From: jmoorhouse@mot.com  (Jim Moorhouse)
Subject: Re: IBM mainframe/Unix connectivity questions/issues
Reply-To: jmoorhouse@mot.com
Organization: MOTOROLA 
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 1992 16:34:15 GMT

In article <1992Sep30.105015.19039@netcom.com> jcasey@netcom.com (John Casey) writes:
> Hello,
> 
> This is my first posting on the internet.  I am an applications
> programmer working for a mainframe applications software company. 
> I have varied experience in the mainframe and unix environments; 
> but am no way considered an expert on either.  Our company is
> starting to look at the unix environment to enhance it's mainframe
> products.  I am on a fact finding mission to deal with the
> connectivity issues between a unix machine and a mainframe (VM/CMS,
> MVS/CICS,...).  I've read some of IBM's brochures on the RS6000 and
> their TCP/IP for the mainframe.  Well, I trust sales brochures just
> about as much as I trust any of the Presidential candidates.  I
> would like to get the scoop from you people, the experts, who have
> actually connected the two machines and are working in a mixed
> environment. 
> 
> I am not necessarily concerned about using an RS6000 or any
> particular vendor's hardware.  I don't want to be locked into a
> proprietary solution.  I would like to know however, real hardware
> configurations (mainframe and unix), network hardware (tokenring,
> eithernet, sneakerNet) and software (TCP, NFS, SNA, APPC, ?)
> configurations,  and any other special software configurations.  
> 
> I am also interested in connectivity concepts; ways of sharing
> data.   The way I see it, distributing data across a multi-machine
> network can be categorized in three groups,  application packet
> passing, full file transfer, & network packet passing.  Do you
> argee with this or have I been smoking to much nuclear waste?
> 
> Application Packet Passing (client/server technology) -
>      The application bundles its data and sends it to another
>      application.  These two application use a specific protocol,
>      i.e. APPC, NFS/RPC, TCP-SOCKETS.  
> 
> Full file transfer -
>      FTP, TAPE, ?  Transferring the data files from one machine two
> another.  
> 
> Network Packet Passing -
>      NFS, ?  This is effectively like having a disk on another
>      machine mounted to your local machine.  Your operating system
>      thinks that this is a local disk.  This means that a program
>      on one machine can perform data access to a file that is on
>      another machine.  
> 
> 
> I know this is a big subject.  If you can help out in any one or
> all of these areas, I would greatly appreciate it.  
> 
> Thank you in advance,
> 
> John Casey

I am by no means an expert, but I think a discussion of distributing applications between the mainframe and distributed  
unix machines has to start with a discussion of OSF's DCE offering. 

Some of the advantages of DCE are: Standardized RPC's - time services - and Kerberos security management to name a few  
that I am aware of.

The one thing to watch for with DCE, is the time frames it will be available on the different hardware platforms.

Assuming that all or most of the hardware vendors support DCE (which they say they are) and that the time frames make  
sense, OSF DCE seems to be the right direction for distributing application in a unix/mainframe environment.

I would be interested in any comments.

Jim Moorhouse
Motorola Inc.
1299 E. Algonquin Rd.
Schaumburg, Ill. 60196
jmoorhouse@mot.com 
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.ibm