully match the two transactions together into a single unit of work.

• COMBINED RESPONSE TIMES

Should a site run both Full Function and Fast Path, historically the user has had to look in two places for the performance information. BEARS/IMS can produce a single source of information for Full Function, Fast Path and Mixed Mode transactions.

• SECURITY MONITOR

BEARS/IMS enhances IMS security by showing both the terminal name and the User ID responsible for all security violations.

• RESOURCE UTILISATION MONITOR

IMS systems tend to grow. This is because there is no easy way to determine which resources in the system are no longer used. BEARS/IMS provides a way of measuring the usage of each individual Terminal, Fast Path Area and SMB (Transaction-PSB pair). BEARS/IMS highlights redundant entities in the system definition, enabling effective control of Virtual Storage usage.

• IMS INTERNAL STATISTICS MONITOR

BEARS/IMS will produce information advising of IMS Pool utilisations, ISAM/OSAM and VSAM I/O rates, Transaction scheduling statistics, Selective Dispatching occurrences and Logging activity. There is also a breakdown of the transaction workload processed into business applications.  These easy-to-read reports reduce the time and expertise required to perform basic systems monitoring.

• TRANSACTION ABEND MONITOR

BEARS/IMS produces information on all transaction abends in the system. Such statistics can highlight trends both in system software and application code failures. In addition this feature can also highlight deadlock situations which have been handled by IMS but could otherwise have gone unnoticed leading to perceived performance problems.

• SPINOFF LOG RECORD PROCESSOR

BEARS/IMS will also optionally spin-off log records by record type and subtype to a file for subsequent user processing. This facility can reduce the number of tape mounts that the system must perform and can negate the requirement for a Log Archive Exit.

• USER EXIT

BEARS/IMS supports a Customer-supplied User Exit, to which a copy of each log record processed is presented. The User Exit can then perform any processing required on this copy record. A sample exit is provided.