IBM Channel is a proprietary technology that has been supported for several generations of mainframes and is supported by all current IBM enterprise system-class processors. Channel technology is used primarily in local environments in which the attached peripheral is co-located with the mainframe. However, channel extender products based on fiber technology are now available and provide for significantly higher distances when connecting peripherals. Mainframe Channel Data Transfer's management interface initiates batch transfers at specified times. This management interface monitors current transfer status, and provides transfer logging data.
Users have the flexibility to schedule transfers to be initiated at specified times.
Therefore, co-ordination with mainframe operations data transfers can be performed without intervention by an operator on the AViiON system. The status of current transfers can always be obtained through an AViiON terminal interface which displays data movement direction, elapsed time of connection, and the number of data bytes transferred. When the transfers are completed, a log is written which details the time and elapsed time of the transfer, the direction of the transfer, and the number of data bytes transferred. Mainframe Channel Data Transfer utilizes user-provided data conversion specifications that define the block and record sizes as well as specify conversion for fields within a record. Once a conversion specification is defined, it can be saved and reused for future data transfers.