This IBM® Redbooks® publication is volume one of five in a series of books entitled The Virtualization Cookbook for IBM Z. The series includes the following volumes: The Virtualization Cookbook for IBM z Systems® Volume 1: IBM z/VM® 7.2, SG24-8147 The Virtualization Cookbook for IBM Z Volume 2: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.2 Servers, SG24-8303 The Virtualization Cookbook for IBM z Systems Volume 3: SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12, SG24-8890 The Virtualization Cookbook for IBM z Systems Volume 4: Ubuntu Server 16.04, SG24-8354 Virtualization Cookbook for IBM Z Volume 5: KVM, SG24-8463 It is recommended that you start with Volume 1 of this series because the IBM z/VM hypervisor is the foundation (or base "layer") for installing Linux on IBM Z®. This book series assumes that you are generally familiar with IBM Z technology and terminology. It does not assume an in-depth understanding of z/VM or Linux. It is written for individuals who want to start quickly with z/VM and Linux, and get virtual servers up and running in a short time (days, not weeks or months). Volume 1 starts with a solution orientation, discusses planning and security, and then, describes z/VM installation methods, configuration, hardening, automation, servicing, networking, optional features, and more. It adopts a "cookbook-style" format that provides a concise, repeatable set of procedures for installing, configuring, administering, and maintaining z/VM. This volume also includes a chapter on monitoring z/VM and the Linux virtual servers that are hosted. Volumes 2, 3, and 4 assume that you completed all of the steps that are described in Volume 1. From that common foundation, these volumes describe how to create your own Linux virtual servers on IBM Z hardware under IBM z/VM. The cookbook format continues with installing and customizing Linux. Volume 5 provides an explanation of the kernel-based virtual machine (KVM) on IBM Z and how it can use the z/Architecture®. It focuses on the planning of the environment and provides installation and configuration definitions that are necessary to build, manage, and monitor a KVM on Z environment. This publication applies to the supported Linux on Z distributions (Red Hat, SUSE, and Ubuntu).

This is the comprehensive guide to Linux on the mainframe straight from the IBM Linux experts. The book covers virtualization, security, systems management, and more.

Oracle Database 12c Release 1 running on Linux is available for deployment on the IBM ZTM family of servers. The enterprise-grade Linux on IBM Z solution is designed to add value to Oracle Database solutions, including the new functions that are introduced in Oracle Database 12c. In this IBM Redbooks® publication, we explore the IBM and Oracle Alliance and describe how Oracle Database benefits from the IBM Z platform. We then explain how to set up Linux guests to install Oracle Database 12c. We also describe how to use the Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control Agent to manage Oracle Database 12c Release 1. We also describe a successful consolidation project from sizing to migration, performance management topics, and high availability. Finally, we end with a chapter about surrounding Oracle with Open Source software. The audience for this publication includes database consultants, installers, administrators, and system programmers. This publication is not meant to replace Oracle documentation, but to supplement it with our experiences while installing and using Oracle products.

IBM® z/OS® Container Extensions (IBM zCX) is a new feature of the next version of the IBM z/OS Operating System (z/OS V2.4). It makes it possible to run Linux on IBM Z® applications that are packaged as Docker container images on z/OS. Application developers can develop, and data centers can operate, popular open source packages, Linux applications, IBM software, and third-party software together with z/OS applications and data. This IBM Redbooks® publication helps you to understand the concepts, business perspectives and reference architecture for installing, tailoring, and configuring zCX in your own environment.

This IBM® Redbooks® publication describes how to create Linux® virtual servers in IBM z/VM® on IBM System z® hardware. This book adopts a cookbook format that provides a concise, repeatable set of procedures for installing and configuring z/VM in a logical partition (LPAR) and then installing and customizing Linux. You need an IBM System z LPAR with the associated resources, z/VM V6.1 media, and a Linux distribution. This book assumes that you have a general familiarity with System z technology and terminology. It does not assume an in-depth understanding of z/VM and Linux. It is written for those clients who want to get a quick start with z/VM and Linux on the mainframe.

This IBM® Redbooks® publication is Volume 2 of a five-volume series of books entitled The Virtualization Cookbook for IBM Z®. This volume includes the following chapters: Chapter 1, "Installing Red Hat Enterprise Linux on LNXADMIN" on page 3, describes how to install and configure Red Hat Enterprise Linux onto the Linux Administration server, which performs the cloning and other tasks. Chapter 2, "Automated Red Hat Enterprise Linux installations by using Kickstart" on page 37, describes how to use Red Hat's kickstart tool to create Linux systems. This tool is fundamentally different from cloning in that an automated installation is implemented. You can try kickstart and cloning. Understand that these applications attempt to accomplish the same goal of quickly getting Linux systems up and running, and that you do not need to use both. Chapter 3, "Working with subscription-manager, yum, and DaNdiFied" on page 47, describes how the Red Hat Network works. It provides centralized management and provisioning for multiple Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems. Kickstart is an easy and fast way to provision your Linux guests in any supported Linux platform. It re-creates the operating system from the beginning by using the kickstart profile configuration file that installs the new operating system unattended. It also sets up the new guest according to the definition that was set up in the kickstart file. Usually, Linux is administered by the same team that manages Linux on all platforms. By using kickstart, you can create a basic profile that can be used in all supported platforms and customize Linux profiles, as needed. Cloning requires a better understanding of the z/VM environment and z/VM skills. It is a fast process if you enable the IBM FlashCopy® feature in advance. It clones the disks from a golden image to new disks that are used by the new Linux guest. The process can be automated by using the cloning scripts that are supplied with this book. It is recommended that you start with The Virtualization Cookbook for IBM Z Volume 1: IBM z/VM 7.2, SG24-8147 of this series because the IBM® z/VM hypervisor is the foundation (or base "layer") for installing Linux on IBM Z.