Rational Developer for System z, Version 7.5

What is the work context

The work context is constituted of the connected user, the Specification Database, the work library and session.

The Specifications Database concept

The Specifications Databases store all the data handled throughout the life cycle of applications.

Several Databases can coexist in a company.

Databases are managed by an Administrator who must see to their consistency and update.

The library concept

Libraries define the structure of a VA Pac Database.

Libraries are hierarchically structured on a maximum of nine levels. The hierarchical structure is determined when Libraries are created and can only be modified by the deletion or creation of a Library.

The hierarchical level of a library corresponds to the general nature of the information it contains.

A specification is described in the user’s connection library but also in the higher libraries of which this library is dependent.

Any modification in a given library immediately impacts all its dependent libraries.

VA Pac displays the elements which belong to the selected Library, as well as those which belong to the higher level libraries and, optionally, those which belong to the lower libraries.

The session concept

Sessions make up the time scale of the Database.

The principle of sessions makes it possible to manage various versions of the same application: the Administrator freezes the Database, creating a snapshot of the current session.

The result is the creation of two types of frozen sessions:
  • The initial frozen session for the application as it was when it was put into production. This session can be accessed in read mode only and then never changes.
  • The test frozen session, dedicated to the maintenance of the application put into production. This session can then be accessed in read/write mode.

This versioning does not entail any physical duplication of specifications. So the source of your applications is always up-to-date and accessible in real time.

Sessions are represented by four-digit numbers, the value being 0001 at the time the Database is created. This value is incremented daily, when the first user logs on to the Database. However for a better identification of sessions, frozen sessions can be assigned names.

During the maintenance phase, you can:
  • Access the initial session at any time,
  • Perform updates in the test session,
  • Request the transfer of data from the test session to the current session or to another test session.

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