Managing data sets, jobs, and UNIX files in Z Open Editor with the z/OS Resources Table

by Benjamin Santos
18 September 2024

Speaking from experience, mainframe development has a steep learning curve. Starting out, I had no experience with z/OS or with many of the programming languages that run on z/OS. On top of that, the tools used in mainframe development seemed daunting. I had grown accustomed to the modern IDEs I used while studying computer science in college and I felt hesitant to give them up to use traditional tools like ISPF instead.

IBM Z Open Editor is a great option for developers who prefer programming in a modern development environment (like me). It is a Visual Studio Code extension that combines the out-of-the-box capabilities of VS Code with language support for popular z/OS programming languages. From the beginning, Z Open Editor has used Zowe Explorer APIs for interacting with z/OS. Zowe Explorer relies on VS Code tree views for displaying and managing z/OS resources, which are very limited when it comes to sorting and filtering large amounts of resources. To address these shortcomings, we set out to provide a richer user experience that addresses many of our customer's requirements for dealing with large amounts of resources while still delivering a modern development experience. This was the design philosophy of the z/OS Resources Table.

The z/OS Resources Table is a tabular view that you can use to manage z/OS data sets, UNIX files, and jobs. It is intended to make the mainframe onboarding experience easier while still providing capabilities that are useful for more experienced developers.

Getting Started

To get started with the z/OS Resources Table, you need to create a Zowe Explorer profile. These profiles contain information necessary for Z Open Editor to connect to your z/OS host. If you have already created a Zowe Explorer profile, you can begin using the table without any additional setup.

MVS, UNIX System Services, and JES views

When you open the table, you will be prompted to select a profile and a resource to interact with. You can select one of the three following resources:

• MVS for managing data sets and data set members
• USS for managing UNIX files
• JES for managing jobs

Each view in the table will provide you with a set of actions you can use. Some actions are available across all resources, such as the navigation actions in the table's top-left which work like a web browser's navigation toolbar. Other actions are only available for the specific resource you are accessing, some of which we demonstrate below.

MVS

The MVS view is used to manage data sets. The table supports many basic data set operations (create, delete, edit, etc.) and more complex operations for filtering and viewing data sets. Click on a partitioned data set to view its members and clicking a sequential data set or data set member will open it in the editor.

Using the MVS view to submit data set members as jobs.

As demonstrated in the GIF above, you can quickly edit and submit the table’s active filter to control what resources are visible. You can also easily apply actions to multiple resources at once using batch actions. To sort the table, you can click on any column header to sort the table alphanumerically by that attribute, as you would in an Excel spreadsheet.

In Z Open Editor v4.5.0, we released new MVS search capabilities for RSE API users. You can specify string content to search for across sequential data sets or data set members. You can also specify a data set or member name pattern to narrow down their search results further.

Using the MVS Search and Filter menus to find COBOL programs that include the copybook CUSTCOPY.

JES

The JES view is used for managing jobs and viewing job output. The table supports many basic job operations (canceling jobs, issuing stop or modify commands, viewing spool files, etc.) and provides capabilities for filtering jobs by name or status.

Submitting a JCL job in the MVS view. Using the JES to view filter jobs and view spool files to see why the submitted job failed.

Overflow menu actions, unlike batch actions, can be used to perform an action on a specific resource. The overflow menu can be opened by clicking on the three dots ⋮ on the right side of a table row as demonstrated in the GIF above.

UNIX System Services

The USS view is used for accessing and editing your host's UNIX files. You can navigate through the table by clicking on rows. Clicking a directory will display its contents and clicking a file will open it in a new editor, similar to how you would navigate directories using Windows File Explorer. The table supports basic UNIX operations (creating new files and directories, changing permissions, etc.) and more complex operations, including searching for files. With the new UNIX System Services search capabilities released in Z Open Editor v4.5.0, you can search for files by name and/or content.

Locating a user build log file by searching for a DBB error code.

Learn More

This blog was meant to give you a high-level overview of what is available in the z/OS Resources Table. Many available actions are not covered here and the table is receiving new features and capabilities with each release. Try it out, and if there is a missing feature that you would like to be added, you can create an enhancement request on the Z Open Editor public repository. For more information on the z/OS Resources Table, see its documentation.