CICS Analyse Workbench (CAW) is a high-performance tool to monitor, analyse, and optimise CICS applications. It enables real-time tracing, performance management, access to data sources like VSAM, DB2, and ADABAS, and support for software and compliance audits.
Real-time monitoring and analysis
CAW offers real-time tracing for COBOL-, PL/I- and HLASM programmes, allowing programmers to idenfiy errors more quickly, to optimise performance, and to uncover bottlenecks. Real-time access to databases improves reaction time and data quality – essential prerequisites for critical business processes.
Performance management and system optimisation
Performance management is essential because mainframes are used for business critical processes. CAW supports monitoring of response times and identification of bottlenecks, and helps to guarantee scalability. Using real-time data analyses, businesses can efficiently manage their mainframe performance and prevent costly system outages.
Know how transfer and junior staff development
Safeguarding mainframe know how is crucial because many experienced developers are retiring. CAW supports training and mentoring programmes to pass on knowledge to a new generation of CICS programmers. Doing so means mainframe technology remains relevant for decades to come.
Compliance and safety - the importance of DORA
Increasing regulatory requirements, in particular the EU’s Digital Operational Resilience Act, makes resilience and and security of IT systems more and more important. CAW helps businesses to meet DORA requirements by:
- Monitoring and documenting transactions in real-time,
- Identifying and analysing safety risks,
- Supporting the development of reports for audit and compliance checks.
DORA sets high IT security standards and requires resilient systems to withstand cyber attacks and operational disruptions. Businesses need to continuously analyse risks and implement robust security mechanisms. This is where CAW helps with its comprehensive monitoring and analysis functions.
Challenges to and future of mainframes
Even in times of increasing cloud transformations mainframes remain indispensable for many businesses. Current challenges include:
- Cybersecurity & resilience – protection from attacks in line with DORA-requirements.
- Legacy modernisation – integration of Cloud technology and API-based architecture.
- Junior staff development – safeguarding expert knowledge for future generations.
CAW offers a robust foundation on which to design mainframe environments that are more resilient, more efficient, and future-proof. Businesses that rely on mainframes should invest not just in performance optimisation, but also in security strategies that meat requirements such as DORA.
CICS Analyse Workbench makes development, maintenance, and monitoring of mainframe systems easier. It does so with high performance analysis and performance tools. In light of growing security and compliance requirements – especially DORA – CAW comes with valuable functions that make mainframes more resilient and more efficient and audit-compliant. Early integration of solutions like CAW helps companies to meet regulatory standards and simultaneously secure the future of their IT infrastructure.
