Between major IBM i releases, IBM ships frequent enhancements using the Technology Refresh (TR). Particular features are present with specific TR levels. SQL offers an easy way to identify the latest TR level on an IBM i system.
IBM i services comprise a collection of DB2 and SQL objects that provide a wealth of system information. The GROUP_PTF_INFO view will display an IBM i’s TR level to the user who runs this SQL:
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SELECT CURRENT SERVER CONCAT ' is running ' CONCAT PTF_GROUP_TARGET_RELEASE CONCAT ' with TR level: ' CONCAT PTF_GROUP_LEVEL AS TR_LEVEL FROM QSYS2.GROUP_PTF_INFO WHERE PTF_GROUP_DESCRIPTION = 'TECHNOLOGY REFRESH' AND PTF_GROUP_STATUS = 'INSTALLED' ORDER BY PTF_GROUP_TARGET_RELEASE, PTF_GROUP_LEVEL DESC LIMIT 1; |
When run on my server, the result was a single column, TR_LEVEL, with the value:
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SEIDENI is running V7R2M0 with TR level: 3 |
Time for me to upgrade, yes?
Here is my original post with older techniques:
I recently needed to know if a client’s IBM i 7.1 system had Technology Refresh 4 (TR4). If it did, I could use the relatively new INSERT with remote SUBSELECT technique, which allows a single SQL statement to copy DB2 data from one partition to another. Such are the benefits of keeping current with Technology Refreshes.
After reading an article on TRs by Steve Will, I decided to document how to determine which TRs are installed on an IBM i system.
TRs, which were introduced with IBM i 7.1, are packaged as Program Temporary Fixes (PTFs). They can be found with the DSPPTF command.
First, determine the product number of the licensed internal code of your system. For 7.1, the product number is 5770999.
Then use the DSPPTF command followed by this product number. For example:
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DSPPTF 5770999 |
When run on my test system, this command produced a list of PTFs that included MF99007, MF99006, MF99005, MF99004, MF99003, MF99002, and MF99001.
Because Technology Refresh PTF numbers follow the format MF99nnn, where nnn is the TR number (bolded above), I knew that TR7, TR6, TR5, TR4, TR3, TR2, and TR1 were available. I was pleased to learn I could use TR4’s enhancements to DB2.
ZendCon, the premier PHP conference, October 27-30, 2014, in Santa Clara, California, has a discount expiring August 15 31 (extended!). When you register, be sure to include the tutorial day (Oct. 27). If you already registered but forgot to add the tutorial day, you can contact the organizers via a link at the bottom of the registration page. Among other half-day tutorials, I’ll be presenting two focused on IBM i:
My co-presenter for tutorials will be IBM’s Tony Cairns, who helped bring PHP to the IBM i in the first place. He also created XMLSERVICE (toolkit back-end) and is a maintainer of ibm_db2 on the IBM i. One reason Tony comes to ZendCon is to hear from attendees such as yourselves. Normally he stays locked up in his lab. Take advantage of this opportunity to meet him. Watch Tony and me argue and debate in front of the class!
I’m also presenting a session during the regular conference about the PHP Toolkit for IBM i. I’ve updated my presentation with new features of the toolkit and best practices for calling RPG and COBOL.
ZendCon‘s topics are generally advanced ones to enable professional, enterprise-ready development practices. There’s also an IBM i track and plenty of networking time so that IBM i users of PHP can learn from speakers and each other, making the conference appropriate for intermediate users of PHP on IBM i as well.
Hope to see you there, October 27-30, 2014! Remember to register for tutorial day when you register for the conference. Get in touch with questions you’d like answered during my presentations.
Hope you enjoy these four videos (plus an outtake) I made with fellow speakers Dawn May and Charles Guarino to promote this year’s COMMON conference to be held in Orlando, Florida, from May 4-7, 2014, with optional pre-conference workshops May 3. I’ll be speaking about PHP and performance on IBM i. http://www.common.org/index.php/annualmeeting.html
Join me for two events this week sponsored by COMMON, a Users Group:
Details on online workshop: http://www.common.org/index.php/webinars.html
This Tuesday, learn how to Let Your PHP applications fly on IBM i. Busy? You can attend while getting your work done, with three one-hour class segments separated by breaks.
“Our process now runs 30-50% faster, thanks to one tip from Alan’s presentation.”
—Mike Meszaros, Software Developer, Specialty Pipe & Tube
You’ll learn to quickly improve your application’s performance, including:
I’ll be there to answer your questions. What’s more, the presentation will be archived for 60 days so you can review the material afterward.
“Alan is the performance guru of PHP on IBM i. When we encountered unexpectedly slow queries and program calls, Alan showed us a configuration change that helped our application run 3x faster, creating happy users. Thanks, Alan!”
—Adam Chuk Shirley, PHP Developer, Sabel Steel Service
What: PHP on IBM i performance eLearning event
When: Tuesday, December 10, 2013: three one-hour segments with two one-hour breaks, starting 11AM and ending 4PM (ET).
Where: Online
Cost: $150 (but discounted to $99 through Friday, Dec. 6)
For the first time, I’m teaching how to Let Your PHP applications fly on IBM i, including how to configure Zend Server for performance, diagnose bottlenecks, leverage unique IBM i performance tools, optimize DB2 and the IBM i toolkit, and improve performance of front-end javascript, style sheets, and the like. You’ll come away with knowledge that you can use immediately to improve your application’s performance.
I’ll be there to answer your questions. What’s more, the presentation will be archived for 60 days so you can review the material afterward.
What: PHP on IBM i performance eLearning event
When: Tuesday, July 30, 2013: three one-hour segments with two one-hour breaks, starting 11AM and ending 4PM (ET).
Where: Online
Cost: $150 (group registrations available)
Questions: Get in touch with Alan
August 22, 2013: At NESTU (user group in Fairfield, N.J.): “At ease! Relax your neck-back-shoulders at the keyboard”: A special presentation from Alan to help computer workers (such as all of us) avoid repetitive strain injury and stay poised at work. Fun and unusual.
September 9-11, 2013: COMMON Fall 2013 Conference and Expo in St. Louis, Missouri. The Premier IBM i event. I’m presenting 5 talks on PHP and web performance.
October 7, 2013: Full-day, in-depth PHP on IBM i Performance Workshop, 9:30-4PM (PT) at ZendCon (the PHP conference). Register for both parts of this tutorial (room 6) for Oct. 7, and the full conference, which goes till Oct. 10, in Santa Clara, California. I’m presenting several talks on PHP for IBM i in addition to the full-day performance tutorial.
Alan’s event page: https://www.seidengroup.com/events/
I’d like to address questions about DB2 support in Zend Framework 2.x. Because I helped create the IBM i-friendly DB2 adapter for Zend Framework 1.x, I’ve followed the development of a similar adapter for ZF2.
(updated January 30, 2013, upon the release of ZF 2.1)
Q. Does ZF 2 include an adapter for DB2?
A. Yes! Starting with ZF 2.1, which was released today.
Q. Is Alan’s IBM i-friendly DB2 adapter for Zend Framework 1.x needed in 2.x?
A. No. Because ZF’s Zend_Db equivalent in 2.x works differently than in 1.x, my 1.x component is not needed in 2.x.
Q. Does ZF 2.1’s DB2 adapter work with IBM i?
A. Yes! Please try it and provide feedback to the ZF team.
I’ve started a consulting firm dedicated to helping companies attain superior results with PHP, Zend Framework, IBM i, and related technologies such as Zend Server, DB2, and the new PHP toolkit.
We will provide guidance and best practices, training, mentoring, troubleshooting, performance help, team building, speaking, writing, and advocacy.
My first speaking engagement with my new company will be the OCEAN conference on July 20, 2012, in Southern California. Hope to see some of you there.
Thanks for your support. I will be available starting July 2 after a short vacation. I look forward to working with you.
Alan
Tomorrow I’m presenting a new webcast, New PHP Toolkit from Zend and IBM: Open Source on IBM i, as part of System i Network’s free “Virtual Conference.”
Date: Thursday, April 5
Time: 11:15am ET
Registration (free): http://tinyurl.com/new-toolkit-20120405
Other presentations in the virtual conference include Jon Paris explaining why PHP is an excellent strategic choice on IBM i, two talks on mobile technology, and more.
I invite you to watch the webcast, ask questions, and learn more about the new toolkit.