Installation Tips for PeopleSoft on DB2 z/OS

Preparation:  The most important factor for success is preparation for both the PeopleSoft application team as well as the z/OS and DB2 support team.  A coordinated effort needs to be made during the pre-installation phase to determine the appropriate values for the each of the parameters in the Pre-installation Worksheet (included in the installation documentation).  The values defined in this worksheet will be entered into the Server Transfer utility (pstrans.exe), and become the basis for the creation and population of Partitioned Data Sets in TSO and Hierarchical File System in the Unix Subsystem (USS) on the z/OS mainframe.  Errors at this point in the process are magnified significantly down-stream.  For example, during a recent installation, as simple transposition of characters in the plan name for CLI Packages caused the z/OS Process Schedulers to fail on startup and was extremely difficult to isolate.

Currently (as of PeopleTools 8.52.05), the Server Transfer Utility is not designed to accommodate the separation of PS_APP_HOME from PS_HOME.  If you have installed the application files into a separate PS_APP_HOME, you will need to execute the pstrans.exe once for PeopleTools, and again for the application code with the same targets on z/OS.  Additionally, if possible, the transfer process should be executed using the TSO/USS user Id which will ultimately be used to start the Process Scheduler.  This avoids any ownership/permissions issues with the files on the USS. 

Mainframe Security: There are several decisions which need to be made regarding the security design for mainframe user Ids associated with both TSO/USS and DB2.  Security administrators and DBAs involved in the installation should prepare by reviewing the excellent documentation “Mainframe Security and PeopleSoft 8 Demystified” available from Oracle Support.   Although the title references PeopleSoft 8, the content is applicable to subsequent releases (a least thru 8.52).  This document provides an explanation of how and why the various required Ids are used on the mainframe.

DB2: In general, PeopleSoft databases on DB2 are orders-of-magnitude larger than other databases that DB2 DBAs are familiar and comfortable with.  With this in mind, it is never too early to engage them in the process of learning the best-practices for managing PeopleSoft databases on DB2.  There are many excellent resources available online from both Oracle and IBM to help them in this area, as well as an active user group of PeopleSoft customers on DB2 willing to provide tips and recommendations for effective database management.  Here are a few to get you started (Note: Oracle links require Oracle Support ID):

                (IBM) Implementing PeopleSoft 8.4 on zSeries

                (IBM) PeopleSoft V8 on zSeries Using Sysplex Data Sharing and Enterprise Storage

                (Oracle) DB2 IU Issues and Solutions 

                (Oracle) PeopleTools Certification FAQs - Database Platforms - DB2 for z/OS

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