What’s New in HCL Z Asset Optimizer version 2.2

New features and capabilities in HCL Z Asset Optimizer version 2.2 help your organization achieve greater efficiency in asset discovery.

The following items/sections have been added to the HCL Z Asset Optimizer version 2.2 Administration Guide and Reference in June 2022.

  • Added new section Configuring the Turkish Db2 subsystem for use with HCL Z Asset Optimizer.
  • New error codes added for SCRT Import/License Verification.
  • Aggregator usage reports now contain usage for products that are disabled in IFAPRDxx.
  • Fixes applied to the following reporting issues in the Analyzer:
    • When processing LPAR names with # symbol
    • Discovered use by month extra column on right side
    • Audit report showing incorrect results
    • Audit report does not take into account date selections correctly
    • Added multirep support to more reports. Some other reports fixed as well
    • Audit report not parsing to date correctly

Support for product suites

Product Suite support has been added to Z Asset Optimizer.

Support for SCRT tailored fit pricing

SCRT tailored fit pricing has been added to Z Asset Optimizer. The current SCRT import program now supports SCRT tailored fit pricing. A new report has also been added for users to view their tailored fit pricing data.

Changes in Analyzer reports

Z Asset Optimizer provides new reports and adds additional information to existing reports:
  • New Asset report ‘SCRT Tailored Fit Pricing’ (TFP) has been added. Users can view their SCRT data as TFP if they are now using this facility.
  • New Asset report ‘Product Suites’ shows which suites have been identified and the products that belong to the suites
  • Admin report ‘Define Product Suites’ is removed.

  • New Admin report ‘Exclude Product Suites’ enables users to decide whether to exclude Products Suites from the report if suites have been identified incorrectly, when only some of the products have been installed. If suites are not defined in the GKB, users need to open a Case with HCL to have the suites added.

  • New Admin report ‘Define VUE Products’ enables users to create a list of MLC products that are now VUE. This list will then be used to update the repository Asset reports with the VUE information. The list needs to be created once only or when a previous product that was MLC is now VUE.

  • New Admin reports – ‘Define Library Classifications’ and ‘Assign Library Classifications’ have been added to support Product Lifecycle data. This enables users to create Library Classifications for products that move between different libraries, as the life of a product changes.

  • Discovery report ‘Product Libraries’ has been enhanced for users to select and view these libraries classifications

  • New Charting tool has been added to the Trend Report. This improves chart creation performance considerably.

  • Analyzer batch reports can now have user defined headings.

Changes to the Inquisitor

The Inquisitor now uses data spaces for large working storage areas to reduce the dependence on the availability of large region sizes.

The Inquisitor now makes better use of CVAF to significantly reduce the I/O load on the DASD subsystem when reading VTOCs.

The Inquisitor new program parameter settings:
  • NOVSR – suppress the volume statistics report
  • NOEAR – suppress the execution activity report
  • NOREP – specify both NOVSR and NOEAR with one keyword

Support for deflate added

The default zip file compression algorithm has been changed from shrink to fast deflate which produces greater compression with minimal additional CPU consumption.

Recover from S213-C8 abends

Data collectors which write zip files will recover from S213-C8 abends by writing unzipped data, thereby reducing operational disruption.

Changes to the Inquisitor Import

During Inquisitor import, support to identify Product Suites has been added. This allows users to view Suite information in the Asset report ‘Product Inventory’, without seeing all products associated with the Product Suite. A new Asset report ‘Product Suites’, has been created for viewing suites and their associated products.

Changes to the Usage Monitor

Product use information that are collected allows users to see actual product use data.

The following new commands have been added to the Usage Monitor:

  • APF – control the collection of APF library names
  • ASZ – specify the size of the ASID array
  • D-L – display long running program name
  • DCL – specify SMS data class
  • IMS – control the collection of IMS-managed program usage
  • LDD – new name for LDI (delete LDX entry)
  • LPR – specify additional long running program names
  • MCL – specify SMS management class
  • LPD – delete entries created by LPR
  • PAK – control output zip algorithm
  • SCL – specify SMS storage class
  • TMP – control collection from temporary program library data sets
Improvements in Usage Monitor data collection facilitate the following changes:
  • System SVC front ends are no longer installed.
  • A user ESR will be used for CICS and UNIX data collection.
  • Usage of IMS-managed programs is now accurately reported.
  • A count for the number of jobs which use each program each day is kept.
  • The LLC (linklist correction) setting is now retired.
  • CPU time can now be monitored down to the RB level.
  • CPU time consumed by long running address spaces can now be reported progressively .each collection cycle.

Changes to the Usage Import

Usage Import now imports usage data to create new Metric Product Use. This new Metric displays actual product Usage as well as the current Module Event data, so as to give a better view of product usage. This provides information to users who are interested in the number of times products are used.

CICS Transaction Server monitoring

Installed GLUE modules from older releases of the Usage Monitor will not collect any data for this release of the Usage Monitor. The GLUE modules in this release of the Usage Monitor cannot collect any data for older releases of the Usage Monitor.

The following table lists the required GLUE programs for different versions of the CICS Transaction Server currently supported by ZAO.

CICS Transaction Server release

Usage Monitor GLUE modules

Version 5, releases 1, 2 and 3

HZAZFTC3, HZAZEII3

Version 5, releases 4, 5 and 6

HZAZFTC4, HZAZEII4

Changes to the GKB

The GKB now supports Product suites. This new enhancement groups individual products together into a single product name, and this can then be reported in the Asset report ‘Product Inventory’.

Support for VUE products has also been added to the GKB. Users will now be able to assign VUE product information to supported IBM products.

A version 1.1 repository can use only a version 1.1 GKB database. A version 2.2 repository can use only a version 2.2 GKB database.

Support for New SQLite database

This release adds support for the latest level of SQLite database as an alternative to the Db2 database. This new database support provides improved performance.

License Verification Feature

The Z Asset Optimizer License Verification Feature provides you with the ability to import license data into a configured repository and verify this data against identified data in the Repository. License Verification reports are available to view licensed or unlicensed products.

API support

The Z Asset Optimizer API provides a “swagger” and programmer interface to a number of Z Asset Optimizer Analyzer repository reports.

You can display all the available repository databases on your connected Z Asset Optimizer Analyzer instance. By selecting one of the available repository databases, any of the selected reports can be run with the data returned in an industry standard JSON format. You can use any platform or programming language with the Z Asset Optimizer for API interface.

The Z Asset Optimizer API docker container requires a connection to an active Z Asset Optimizer for Analyzer instance for data extraction.