z/VM & z/Linux Documents and other resources
Documents and Manuals:
fed20.zip

Contains sample install files for fedora 20 for z/series.
- FED20.EXEC which is the exec that runs under VM to start the fedora 20 install.
- FED20.PARM - parm file for install. References FED20.CONF (below). VNC password is specified here.
- FED20.CONF - config file. Contains dasd ranges, network parameters, etc.
- RHEL7 Install guide. This is for Red Hat linux, but most of the doc applies to fedora. Contains a chapter explaining all the contents of the PARM and CONF files.

John's z/VM & z/Linux Cookbook v2.2 A reference summary of many common z/VM and z/Linux commands and tasks. New in this version is information on DIRMAINT, installing z/VM maintenance, and others.

Contains sections on Stand Alone DDR, and setting up a GUI environment for zLinux on a PC... and others.
z/VM & zLinux Quick Notes This is a place where I put useful notes that I have not yet integrated into the cookbook.
Redbook: z/VM Basics

Basic commands and operations using z/VM. Excellent introductory text for relative beginners.

[RHEL4]  [RHEL5]  [RHEL6]  
[SLES9]  [SLES10-SP2]  [SLES11]
Virtualization Cookbooks - Detailed guides for setting up specific zLinux distributions under z/VM. Excellent guides for implementing zLinux.
sg247599-zLinux-Problem-Determination.pdf Practical guide for performing z/Linux problem determination.
sg247266-FCP-ZLINUX-ZVM.pdf Fiber Channel Protocol (FCP) for z/Linux and z/VM. A detailed guide for setting up FCP storage for SLES and RHEL under z/VM. Includes discussion on multipathing.
Version: [5.3]  [5.4]  [6.1]  [6.2]  [6.3] z/VM Installation Guides.
XEDIT-Users-Guide.pdf XEDIT User's Guide. The best place to start when learning XEDIT.
XEDIT-Commands-Macros-Reference.pdf XEDIT Commands and Macros Reference. Expansive reference on XEDIT.
   
 
Execs, scripts and programs:

 

PDR Info and Installation

(Pipe Dump and Restore)

 

PDR - Pipe Dump and Restore. A menu driven facility for dumping and restoring DASD volumes. Dump images are streamed to and from any FTP server. No tape drives are used or required. PDR uses PIPEDDR under the covers, and produces dump files that can be processed manually by PIPEDDR if desired. Also required to run PDR are the following files, which can be downloaded from the links below (from the IBM VM download site):
  PDR.VMARC,
  WINMAKER.VMARC,
  PIPEDDR.VMARC,
  PICKPIPE.VMARC.

If desired, you can also download these and other packages from their original location on the IBM VM downloads page at http://www.vm.ibm.com/download/packages/.

Here are instructions on how to transfer and unpack VMARC files.

In addition to simply volume backups, this utility is useful for migrating or moving volumes or entire systems to new locations, making offsite or DR backups, and other uses. I've used it to migrate multiple VM systems from one data center to another. All that's required is an FTP server with reasonable network bandwidth (and disk space), and TCPIP connectivity between sites.

PROFILE.EXEC-VDISK A PROFILE EXEC that automatically scans a guest's virtual DASD for FBA VDISKs, and if found, formats them as z/Linux swap space. This exec also checks to see if a guest is being autologed, and if so IPLs a specified z/Linux IPL dasd. If the guest is being logged on by a person at a terminal, it displays a menu instead, and allows the person to either IPL or not.
SWAPGEN.EXEC Written by Sine Nomine Associates - This rexx exec formats a VDISK as z/Linux swap space. This exec is required by the above exec PROFILE.EXEC-VDISK, and should be on the same minidisk (e.g. 191 disk) as the PROFILE EXEC is stored, or else on some other minidisk that the user will have accessed with (minimally) read access upon logon.
PROFILE.EXEC-DUALBOOT PROFILE EXEC that allows a terminal user IPLing a z/Linux guest to select between two different systems to IPL. Also detects if the guest is being autologged, and if so, automatically IPLs the first system.
dasd This is a shell script written to augment the z/Linux lsdasd command. It lists online and offline DASD volumes, brings volumes on and offline, and displays information about partitions on disks and filesystems. Test with RHEL 5.x, and SLES10 and SLES11. This should work on most z/Linux variants that are based on the 2.6 kernel.
copy-linux.txt Shell script that copies a z/Linux system over the network to another z/Linux system. Uses tar over an ssh tunnel. Useful for transporting entire z/Linux systems over an ip network.
jcmpipe.vmarc A collection of the programs and files needed to run PIPEDDR. This collection simplifies the installation of PIPEDDR, which has numerous co-requisite programs. See the z/VM & z/Linux Cookbook below in the Documents and Manuals section for instructions on using this file to install PIPEDDR, and examples of how to use it.
PROFILE.EXEC-ZOS This PROFILE.EXEC can be shared by multiple z/OS guests. Depending on the z/VM guest name, it will use a different LOAD address and LOADPARM string for the IPL. It will also optionally couple a pair of virtual CTCAs between the guest and the TCPIP virtual machine.