Exploring the Operations Console

IMS™ Connect Extensions Operations Console is implemented as an Eclipse plug-in for use in IBM® Explorer for z/OS® (z/OS Explorer).

Figure 1. The IMS Connect Extensions Operations Console for z/OS Explorer
The IMS Connect Extensions Operations Console for z/OS Explorer showing a list of IMS data stores and the Drain option selected

Default layout

By default the Operations Console has the following layout:

  • To the left: the Navigation view, which can be used to add or select data sources such as systems and groups
  • In the middle: a tabbed area for working in one or more editors that open when an IMS Connect system is selected from the Navigation view
  • Start of changeAt the bottom: a Console view for displaying Common Services Library and z/OS Explorer messagesEnd of change

Start of changeThe layout is highly configurable. For example, you can open the Properties view to see a detailed view of the attributes of a selected item. Right-click a listed item in a table view and select Properties to display the Properties view. Start of changeThe Manage List Layout window allows a particular arrangement of tabular data in each view to be saved and reused.End of changeEnd of change

Configuration settings that are changed during a session are saved to the user's specified workspace folder.

Navigation view

The Navigation view is a container for data sources, including all your IMS Connect systems and groups. Any systems that you have defined are displayed in the Navigation view. You can perform the following functions from the Navigation view:

  • Import or export systems from an IMS Connect Extensions configuration file. See Importing systems from a configuration file.
  • Manually define IMS Connect systems and groups and assign systems to one or more groups. See Adding systems manually.
  • View details of an IMS Connect system. This opens a new editor in which you can monitor and interact with IMS Connect systems, components, and resources. See Browsing systems.
  • Define connection profiles and set startup options and other preferences for Common Services Library features. See Managing connection profiles.

Context menus

Right-clicking on most list items and data rows in the Operations Console displays a context menu showing the available options for the current panel or selected item.

Panel size and position

Panels within the Operations Console can be moved by dragging them to a new location. Panels can be resized by dragging the divider, which is the border between it and the next panel. You can maximize a panel by double-clicking its title. To restore it to its previous position, double-click the title again.

Displaying messages

IMS Connect Extensions messages display in the Start of changeCommon Services LibraryEnd of change Console view at the bottom, below the editor panel. The context menu includes options to:
  • Search for a text string
  • Clear all messages
  • Lock the display so that the current messages remain visible as new messages are appended