(E)JES is a systems management tool that provides you with information
to monitor, manage, and control your z/OS JESplex. With (E)JES, you
can:
Control job processing (hold, release, cancel, and purge
jobs).
Monitor jobs while they are running.
Browse jobs without printing.
Control JESplex parameters, initiators (JES2),
job classes, and job class groups (JES3).
Control printers, punches, functional subsystems (JES3),
and NJE devices.
Control your JES spool configuration.
Monitor and control JES resources
Control WLM scheduling environments and resources.
Control WLM enclaves and z/OS UNIX processes.
Control the z/OS Health Checker.
Issue system commands.
(E)JES consists of panels that provide immediate
and current information about jobs, printers, queues, and resources
in a z/OS JESplex.
From this series of panels, you can enter (E)JES
commands to control the processing of jobs and the operation of system
resources. You can also issue system commands from the (E)JES panels.
With (E)JES you can easily access and modify all attributes for jobs,
started tasks, TSO users, APPC/MVS transaction jobs, or z/OS UNIX
processes running anywhere in your JESplex. Simple
commands and rapid accessibility not only save you time, but also make
interaction with your JES and other subsystems easy.
Important features of (E)JES include the ability to
collect and display more data than any product of its kind and the power
to view and alter data at the data set, data set group, and job level.
With (E)JES, you can quickly change modes and access data in all queues,
not just the Hold queue, and you can display real-time
system updates, as well as extract scrollable data to any DASD or sysout
data set of your choosing. (E)JES is also quick to install, learn, interpret
and use, and its on-line HELP facilities are available from every screen,
making operation easy.
With (E)JES you can better manage jobs, output, devices,
and system resources.
Improved Job Management
(E)JES provides an easy way to manage JES jobs,
which can help you work more efficiently. It gives immediate, up-to-date,
JESplex-wide information about jobs waiting to be processed or in execution,
such as:
The status, class, priority, date and time of a
specific job
All jobs on a specific queue, such as the input
or held output queue
Detail for a job no matter where it is in the
JESplex
Reasons a job might be delayed
Output from a job as it is created no matter
where the job is running in the JESplex
Using the (E)JES panels, primary
and line commands, and by overtyping panel columns, you can hold or
release jobs, cancel jobs, or change a job's priority, class, destination,
or any other important attributes. You can easily filter the displays
to show just the jobs that interest you, or work with all jobs in the
JESplex.
Improved Output Management
(E)JES displays detailed information about output
that is ready to be printed, including:
The total number of lines to be printed
Classes the output is assigned to
Forms needed for printing
Date the output was created
(E)JES allows you to control how and where your output
is printed. You can browse the output, including page-mode output. You
can print selected portions of the output, hold the output or purge it.
You can change the output's class, destination or forms, or virtually
any important attributes that affect how it will be printed. You can work
with all of the output for a job or individual output data sets.
With (E)JES you have a single interface to some
of the most important devices on your system.
Control Local and Remote Printers and Punches
The Printer/Punch panel lets you control local
and remote printers and punches. (E)JES displays the status of all
printers and punches in the JESplex, the output classes associated
with each printer, and information about the job currently being processed
on each device. Using this information, you can better decide how
to schedule output for printing. By simply typing over certain columns,
you can further select jobs and specify modes of printer or punch
operation. You can limit the number of local and remote printers or
punches displayed through filtering. (E)JES makes it easy to schedule
output for processing by remote printers or punches. You can call,
start, stop, restart, forward space, and backward space remote printers
and punches.
Control Spool Partitions and Volumes
The Spool Partitions and Spool Volumes panels
allow you to inspect and control your spool partitions and spool extents
(volumes). You can see which partitions/extents are filling and assign
overflow partitions and/or move spool extents between partitions to
compensate. Simple line commands allow you to drain, hold, use or release
spool extents.
Control Functional Subsystems (JES3)
The FSS panel lets you control
your writer and CI functional subsystems. (E)JES displays the status
of all functional subsystems in the JESplex and allows you to easily
make any required changes. You can invoke the Printer/Punch panel
directly from the FSS panel to show the status of each device and/or
FSA (functional subsystem application) associated with a writer FSS.
(E)JES provides an effective way of managing resources,
which can help your system run more efficiently.
Control and Manage JESplex Parameters, Job Classes, JES-managed Initiators (JES2),
JES Resource Monitoring (JES2), and Job Class Groups (JES3)
These displays help you control job scheduling to make optimal use of system resources.
Control NJE Resources
(E)JES displays the status of each node known
to the current JESplex. Simple line commands allow you to start, stop,
and manage the lines connecting the NJE nodes. JES2 users can view
and control NJE lines as well.
Control and Manage WLM Resources
A Scheduling Environment panel lets you
see all the scheduling environments that are defined, their description,
and the systems on which they are available. From this panel you can
display all jobs requiring a scheduling environment. You can also display,
on the Resource panel, the WLM resources that make up the scheduling
environment. The Resource panel can also be made to show all the WLM
resources that have been defined. You can use it to display and modify
the state of each resource on any system in the JESplex or sysplex.
Control WLM Enclaves and z/OS UNIX Processes
Modern z/OS systems consist of much more
than just batch jobs, STCs and TSO users. Evolving workloads have led
to the creation of new resources that need to be monitored and managed.
(E)JES provides displays for viewing and managing WLM enclaves and z/OS UNIX processes.
(E)JES provides robust support to help you manage checks registered to the z/OS Health Checker.
Control and Manage System Requests
A System Requests panel lets you see all outstanding
system requests for the sysplex. These can be operator replies (WTORs)
or action messages, retained by the Action Message Retention Facility
(AMRF). You can delete or respond to these requests.
Reduce Problem Management Time
Problem management often
involves reviewing the system log and issuing various system commands to
understand the nature of the problem.
(E)JES lets you view the system
log online and search for specific information using (E)JES commands.
You can also view and filter the MVS Operations Log (a merged sysplex-wide
log managed by the MVS System Logger).
The system's response
to operator commands often fills the system log. With the same information
available on full-screen panels, you can issue these commands less
often and use less spool space. Problem management is simpler with
fewer extraneous commands and responses.
Individual users can have a private online log of their
own activity, known as the User Log, which records commands and responses for
each user's personal MCS Extended Console.
(E)JES also helps you diagnose
jobs that appear "stuck" during job scheduling or execution
by providing detailed contention analysis reports. Using these reports,
you can understand which required resources are not available to your
job.
Issue System Commands
You can enter system commands from the command
line on any (E)JES display. The response to the command is displayed
on the (E)JES panel and in your user log (ULOG).
(E)JES V4R5.0 makes a significant portion of execution resources eligible for redirection to zIIP processors, including all end-user interactive host client environments except CICS, all batch scripts running in the background or foreground under TSO/E, when calling the (E)JES API, and when running (E)JES as the Operating System Interface within the workstation component server.
Improved Automation of Routine Tasks
Powerful (E)JES functionality is available to programs via the Application
Programming Interface (API). A companion REXX API provides these same
capabilities to programs written in the REXX language. Here are a few ways these
interfaces might prove useful:
Users can become more productive by leveraging these interfaces to perform routine or repetitive tasks.
Installation-written applications can use these interfaces to obtain information
that would otherwise require knowledge of MVS or JES internals and control
blocks.
Using System REXX — a facility available in z/OS V1.9 and higher — operators without TSO/E access can be given “smart” tools and commands, greatly
surpassing the capabilities offered by traditional system commands
You can tailor (E)JES to meet the needs of your users
and the security requirements of your system. For example, you can decide
which columns of information on a panel are displayed to each user and
what those columns are named. You also can control:
Who can use (E)JES
Which users can issue (E)JES control commands
Which users can issue system commands
For which jobs users can issue commands
Which jobs and output you want displayed on (E)JES
panels
Which users can display output data sets
(E)JES allows you to implement these controls:
Through the System Authorization Facility (SAF)
interface and an external security program (such as RACF)
By coding parameters in (E)JES's internal security
module
The (E)JES-JES Compatibility Matrix provides a historical look at which JES2/JES3 releases
are supported by the last six (E)JES releases. This matrix is for informational purposes
only. The appearance of any back-level z/OS or OS/390 release does not in any way imply that the release
is currently supported or maintained by IBM.
(E)JES provides support for interactive users in
the following environments:
TSO/ISPF
TSO Command Processor (no ISPF services needed)
CICS
Phoenix TP Monitor (a stand-alone multi-user
VTAM environment
Programmable Environments
The (E)JES batch interface provides much of the
power of the on-line environment to automated programs or scripts. It
may be used to automatically perform specific functions under the control
of a TSO/E CLIST, REXX exec, or any program written in System/390 assembler
language or compatible high-level language. The batch interface may
be invoked as:
A TSO Command Processor. In this environment,
(E)JES uses TSO GETLINE/PUTLINE services to receive commands and surface
responses.
A program invoked via MVS LINK or ATTACH services
or High-Level Language equivalents. In this environment, (E)JES uses
QSAM to receive commands and surface responses.
The (E)JES Application Programming Interface is similar to the batch interface in concept, but provides much more powerful programming capabilities. The API can be called from programming languages such as Assembler, COBOL, PL/I, and C. It supports ordinary problem state and privileged callers alike. The API is also implemented in REXX.
(E)JES uses MVS cross
memory services to obtain real-time information from JES and other
running address spaces in the system. This avoids contention for JES
resources and eliminates unnecessary I/O.
In
a sysplex environment, (E)JES utilizes XCF signaling services to perform
event-driven signaling and to move information from one z/OS image
to another.
(E)JES is designed for
a large user base and eliminates redundant query activities by utilizing
buffered "lazy update" techniques. When spool I/O is needed, (E)JES
utilizes JES-provided system services to eliminate unwanted contention
for I/O resources.
An (E)JES release is either active (new PTFs will be written), stabilized (no new PTFs will be written), or
no longer supported (maintenance PTFs no longer available).
The following table shows the current status of all
(E)JES releases.
Release
Status
Stabilized
Supported through
(E)JES V4R6.0
Active
(E)JES V4R5.0
Active
(E)JES V4R4.0
Active
03/2009
03/2011
(E)JES V4R3.0
Stable
06/2008
03/2010
(E)JES V4R2.0
Stable
07/2007
03/2009
(E)JES V4R1.0
Stable
10/2006
10/2008
All Others
No longer supported
Usually a release becomes stabilized three to
six months after it becomes the "n‑2" release, and is no longer supported
two years after that.