Alert Manager

The SPS/Alert Manager automates the detection, classification, and resolution of errors within your system and applications. The Alert Manager was built since, with modern-day systems, it is extremely difficult for users to notice and resolve all application and system events as they occur.

Applications can output endless logs, errors, and files and an operating system alone can generate thousands of messages per day. If alerts are noticed and responded to in time, serious production problems can often be prevented. That’s why the SPS/Alert Manager was created.

By monitoring the system elements, reading messages, and funneling information to a single terminal for various systems, modules, and applications, the Alert Manager makes management simple.

• Captures application messages and system events in real-time.
• Reports critical conditions to the network control center.
• Classifies and reports only significant alerts and critical problems based on simple, user-defined filtering rules.
• Automatically executes user-defined recovery procedures.
• Creates hands-free, self-correcting environment.
• Enforces, tracks, and reports operator acknowledgements to critical system alerts.

The SPS/Alert Manager monitors CPU utilization, running processes, page faults rate, I/O rate, interrupt level, available memory system overhead of individual processes, TP rate, processing bottlenecks, communication, application disk I/O distribution, disk space utilization, and more.

The Alert Manager provides configuration flexibility to support a variety of applications, system software, and interaction with other platforms. It also sends alert messages to selected terminals, so administrators can stay on top of the important events.

Job Scheduler

The SPS/Application Scheduler & Monitor automates application monitoring, batch cycles schedules, and process recovery procedures. As a complete, integrated package that’s designed to control and monitor all applications running on your system, the monitor will automate your application startups, shutdowns, and recovery procedures. You can base your automation on predefined time schedules.

The Job Scheduler also enables you to completely automate batch cycles and keep on-line applications up-and-running at all times. A single point of control for your operations at all application levels also minimizes the risk of human error while preventing production disasters.

• Provides unattended supervision of the production environment.
• Starts and stops applications based on your predefined schedule, no human intervention required.
• Monitors running applications and recovery failed processes.
• Supports advanced calendar-based functions to allow monthly, weekly, daily, and hourly job initiation.
• Supports the sequencing of processes, starting a new one directly following the completion of another.
• Generates a single, comprehensive, and easy-to-follow audit trail log.
• Maintains and reports performance statistics for each process and application.
• Provides a user-based, online help facility through commant-to-document links.
• Reduces documentation and operator training expenses.
• Minimizes the risk of human error.
• Enhances system security.

As an event-driven system, the Job Scheduler will “sleep” 99% of the time. If you need to adjust your schedule at any point, it’s quick and simple to make changes. Additionally, you can have multiple configuration settings on the same system.

Performance Monitor

With Performance Monitor, you can resolve capacity planning, system trouble-shooting, and alerting issues with ease. Performance Monitor addresses all aspects of system performance, including: capacity planning, current and historical data reporting, quick online troubleshooting, and system-level alert handling.

The Performance Monitor also helps identify which process or application is “killing” your system and allows you to resolve potential problems in a proactive manner, letting you handle capacity planning more accurately. With the reporting facility, you can examine historical data in Online Playback Mode and download report files into spreadsheet applications.

Additionally, the system features an Analyze System Server process that reduces the overhead associated with the analyze_system command. It also allows users to periodically extract and log any set of  benchmark values. When any of the monitored meters exceed the allowed thresholds, alert signals will be produced, and corrective commands will automatically be executed.

• Supports multi-module, multi-system sites.
• Records system utilization meters for your CPU, page faulting time/rate, disk I/O, and system interruptions.
• Monitors transaction rate and identify processing bottlenecks.
• Analyzes historical data and create spreadsheet-ready ASCII report files that can be imported into EXCEL and other programs.
• Monitors application queuing activity, messages processed, messages pending, and queue rate/depth.
• Provides process listings sorted by system.
• Provides a Playback Mode for historical data analysis.

One of the biggest features about the SPS/Performance Monitors is that you do not need to be a performance guru. It’s designed to be up-and-running in about 20 minutes with a minimal learning curve.

As far as system overhead, there is very limited impact of overhead. The server will wake up only every minute (or any other selected time period) to take a quick snapshot of system meters.

VOS Security Shell/Menu System

With SPS/VOS Command Shells, you can audit user activity while increasing productivity.

By eliminating unrestricted access to VOS, the SPS/Vos Security Shell greatly enhances the productivity of operators and developers.

Even without Stratus experience, any operator can operate the system safely by quickly becoming proficient with this system. It’s an indispensable environment for any mainframe trained personnel.

• Eliminates the need to register privileged users.
• Allows non-privileged users to execute selected subsets of analyze_system requests and other privileged commands.
• Incorporates the Security Layer shielding the system from unauthorize use.
• Produces a comprehensive audit trail log.
• Keeps track of operator’s activities and allows the user to restore and reuse commands and path names used previously during the session.
• Features a standard DES-based file encryption facility.
• Provides process listings sorted by system.

All SPS products utilize a robust security layer that’s designed to satisfy the most stringent security and audit requirements. By allowing any level of customization (including per-user and per-command profiles), SPS features a multi-level, object-oriented solution for security requirements. The system provides more granularity and greatly improves the single level approach to security.

By authorizing command execution based on a user’s security profile and by allowing access of non-privileged users to selected privileged commands, the system eliminates the need for privileged user registration. It also ensures execution of commands from the correct, designated terminals and blocks access to restricted modules, systems, and devices.

Additionally, you can limit menu-driven access to only certain users and operators, and you can also use it if your application has a built-in menu.

Web Browser Interface 

VOS Console is a free version of Alert Manager. It’s a complete set of practical monitoring tools that will provide your company with a web browser interface to VOS, eliminating security risks associated with users working inside a critical environment.

VOS Console is a secure, read-only interface. It allows access to registered users only and inherits all of VOS’ security, including login-admin and password management. VOS Console also limits users to their own customized, view-only VOS Console, meaning they will not be able to access the module via FTP or Telnet.

Users will also be audited every step of the way and the VOS Console does not require any commitment, additional software, licenses, or even configuration effort. You can get the whole thing up-and-running in a matter of minutes.

• Real-time basic system usage graphs for your CPU, PF, I/O, Paging, and Memory.
• Real-time basic disk meters and graphs of disk utilization, % read-busy, and % write-busy.
• Real-time basic Queue meters and graphs of Queue utilization, message processing rate (TPS).
• Real-time list-users meters and graphs for resource consumption and overhead of processes and process-groups (CPU, I/O, and memory).
• Real-time VOS-Queues monitor.
• Real-time NetStat monitor.
• Secure VOS-Explorer.
• Standard VOS user-id and password verification.
• Additional auditing and security benefits.
• Restriction of users to the secure, read-only browser interface (no FTP or Telnet access).