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Status Not under consideration
Workspace z/OS
Categories DFSMS VSAM
Created by Guest
Created on Aug 26, 2025

RELATED IDEAS

add compression support for VSAM ESDS (extended format)

Same use case as SAM. We don't have large amount of VSAM ESDS, but what we have we like to have compressed and encrypted. As the name imply, VSAM ESDS is Entry-Sequenced Data Sets. zEDC should be used for compression. We like to compress them before they are encrypted. 

Idea priority Medium
  • Guest
    Sep 9, 2025

    I discussed this request with the SAM designer to understand the design implications. Under the covers, SAM had to be redesigned to take advantage of zEDC because it is not efficient unless you have large blocks of data, so records had to be collect up to this large size with meta data to map it and then the whole block encrypted. VSAM structure is very different than SAM and records are collecting into a CI and written by CI, which is a fixed size, not by record or a variable block of records. So zEDC just does not fit with the internal structure of VSAM data, and this idea is being rejected. You can still make your VSAM data sets compressed (the individual records will be compressed) and encrypted for security.

    Reply
  • Guest
    Aug 27, 2025
    When I say "technically possible," I'm talking about generic compression, which is what KSDSs use. From what I understand, zEDC compression is not available for VSAM data sets because of the fixed block (CI), but I'm checking on that.
    Reply
  • Guest
    Aug 26, 2025
    Allowing ESDS's to be compressed is technically possible, but the trade off would be that it would severely impact the ability to update records in the ESDS. This is because any change in any byte in the record would likely change the compressed length of the record, and that is a restriction of ESDSs.
    Reply

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