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IBM Z Development and Test Environment

Brief note on IBM Z Development and Test Environment on Linux, its version and how to install and customize IBM Z Development and Test Environment it can be shortly referred as IBM zD&T.

IBM zD&T runs a z/OS distribution on a personal computer or workstation Linux environment. It creates an environment for mainframe application demonstration, development, testing, and employee education without Z mainframe hardware. It enables z/OS, middleware, and other z/OS software to run on Intel and other compatible computers and emulates z/Architecture with virtual I/O and devices.

zD&T is offered in three different editions:

• zD&T Personal Edition:
  • ZD&T Personal Edition enables a single user to run an IBM Z distribution on a personal computer.
• IBM z Development and Test Environment (zD&T) Enterprise Edition:
  • ZD&T Enterprise Edition enables enterprises to host an IBM Z distribution on low-cost Intel-based x86 machines. Enterprise Edition provides a web-based interface. You can extract, deploy, and manage the application images from an existing Z or ADCD packages
• IBM z Development and Test Environment (zD&T) Parallel Sysplex:
  • ZD&T Parallel Sysplex can be used to enable a Sysplex environment that is running within z/VM.

IBM z Development and Test Environment (zD&T) Enterprise Edition enables enterprises to host an IBM Z distribution on low-cost Intel-based x86 machines. It creates an environment for mainframe application demonstration, development, testing, and education without Z mainframe hardware, enables z/OS, middleware, and other z/OS software to run on Intel and other compatible computers, and emulates z/Architecture with virtual I/O and devices.

IBM z Development and Test Environment Enterprise Edition also provides a web-based interface. You can extract, deploy, and manage the application images from an existing Z or ADCD packages.

With a flexible licensing method, IBM z Development and Test Environment ZD&T Enterprise Edition can be used on cloud, VMs, or in-housed physical 8086 hardware. The Enterprise Edition also comes with a single user license that is known as Authorized User (AU) license, or with a multi-user license that is known as the Resource value Unit (RVU) license. If you use a Rational® token license server to enable other IBM products, you can use the same licensing method for zD&T.

 

IBM z Development and Test Environment (zD&T) Enterprise Edition provides the following features.

• An application development and testing environment that can improve development infrastructure availability and flexibility.
• Current levels of IBM z/OS software that give access to new runtime capabilities for development and testing for enterprises.
• Mixed workload support for enterprises, which can help reduce the development costs.
• An approachable and portable environment for education on Z for enterprises.
• A web-based interface to extract, deploy and manage the application images from an existing Z or ADCD packages.
• Creating and managing application images from various sources.
• Provisioning application images for developers and testers in a self-service automated way.
• Monitoring the status and availability of all created assets and target environments.
• Integrating with IBM Application Discovery (AD) to deploy the data sets that are identified by AD to the target machine (ZD&T).

 

There are two licensing methods available with IBM for zD7T which is Software-based Licensing and Hardware-based Licensing

Here are some important documentations on how do we get the enabling IBM z Development and Test Environment Enterprise Edition (zD&T) :-

Software based License Server can run from root user id. There is tgz installer file which help to install. Change the authority, decompress the file and run the installer , provide the required options as it takes you to menu based inputs and then after completion of installation , we have to update the license file. There command ./query_license can list you the licenses and there is script to start license server as well.

 

Same way, we can also install ZD&T Enterprise Edition, change the authority, decompress the installer, run the installer script and start provide required inputs and complete installation

• Now, we have to start Enterprise Edition Web Server by running the script startServer.sh
  • /opt/ibm/zDT/bin/startServer.sh
• Open the browser and enter the URL that is contained in the output. Then, enter the default user ID (zdtadmin) and Password (password) to log in to the web server.
• To stop the ZD&T Enterprise Edition web server, run the following command
  • /opt/ibm/zDT/bin/stopServer.sh

There are few administrator configuration and IPLing system required before we start use the system.

To log in to the Enterprise Edition, use the default User ID zdtadmin that has a default password of password in below webpage.

 

https://xxx.xxx.xx.xx:9443/ZDTMC/logon.html

 

Provide the, target System Storage Reequipment – At least 1 TB with 8 GB RAM

Provide the, Image Server requirement – 500 GB of space to store IBM downloaded DASD Files.

Configuring ADCD system,

 

 

This process will take max of 10 to 12 hours. As per configuration ZDT Environment will get Deployed on Target System.  By end of this process ZDT Environment will get deployed at Target System and got IPLed.

• ZDT Mainframe is Ready to use now.
• Install X3270 Emulator in your laptop. To connect ZDT, configure it with Target System IP – xxx.xxx.xx.xx with Port:3270.
• First Emulator will act as a Master Console and from Second Console we can use to log into ZDT Environment.

 

We are experienced good implementation skills of these tools EDz, EAz, IDz, DBB, UCDz  install, configure and customize and do training enablement. Rich experience in IBM Developer for z and IBM DBB Training by  with content delivery of 5 days based on the coverage and team size of trainees.

We also explore other products from Heirlooms Computing, Micro Focus, Modern Systems for Application Analysis, Development IDE for Mainframe applications.

Contact us as vlakshmie@vrgzlabs.com for any  Mainframe Training, Mainframe Modernization Training, Implementations, Mainframe Consulting engagements and customization projects.