I want Advice on Using Adabas Utilities on Mainframes

Hi all,

I am getting started with Adabas on mainframes & I want help understanding how to use the built-in utilities such as ADAREP, ADAFRM & ADACMP in real-world scenarios. I have gone through the official docs but I am more interested in how experienced users apply these tools in day-to-day operations.

How often do you run reports such as ADAREP in your workflow? Do you follow any Z` scheduling or automation routines for regular database maintenance? Also, are there any common mistakes or issues to avoid when working with these tools during active system hours?

I took a Ruby On Rails course & it is interesting seeing how different the ecosystem is compared to mainframe environments. I am trying to broaden my understanding across both old and new tech.

I Appreciate any tips or suggestions. I want to hear how you approach these tasks in your own setup.

Thank you.:slight_smile:

Good to see someone exploring Adabas — it’s one of those systems where the official docs explain the commands well, but the “when and why” only comes with real use.

Here’s how these utilities usually fit into daily/weekly operations:

  • ADAREP → Most shops run this as part of a weekly or monthly routine to get a snapshot of database stats (file usage, extents, etc.). It’s not something you need every day unless you’re actively troubleshooting. A lot of teams wrap it into a scheduled job (via JCL with CA-7, Control-M, or similar) so there’s always a fresh report for audits.
  • ADAFRM → This is more about initializing or reformatting datasets, so you’ll only use it during setup or major reorganizations. Avoid running it on live DBs — it wipes everything. A common mistake new folks make is forgetting that it’s destructive.
  • ADACMP → Handy for compressing data before loading it (saves space and speeds up ADALOD). Many teams build this into ETL-style pipelines if they regularly bulk-load data from other systems.

A few general tips from experience:

  • Try to schedule heavy utilities (like compress/reformat) outside peak hours to avoid contention.
  • Keep an eye on catalog/space usage — many people forget until an extent fills up and jobs start failing.
  • Document your JCL jobs early — six months later, you’ll thank yourself when you need to re-run or adjust something.

It’s a shift compared to Rails or modern stacks — with Adabas, you’ll find a lot more reliance on batch jobs, job schedulers, and system resource planning. Once you get into that rhythm, the utilities feel less intimidating.

Aaliyah, did you set up your Adabas save JCL yet for database backup and restore (ADASAV). Also the dual protection log copy (ADARES) ?