Extending appreciation to all who participated in the IBM Db2 Analytics Accelerator (IDAA) v7.1 webinar on August 28, 2019.  If you weren’t able to join us, here is the webcast recording.  In a fast-paced 90 minutes we covered:

1. A review of capabilities included in recent IDAA v7.1.x code drops
2. The return of the High Performance Storage Saver (HPSS)
3. Integrated Synchronization
4. The closer-to-real Hybrid Transaction Analytic Processing (HTAP) capability
5. Disaster Recovery and High Availability considerations

The Fillmore Group’s exclusive IDAA Buyer’s Guide compares these IDAA form factors and deployment options:

• IBM Integrated Analytics Systems (IIAS)
• Docker container running on System z
• Docker container running on LinuxONE

And this is the handout: IDAA Webinar 2019-08

Please note: if you would like the exclusive IDAA Buyer’s Guide referenced in the webinar, contact my colleague, Kim May (kim.may@thefillmoregroup.com).

In this session I described and compared the four distinct data retrieval technologies available from IBM.

Choices are good to have, but how do you choose which technology to apply to a particular business use case? Learn how these techniques differ, including their relative strengths and weaknesses.
– The traditional RDBMS, relying primarily on indexes to speed access
– The new BLU Acceleration columnar compression and memory-optimized database
– IBM PureData System for Analytics (Netezza), which deploys racks of Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) processors to parse data
– IBM InfoSphere BigInsights,  the IBM distribution of Hadoop

Click here for the recording of the webinar.  The presentation materials: IBM Data Retrieval Technologies RDBMS BLU Netezza and Hadoop

The concept of Hybrid Transaction/Analytic Processing was coined by Gartner. IBM implements HTAP in two ways:
– IBM DB2 Analytics Accelerator (IDAA) for DB2 for z/OS data (using Netezza hardware)
– DB2 BLU Acceleration – DB2 for Linux, Unix, Windows (a software-only implementation)

Click here for the recording of the webinar.  The presentation materials: Hybrid Transaction Analytic Processing – HTAP

Abstract: An update on the latest IBM DB2 Analytic Accelerator (IDAA) PTF released in May, 2015. This PTF delivers new functionality to extend IDAA utilization for DB2 for z/OS users including:

• Improved Incremental Update reliability and performance
• Accelerated dynamic query statement caching
• Additional scalar function support
• In-database transformation with Accelerator Only Tables (AOTs)

Click here for the recording of the webinar.  The presentation materials: IDAA v41 PTF5 TFG

One of the challenges of Big Data is, well, its bigness.  There are two approaches you should consider – one fairly new, the other not yet delivered – for your data volume issues on DB2 for z/OS.

The first technique exploits the IBM DB2 Analytics Accelerator (IDAA).  IDAA is a Netezza (now PureData System for Analytics) appliance lashed together with DB2 for z/OS using a high-speed connection.  The same data typically resides in both DB2 and Netezza.  The DB2 optimizer determines if a particular dynamic query can be addressed at a lower cost by offloading that query to Netezza.

Until November 2012, all of the data needed to be present on both Netezza and DB2.  In IDAA version 3, that restriction has been removed.  The attached presentation describes offloading older data to the Netezza and eliminating it from DB2.  In a common use case the most current data (say, the last 30 days) remains in DB2, but older data (days 31 to the preceding 2 years) reside *only* in Netezza.  This is called the High Performance Storage Saver (HPSS).  IDAA HPSS

Based on the cost of mainframe DASD storage and other factors, it might be less expensive to store stale data in a “hot” back-end like the Netezza part of an IDAA than to continue to store that data natively in DB2 for z/OS.  From an API standpoint, you run your queries as if all of the data resides locally in DB2 for z/OS.  That way you can change which data reside in each of the IDAA components with out impacting applications or SQL changes.

The second technique exploits temporal data functionality delivered in DB2 10 for z/OS.  Temporal tables enable you to see values for attributes of a particular business object (account, part, employee, customer, etc.) at a specific point-in-time (PIT).  As SQL UPDATEs are processed against a transaction table, deltas are recorded in a history table associated with the transaction table.  That way you can issue a query like:

SELECT coverage_amt FROM policy FOR SYSTEM_TIME AS OF '12-01-2010' WHERE id = 111

and see the coverage_amt at a point-in-time regardless of any intervening changes.  DB2 11 for z/OS – not yet Generally Available (GA), but in beta with Early Support Program (ESP) customers – builds on this technology by extending it to “archive” data.  The use case is the same as the one described above: for processing efficiency you want the last 30 days of transaction data to reside in one DB2 table and older data (days 31 to the preceding 2 years) to be stored in another.  Think insurance claims: most activity regarding a claim occurs within the first 30 days of a loss.  But for business and compliance reasons, you want to retain up to 2 years of data on spinning disks; even older data might be kept on offline storage.  Using this technique, all of the data resides natively in two different DB2 for z/OS tables (current and archive).  The benefit this time is segregating commonly accessed data for processing efficiency.  As was the case with IDAA/HPSS, the location of the data is transparent to the SQL.  You write the query for the data you want and DB2 determines whether it resides in the current data table, archive table, or both.

In summary

IBM DB2 Analytics Accelerator (IDAA) powered by Netezza Lunch and Learn

If you are in the Baltimore/Washington area and interested in learning more about the IBM DB2 Analytics Accelerations – the IDAA – please join Netezza evangelist Dwaine Snow and DB2 Gold Consultant Frank Fillmore for lunch to learn about the new solution from IBM that merges System z with Netezza. The IBM DB2 Analytics Accelerator creates an environment for operational data store, data warehouse and analytic marts on the same platform as operational systems, such as IMS™, CICS®, Java™, the Web and more.

Learn how you can use the IBM DB2 Analytics Accelerator to:
• Enable decision-makers to perform high-performance business analysis for better results
• Substantially reduce operational costs by removing the need for complex query tuning
• Drive immediate value to the bottom line by rapidly adding new applications and user requirements
• Extend the qualities of service in security and availability of System z, enabling business intelligence to deliver business changing analytics and reduce complexity by extending System z manageability

*** Session attendees may qualify to attend a free 2-day hands-on IDAA training session at The Fillmore Group’s Towson, MD office in July. ***

Date: Wednesday, June 27th 2012
Time: 10:30 am – 1:00 pm
Location: Sheraton Columbia Town Center Hotel – Merriweather Room
   10207 Wincopin Circle – Columbia, Maryland 21044
Agenda:
10:30 – 11:30 IDAA Overview – Dwaine Snow
11:30 – 12:00  IDAA Enablement – Best Practices – Frank Fillmore
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch, Q&A, Open Discussion, raffle for Baltimore Orioles tickets (8/14 vs. Boston)  

Register here: http://tinyurl.com/tfgidaa 

Presenters:
Dwaine Snow
Dwaine is a Data Warehouse and OLTP Competitive Analyst and has worked for IBM for the past 21 years.   Prior to supporting Netezza, Dwaine was one of the senior product managers responsible for new releases of DB2 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows.  Dwaine has written books, articles and tutorials, and has presented at numerous IDUG and RUG conferences. In addition to promoting Netezza and IDAA Dwaine is hoping to start writing his first Netezza book soon.

Frank Fillmore
DB2 Gold Consultant and IBM Champion Frank C. Fillmore is the Founder and President of The Fillmore Group, a Premier Business Partner specializing in Information Management software sales, consulting, and training. He has been providing IBM Information Management services for 25 years.  This past summer Frank worked with Sears to enable near real-time OLTP data loads to Netezza, and Frank recently coordinated hands-on IDAA training.