1. The National iSystems User Group How can i?Steve.Bradshaw@RowtonIT.com

2. The National iSystems User Group What is he talking about? Attitudes have changed, sharing knowledge is now the norm Gone are the days of hiding information , tricks and tips Instead we make daily use of information sources Google, LinkedIn, System i Network, NiSUG.Org, etc I believe we need to share our collective knowledge and experience Face to face contact to build trusted relationships Genuine, honest opinions Inspiration and ideas Reference and Reassurance re direction and solutions Save time and money Satisfaction of making a difference Getting more Out of your membership If you were to save just one day of consultancy you could save enough money to pay for two or more years membership

3. The National iSystems User Group So, what is How can i? How can I? is the most commonly asked question I asked Just a few that have cropped up in the last few months How can I convert a spool file into a PDF? How can I see where the bottleneck is on this job? How can I make my backups windows smaller? How can I send a XML file to my webserver? How can I encrypt my data and backups? How can I make my printouts look better? How can I access my DB2 files from another system? There is no one correct answer to any of the questions posed above, All of the above had free or fee based solutions

4. The National iSystems User Group So, what is How can i? A brief, high level, opportunity to discuss the pros & cons of the different ways you could solve a specific problem. If you find it useful, it will be a regular agenda item with topics that you suggest. It should stimulate and complement our own conversations, current sources of information and hopefully the use of the NiSUG forums. It will allow the audience to see the relative benefits of one solutions over another. Nothing is off limits, the solutions we discuss can be home grow, open source or third party applications.

5. The National iSystems User Group What How can i? IS NOT! It is not a step by step tutorial It is not a replacement for your third party tools and support It is not a dry technical discussion where you are told what to do It is not a selling opportunity for the BPs and consultants

6. The National iSystems User Group Please dont fall into the following trap Thinking that your idea is not relevant to other members because: They work in a different industry They are larger or small organisation Your solution is home grown You think your solution is specific to your company You think Ill drag you up to the front and make you give presentation Thinking this is a competition to find the best solution

7. The National iSystems User Group An Example How Can I How can i reduce my backup window? Background: I backup approximately 300GB each night to a single LTO2 tape drive and it is 5 hours, this needs to be reduced to 3 hours The backup mix is approximately: 50GB applications 100GB DB2 Files 150GB IFS objects What are my options?

8. The National iSystems User Group An Example How Can I How can i reduce my backup window? Free Stuff Procedural, process or programming changes that require time and effort but not capital outlay Modest Costs Small to medium investment in hardware, software or services to resolve the issue Strategic Investment Significant investment that would solve the problem in for the long term and enable future benefits and or savings

9. The National iSystems User Group An Example How Can I How can i reduce my backup window? Free Stuff Check that DTACPR(*DEV) & COMPACT(*DEV) parameters Monitor backup job to check its not waiting on locks Use Virtual Tape for backup whilst application is offline, then DUPTAP to physical when and applications active Change backup routine into two stage process: 1st that requires the application to be shutdown 2nd that can run whilst application active (often large portions of the IFS can be backed up whilst in use) Modest Costs Upgrade to faster tape drive (LTO3, 4 or 5 drive) Main Store (RAM) or DASD (Disk) Upgrade Strategic Investment Implement Software High Availability replication tool like iCluster, Mimix, MaxAva and backup for HA server. Migrate to external storage (SAN), backup using FlashCopy and / or Copy Services

10. The National iSystems User Group What happens if we can not come up with a solution? This seems remarkably unlikely but if it did, then I either: One of the NiSUG community would find something and let us know at or before the next even. As every loves a challenge! I would raise it as an issue at the next monthly CEAC meeting and seek ideas from the other European team or from IBM direct.

11. The National iSystems User Group How can i suggest a topic for discussion? Take you pick from any of the following: Post a request in the NiSUG forums Email me direct: steve.bradshaw@rowtonit.com Speak to me or any of the other NiSUG committee members Write it on your feedback forms