What's new in IBM Db2 AI for z/OS 1.4.0

Db2® AI for z/OS® delivers new and enhanced features in a continuous manner. Review the summary of changes in the latest release, to help you plan your installation, migration, or upgrade.

What's new in version 1.4.0?

  • Improved automated SQL regression detection and resolution, enabling regressions to be detected and resolved more quickly, and in some cases in real-time, even before the query has completed execution.
  • Sort optimization enabled for OLTP queries, which can result in savings of CPU resources.
  • Improved sort optimization when combined with the IBM® z15™ hardware sort assist for SQL, whereby learning can improve exploitation of the z15 sort feature.
  • Improved SQL optimization user interface, which clearly shows the benefits that Db2ZAI is providing by highlighting progress, benefits, and actions to be taken:
    • Db2ZAI now shows the progress it has made in learning about static SQL packages and dynamic SQL statements.
    • The improved SQL optimization dashboard shows the benefits provided by Db2ZAI in terms of SQL statements improved, average CPU improvement, and access path regressions resolved.
    • The improved user interface clearly indicates the recommended actions to be taken to improve performance.
  • Improvements to the Db2ZAI System Assessment functionality include:
    • Correlation of system assessment data with SQL optimization data through the identification of SQL statements that might be contributing to system assessment exceptions. This new function can assist users in determining the cause of system-level anomalies and enable speedier problem resolution.
  • Improvements to the Db2ZAI Distributed Connection Control function include:
    • Extended protection for Db2 for z/OS subsystems to control access from dynamic IP addresses in addition to the existing static IP address protection. Clients can set and monitor threshold by dynamic IP addresses.
    • Improved visualizations for statistics graphs that are more meaningful and easier to use. DBAs will now be able to gain insight into how remote applications are impacting Db2, and to identify which applications are running less optimally, in order to prevent potential outages.

What's new in version 1.3.1?

  • This version introduces simplified user management for Db2ZAI through the use of default Db2 access control methods (RACF).
  • For this version, Db2ZAI can now identify SQL statements that may be contributing to certain System Assessment exceptions. This can help to determine the cause of certain system-level anomalies and speed their resolution.
  • This version enhances the automated SQL regression detection and resolution feature, such that regressions can now be detected and resolved more quickly then before, and in some cases the detection may occur in real-time, even before the query has completed executing.
  • In this version, you can now hide exception IDs from your view in the System Assessment exception details.
  • This version introduces the new concurrency settings for on-demand system assessments that allows you to set the number of assessments that run at the same time and the time it takes before an assessment times out.
  • For this version, a new set of MONITOR ALL profiles are created for unaccounted-for ip addresses.

What's new in version 1.3.0?

  • This version introduces automated SQL regression detection and resolution. Db2ZAI will now detect when an access path has degraded compared to a prior access path, and will automatically lock in and fall back to the prior better-performing access path. This self-healing capability enables Db2ZAI to resolve regressions without intervention by a database administrator, thus saving valuable time and effort.

    The threshold for this automation is customizable, giving you the ability to specify the conditions for Db2ZAI to automatically execute a fallback. This provides much-needed flexibility for complex environments that require continuous tuning to ensure uptime and responsiveness.

  • For this version, the IBM Db2 AI for z/OS system assessment function now provides an enhanced exception analysis experience, in which exceptions are categorized into general regions of interest to system programmers (such as CPU, storage, and connectivity) to allow a more immediate identification of problem areas.

    Once the problems are identified, Db2ZAI provides a correlation graph that enables system programmers to quickly align an anomaly with a particular system attribute and activity. Such correlation is critical to the timely prevention and resolution of system anomalies before they become debilitating system errors.

  • This version introduces distributed connection control, which provides protection for Db2 for z/OS from unintentional disruptions and intrusions that can originate from remote applications.

What's new in version 1.2.0.2?

  • Db2ZAI Assessment On Demand is a new feature that enables you to run a one-time system assessment of Db2 statistics data, based on a custom time period (for example, a single 36-hour window) to get a single view for that time frame.
  • For this version, the IBM Db2 AI for z/OS SQL optimization function now allows you to manually lock in or unlock the access paths for static or dynamic SQL statements.
  • IBM Db2 AI for z/OS provides a RESTful API to schedule a system assessment in order to understand system health status or to detect a tuning opportunity.
  • This version introduces a simplified installation process that is designed to reduce the amount of time to get your system up and running.

What's new in version 1.2.0.1?

  • This version introduces the ability to determine whether the performance of a statement has regressed, and if it has, to automatically re-train the model to improve statement performance.
  • This version introduces the ability to uncover time-specific performance anomalies through enhanced data visualization which reveals detailed system performance data by time period.

What's new in version 1.2.0?

  • This version of IBM Db2 AI for z/OS version introduces the ability to detect Db2 system performance exceptions and to provide recommended actions for tuning which are based on your environment.

What's new in version 1.1.0.1?

  • This version provides the ability to more accurately predict the benefit of parallel processing for static and dynamic SQL, which can result in improved elapsed time and lower chargeable CPU.
  • This version also introduces the ability to determine whether sort processes can benefit from increased memory utilization.

What's available in version 1.1.0?

  • This version provides the ability to predict the host-variables for a given query.
  • This version also provides the ability to predict the number of rows in the result set that the application will actually fetch.