In the evolving world of mainframe computing, agility and cost-effectiveness are becoming paramount. Traditional storage solutions often fail to keep up with the demands of modern enterprises, leading to challenges like vendor lock-in, high operational costs, and limited scalability. Enter Zaac™, VirtualZ Computing’s innovative storage solution that bridges the gap between mainframe storage and modern object storage technologies. Zaac eliminates the need for physical storage; leverages innovative features like caching and journaling; and delivers unmatched flexibility, scalability, and cost efficiency: mainframe storage in the cloud for pennies on the dollar. Whether you’re optimizing for current needs or preparing for future growth, Zaac empowers you to unlock the full potential of your mainframe storage strategy.
Why Mainframe Leaders Care About Zaac
Zaac addresses two critical pain points for mainframe storage: agility and cost savings.
- On-Demand Agility
Zaac enables mainframe users to access storage on demand, mirroring the seamless experience of provisioning storage in cloud environments. Imagine logging into a platform, requesting an additional 50 terabytes, and having it ready for use in seconds — no calls, no delays, just instant scalability. This capability is a game-changer for mainframe sites, where the traditional procurement and deployment of physical storage can take weeks or months.Beyond provisioning, Zaac also allows users to scale down storage when projects end, eliminating the burden of managing surplus hardware. This flexibility empowers organizations to adapt rapidly to changing business needs without being constrained by physical storage limitations. - Unmatched Cost Efficiency: Zaac unlocks significant savings by optimizing how non-critical data is stored. Many mainframe datasets are important but do not require the high-speed, high-cost storage typically associated with live production systems. Zaac enables organizations to store such data in low-cost environments, potentially saving pennies on the dollar compared to traditional disk storage.
The Technical Edge: iSCSI Integration
Zaac supports multiple storage protocols, including object storage (e.g., Amazon S3), high-performance server storage (iSCSI), and file-sharing optimized storage (NFS). However, its new iSCSI feature adds a compelling dimension for enterprises seeking a hybrid approach to storage.
Why does iSCSI matter?
- Performance: iSCSI operates over high-speed, on-premises networks, delivering performance comparable to native mainframe disk. For applications requiring low latency and high throughput, iSCSI can outperform cloud-based storage.
- Cost-Effectiveness: Enterprise-grade iSCSI devices offer high performance at a fraction of traditional mainframe storage costs. For instance, a fully configured iSCSI appliance providing 200 terabytes of storage might cost less than $10,000 — a staggering value for enterprises managing large-scale data.
- Control: For organizations concerned about placing sensitive data in the cloud, iSCSI provides an on-premises solution, ensuring full control over data security and accessibility.
Moving Beyond Vendor Lock-In
Mainframe organizations often face limited choices for storage solutions, leading to over-reliance on a few vendors. Zaac breaks this cycle by enabling integration with widely available storage technologies across platforms like Windows, Linux, and the cloud. This reduces dependency on traditional mainframe storage vendors and introduces healthy competition, ultimately benefiting the enterprise.
Catching Up with Modern IT Practices
For decades, non-mainframe platforms have leveraged on-demand storage to enhance agility and reduce costs. Zaac brings the same capabilities to the mainframe, eliminating architectural limitations that once prevented it from participating in this efficiency revolution.
With Zaac, organizations can:
- Configure storage on the fly, scaling up or down as needed.
- Reduce reliance on costly physical hardware.
- Utilize familiar, cost-effective storage solutions across all IT environments, including mainframes.
A Smarter Future for Mainframe Storage
Zaac empowers enterprises to modernize their mainframe storage strategies without compromising on performance, cost, or control. By supporting multiple storage protocols and enabling seamless integration with cloud and on-premises environments, Zaac sets the stage for a smarter, more agile future.
Whether it’s leveraging cost-efficient cloud storage, optimizing on-premises resources with iSCSI, or reducing vendor lock-in, Zaac helps enterprises transform mainframe storage into a strategic asset.
What Sets Zaac Apart
Zaac is powered by patented technology designed to revolutionize data storage and access for IBM Z mainframes. Its unique capabilities ensure seamless integration with modern cloud and on-premises solutions, addressing challenges that no other product in the market can solve as effectively. Here’s what sets Zaac apart:
- Innovative Data Transformation: Zaac’s core innovation lies in its ability to adapt mainframe IO — designed for highly specialized hardware — to work seamlessly with modern storage options, including cloud platforms like Amazon S3 or iSCSI devices. This is achieved through proprietary methods that translate low-level mainframe IO operations into formats compatible with virtually any storage solution.
- Open and Extensible Architecture: The architecture of Zaac is designed for flexibility, enabling organizations to use any storage option they require — even unconventional choices like Dropbox. This open-ended approach ensures that Zaac can accommodate future needs and new technologies without requiring significant changes to existing systems.
- Unmatched Fault Tolerance and Performance: Zaac includes advanced caching and journaling capabilities that mitigate the inherent latency of cloud storage. These features allow mission-critical applications requiring high IO throughput to perform reliably, even in the event of network outages, by journaling updates and automatically synchronizing when connections are restored.
- Comprehensive Virtual Disk and Tape Support: Unlike competitors that focus solely on virtual tape or disk solutions, Zaac provides integrated support for both. Whether your organization needs to create virtual disks for real-time database access or archive tapes for long-term storage in cost-effective solutions like Amazon Glacier, Zaac handles it all within a single product.
- Cross-Provider Duplication and Disaster Recovery: Zaac empowers organizations to create multiple synchronized data copies across different platforms, including on-premises iSCSI devices and various cloud providers like Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud. This ensures robust disaster recovery options without the prohibitive costs associated with traditional hardware and networking solutions.
- Simplified Management and Lower Costs: By combining multiple storage capabilities into a single product, Zaac reduces complexity and administrative overhead. Organizations no longer need separate solutions for virtual tape, disk, cloud, and on-premises storage, significantly lowering costs and easing management efforts.
- Empowering Organizations of All Sizes: Zaac democratizes access to advanced storage solutions, making previously cost-prohibitive capabilities — such as high-performance replication and seamless cloud integration — accessible to smaller organizations and lower-end sites that need robust disaster recovery and archiving options. Zaac isn’t just another storage solution — it’s a transformative tool that bridges the gap between legacy mainframe systems and the demands of modern IT environments, offering unprecedented flexibility, performance, and cost efficiency.
Adopting Zaac: What Does It Take?
Transitioning to Zaac is designed to be seamless, straightforward, and efficient, making it easy for organizations to enhance their storage strategy. Let’s break down the key steps and infrastructure requirements:
Getting Started
Once a commitment is made to deploy Zaac, the actual software installation process is remarkably simple. VirtualZ provides a compressed archive containing everything you need. Restoring this archive on your system sets the foundation for Zaac’s functionality, allowing you to get started quickly.
Infrastructure Requirements
Zaac is compatible with a wide range of environments, including on-premise storage and cloud services like Amazon S3. To prepare, you’ll need:
- Security Definitions: Establish permissions to allow Zaac to perform necessary operations.
- Storage Configuration: Define your storage targets, such as iSCSI devices or cloud accounts. Each storage type requires basic setup details, such as network addresses and credentials.
Configuration and Setup
Setting up Zaac involves minimal effort:
- Format storage targets (e.g., virtual disks or tapes) using utilities included with Zaac.
- Configure connections to your storage environment, specifying how you want your virtual disks or tapes provisioned.
- Use operator commands on z/OS to bring virtual devices online, defining their type, capacity, and other properties.
For an experienced storage administrator, this process typically takes no more than a couple of hours. Most of the effort lies in tailoring configurations to your specific requirements.
Seamless Integration
Zaac integrates with your existing z/OS environment, making its virtual storage appear and function identically to physical devices. For example:
- Applications can interact with Zaac volumes as if they were native mainframe disks, whether for reading, writing, or running processes.
- Popular tools and workflows, such as DFSMS and ISPF editors, are fully supported.
- No application changes are required, making the adoption process painless for developers and operators alike.
Optimizations
Zaac provides optional features to enhance performance and resilience:
- Caching: Leverage z/OS VLF objects for faster access to frequently used data.
- Journaling: Use IBM System Logger to ensure data integrity and support advanced recovery options.
Flexibility in Operation
Zaac is dynamic, allowing you to scale or modify your storage configurations as needed:
- Bring virtual disks online or take them offline without disrupting your operations.
- Resize storage or move data effortlessly across environments.
What’s the Experience Like?
For mainframe storage managers, adopting Zaac is familiar territory. While the specifics may vary based on your storage environment, the overall process mirrors traditional mainframe storage management. VirtualZ’s robust tools and detailed guidance ensure a smooth transition.
Whether you’re setting up for the first time or optimizing performance, Zaac empowers organizations to modernize their storage infrastructure efficiently and cost-effectively.
Conclusion: Unlocking the Future of Mainframe Storage with Zaac
Adopting Zaac transforms how organizations manage mainframe storage, seamlessly integrating modern storage solutions like cloud and iSCSI into existing z/OS environments. Its streamlined installation, intuitive configuration, and compatibility with native tools ensure a smooth transition with minimal disruption to operations.
By eliminating the need for physical storage and leveraging innovative features like caching and journaling, Zaac delivers unmatched flexibility, scalability, and cost efficiency. Whether you’re optimizing for current needs or preparing for future growth, Zaac empowers you to unlock the full potential of your mainframe storage strategy.
As businesses continue to modernize, Zaac provides the agility to adapt to changing demands while preserving the reliability and performance you expect from your mainframe. It’s more than just a storage solution — Zaac is your gateway to a smarter, more dynamic data infrastructure.