Powering Real-Time Decisions with Continuous Data Streams
Fault Analyzer for z/OS Overview
1. an IBM + HCL product
Fault Analyzer for z/OS V14.1
July 2017
2. an IBM + HCL product
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mentioned regarding potential future products is not a commitment, promise, or legal obligation to deliver
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into any contract. The development, release, and timing of any future features or functionality described for
our products remains at our sole discretion.
3. an IBM + HCL product
What is Fault Analyzer for z/OS?
• FA can capture abends in the following
environments:
• z/OS
• LE (Language Environment)
• CICS
• IMS
• DB2
• MQ Series
• UNIX System Services
• Supports source display of the following
languages:
• COBOL, PL/I, Assembler, C/C++ and Java.
• Fault Analyzer (FA) is a tool that helps you
determine the cause of an application abend
• Enabling you to more quickly identify and resolve
the problem
• Delivers information about an application when it
has abended, to help you assess:
• What happened, and why?
• What program?
• What line of source code?
• What source variables were involved?
4. an IBM + HCL product
The key value proposition based on a simple example
Problem analysis steps with FA:Problem analysis steps without FA:
1. Capture CEEDUMP or MVS dump
2. Determine abend offset into program from dump
3. Obtain a matching compiler listing – need to make sure
it really matches!
4. Using the listing, identify the matching source line for
the abend offset
5. Identify data fields involved and their offsets into
working storage
6. Validate the content of each data field in the dump to
determine the one(s) in error
7. Fix the problem
5. an IBM + HCL product
How does it work?
Fault Analyzer
MVS IEAVTABX
LE CEEEXTAN
CICS XPCABND
LE CEECXTAN
SYSMDUMP
User Application
Fault analysis
report
SYSLOG
Fault history
1. Abend
Invocation exits
2. Snap interface (IDISNAP)
Collection of Fault
Analyzer analysis report
Invocation of Fault
Analyzer is recorded.
Dump processing is
typically suppressed
6. an IBM + HCL product
How to use Fault Analyzer for z/OS?
Different modes of operation
• Real-time analysis
• Captures abends in real-time and performs analysis.
• Produces a real-time analysis report.
• Optimized for usage in production systems with no
overhead when no abend.
• Creates a fault entry which can be analyzed in detail later
with additional information (eg. Source mapping
information).
• Interactive reanalysis
• Possibly gather additional information by supplying
additional information (eg. Compiler listing for source
display).
• View storage areas not in the real-time report.
• Perform analysis of SYSMDUMP data set or analysis of
CICS system dump.
• Batch reanalysis
• Re-generate real-time report with additional information
(eg. Source mapping information). Optionally overwrite
the existing real-time report.
Different user interfaces
ISPF
CICS
Eclipse
Browser
7. an IBM + HCL product
Problem determination of 64-bit programs
• Enhanced to provide abend analysis of programs running in
AMODE 64.
• Side file processing is enhanced to support Enterprise PL/I
programs compiled with LP64 compile option.
• The problem analysis report remains consistent for 64-bit
programs to ensure all users are able to take advantage of the
enhancement immediately when abends occur in your new 64-bit
programs.
• The product infrastructure is enhanced to ensure that existing
features of Fault Entry space management are not affected by large
Fault Entries generated as a result of large application storage
areas residing in 64-bit storage.
• Fault Analyzer is also enhanced to support analysis of abending
High-Level Assembler programs running in AMODE 64 and Java
program errors, exceptions and abends occurring in 64-bit Java
Virtual Machine.
7
8. an IBM + HCL product
Exploitation of z/OS compiler technology
No more missing compiler side files during
problem analysis
8
Only product to provide support for Automatic Binary
Optimizer for z/OS
• Automatic Binary Optimizer for z/OS (ABO) optimizes
COBOL binary programs to the target hardware platform
without re-compiling the source files.
• Fault Analyzer provides an utility to transform the
original compiler listing with the output from ABO to
ensure Fault Analyzer can report abend analysis of
optimized programs using the source display of the
original abending program.
Reporting compiler information for the abending program
• As part of event summary information Fault Analyzer
provides, compiler and its options used to create the
program is reported.
• This information is useful to ensure optimal programs are
produced for your target system’s hardware level.
Source
COBOL 4
or older
Program Listing
Fault
Analysis
Program /
DWARF
Source
COBOL 5
or 6
Fault
Analysis
Check COBOL V6.2 NOTEST(SOURCE) option.
9. an IBM + HCL product
Improve CICS problem diagnosis
9
COBTSE Abend
LINKPGM
COBTSA
COBTSB
COBTSC
COBTSD
Providing additional context
of the abending CICS task.
10. an IBM + HCL product
Recent enhancements (continue)
Video: https://youtu.be/WOIv62EMc_E
ABEND Analytics
Discover trend and areas of improvement.
Improved integration
Improved navigation to Fault Analyzer features within z/OS Explorer
environment.
Are you aware of new enhancements
on IBM z/OS Explorer Aqua?
Visit https://developer.ibm.com/mainframe/
11. an IBM + HCL product
Success story: HSBC Bank Argentina
• We've increased programmer productivity by 10 percent and cut development
costs. Not only that, but we've experienced significant decreases in the number
of transaction failures within our applications.”,
• Developers can also quickly access reports within Fault Analyzer for z/OS
software to identify exactly which instructions within an application are
causing problems in the production environment. “Before, when there was a
failure in production, determining the root-cause issue was not a simple
process,” says Mr. De Hoz. We had to have technical support people analyze the
issue before providing any help to our development team. With Fault Analyzer
reports, the developers themselves can easily identify problems. That saves
time and money.”
12. an IBM + HCL product
Integral member of IBM Application Delivery Foundation of z Systems
Highlights:
• Comprehensive solution for z/OS application development
and problem analysis
• Designed for Enterprises embarking on DevOps
transformation journey
• Exploit the latest advancements in the z Systems platform
• Built on Aqua platform for next level of integration and
extensibility
Problems solved:
• Slow development cycle
• Time consuming analysis of complex programs
• Improve operational cost while dealing with increased
workload and new requirements
Application
Delivery
Foundation for
z Systems
Fault Analyzer for z/OS
Developer for z Systems
Enterprise Edition
Application Performance
Analyzer for z/OS
File Manager for z/OS
Built on IBM Explorer for z/OS Aqua