Critical File Format Conversion for Direct Access Reliability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems face issues with compressed critical files causing system outages, data corruption, and increased processing overhead due to the ISPF algorithm, leading to inefficient data handling and potential fines from regulatory agencies.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilizes particle swarm optimization (PSO) to proactively identify and convert highly utilized data sets from a packed on format to a packed off format, ensuring direct access and reliability, thereby preventing outages and data corruption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of stationary object
If data is saved in packed (compressed) format, then storage space is reduced, but processing overhead increases causing system outages and increased application response time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the format parameter of critical data sets from packed (compressed) to unpacked (uncompressed). This parameter change eliminates processing overhead while maintaining storage efficiency for non-critical data, directly resolving the contradiction between storage space utilization and application response time.
2Volume of stationary object
If ISPF algorithm compresses data, then storage efficiency improves, but data corruption occurs with unprintable characters and incorrect line breaks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different data formats to different data sets based on their specific requirements. Critical data sets that require high integrity are stored in unpacked format, while non-critical data sets can use packed format. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction by ensuring data integrity for critical files while maintaining storage efficiency elsewhere.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the harmful effect of ISPF compression (data corruption) into a beneficial selection criterion. By identifying and excluding critical data sets from compression, the system transforms the compression problem into an opportunity to implement format-based data protection, ensuring integrity where needed while maintaining efficiency elsewhere.
3Reliability
If manual pack checking is performed, then data verification is possible, but processing time increases and additional processing burdens are created
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary identification and format conversion of critical data sets before they are accessed or processed. By proactively converting critical data to unpacked format and permanently disabling compression for these datasets, the system eliminates the need for manual pack checking, resolving the contradiction between verification reliability and processing time.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements automatic identification and conversion of critical data sets without requiring manual intervention. The format conversion is performed automatically based on system-defined criteria, and the permanent disabling of compression for critical datasets creates a self-maintaining system that eliminates ongoing verification burdens.
4Volume of stationary object
If ISPF packed format is used, then storage space is optimized, but file transfer results in unusable characters and data corruption
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the format parameter for critical data sets from packed to unpacked, which directly resolves file transfer issues. Unpacked format ensures compatibility with standard file transfer protocols and eliminates character corruption, while packed format remains available for non-critical data where storage optimization is the priority.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer-implemented method includes: monitoring, by a computing device, a data set format of all files in a computing system to determine a list of data sets in a first format which are accessed greater than a predetermined number of times; gathering, by the computing device, the list of data sets in the first format within the computing system; and converting, by the computing device, the list of data sets in the first format within the computing system to a second format which is different from the first format.