Manage SMF Data in the iStrobe Database

System Management Facility data (SMF data), provided by the IBM z/OS mainframe operating system, logs detailed information about all system activities, including system-level, application, security, transaction, and database events.

As an administrator of Strobe, you can configure, collect, and maintain SMF data by using the SMF data management page.

Accessing

To access the SMF data management page, perform the following steps:

  1. On the CES landing page, click Administration > Strobe administration.
  2. On the left navigation bar, click SMF data management.
     

To take an immediate action on SMF data

On the Immediate tab, you can archive, restore, or delete SMF data in the Strobe database.

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  1. In the Process data older than field, specify the age of SMF data to be deleted, archived, or restored.
  2. Specify the age of SMF data in days, weeks, or months.
  3. After selecting the age, click the appropriate button.

To schedule an action on SMF data

Use the Scheduled tab to schedule jobs for archiving Strobe SMF data or permanently delete it from the Strobe database.

When you perform archiving, SMF data is moved from Strobe database to the Strobe SMF Archive database. Before scheduling the archiving process, ensure to set up a Strobe SMF Archive database.

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Configure the following settings on the Scheduled tab:

FieldDescription
Enable SMF Data Scheduling to execute on the second day of each monthEnable the scheduling process by selecting this button.
Starting atSelect the appropriate time interval (AM or PM), and enter the appropriate hour.
Scheduled actionSelect the action to be taken – archiving or deleting data.
Process data older thanSelect the appropriate time interval (days, weeks, months) and enter a value appropriate for the interval.
Rolling 4-hour average reportsEnable this variable to specify that 1 day of data is to be kept in the production database for some number of months beyond the time specified by Process data older than.
ApplyTo save changes, click Apply.
Example

If “Process data older than” is set to 3, and “Keep Rolling 4 Hour Average data for” is set to 3, then all SMF and MSU data will be kept in the production database for 3 months, and 1 day of MSU related data will be kept for an additional 3 months. That is, months 1-3 will contain all SMF and MSU data, while months 4-6 will each contain 1 day of MSU related data.

The specific MSU data that is kept for the additional time is the following:

  • Job Step Interval Data
  • Job Step Termination Data
  • Job Termination Data
  • System Busy Data
  • MSU Data

To determine what MSU data to keep for the extra time (in our example, months 4, 5 and 6), the database is queried to determine the specific day each month that the highest rolling four hour MSU occurred. Once this day is determined, the data in the tables specified above is retained for that day. All other data in the tables for these months is archived or deleted.

 

 

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