Posted by Armonk, USA: IBM announced IBM z/OS V2.5, the next-gen operating system (OS) for IBM Z. The new OS accelerate client adoption of hybrid cloud and AI and drive application modernization projects.
New IBM z/OS V2.5, the company said helps drive value for clients by delivering new capabilities across AI enablement, application modernization, resiliency, enhanced security and an improved developer experience.
For most enterprises and organisations, application modernization remains core in moving their business ahead and leveraging mainframe computer systems in today’s hybrid cloud scenario.
71% of executives surveyed say mainframe-based applications are central to their business strategy. In three years, the percentage of organisations leveraging mainframe assets in a hybrid cloud environment would increase over 2x revealed an IBM Institute for Business Value study titled Application modernization on the mainframe.
AI capabilities on IBM Z
87% of global IT professionals surveyed say it is very or somewhat important to their company that they can build and run their AI projects wherever the data resides. The IBM commissioned, Morning Consult conducted “Global AI Adoption Index 2021” report revealed.
With z/OS V2.5, IBM is adding new high performance AI capabilities tightly integrated with z/OS workloads, designed to give clients business insights for more informed decision making.
“IBM is all-in on hybrid cloud and AI. We are deeply focused on delivering new innovations like AI and new security capabilities on IBM Z. Helping our clients move forward, more quickly with their modernization journeys,” said Ross Mauri, GM – IBM Z.
“For our clients, IBM z/OS V2.5 brings new security and resiliency capabilities to the platform, and enables clients to infuse AI in real-time into every business transaction – imperatives that became more urgent during the pandemic,” added Mauri.
Enhanced security to make client data future-ready
IBM z/OS V2.5 is helping to address the challenges of ransomware attacks against critical infrastructure with broad enhancements. That is across authentication, authorization, logging, system integrity, system and data availability, encryption for data in flight and at rest, and overall data privacy.
Expanding pervasive encryption to new types of data sets: sequential basic format and large format SMS-managed data sets are now included, providing users with the capability to encrypt data without application changes and to simplify compliance
Anomaly Mitigation capabilities that leverage Predictive Failure Analysis (PFA), Runtime Diagnostics, Workload Manager (WLM), and JES2 to help further detect anomalous behaviour in near real-time, letting clients proactively address potential problems
A secured, scalable environment for hybrid cloud
As clients accelerate their journey to the hybrid cloud, having a secured, scalable environment is critical for the underlying transformation process. IBM z/OS V2.5 introduces new capabilities that support application modernization and provide a cloud-native experience on z/OS:
- New Java/COBOL Interoperability that extends existing application programming models with support for parallel 31-bit and 64-bit addressing, simplifying enterprise application modernization.
- Enhanced performance and ease of use for z/OS Container Extensions (zCX) to integrate Linux applications and utilities into z/OS.
- Additional capabilities to integrate cloud storage through transparent cloud tiering (TCT) and the Object Access Method (OAM) cloud tier support to help reduce capital and operating expenses with data transfer to hybrid cloud storage environments for simplified data archiving and data protection on IBM Z.
IBM z/OS V2.5 is faster and easier to install and upgrade, with one client trial demonstrating the ability to install z/OS more than 30% faster than compared with IBM z/OS 2.3 and 2.4.
It offers a simplified management experience with automated tasks taking away the need for specialized skills. IBM z/OS V2.5 will be generally available on September 30, 2021.