This course focuses on advanced IBM MQ for z/OS skills. After a baseline of IBM MQ topics, the course continues with channel security, the need to use TLS ciphers in response to current security threats, and channel authorization rules. The course also covers queue-sharing groups, queue-sharing group updates, and distributed and intra-group queuing with queue-sharing groups. Other topics include the 8-byte relative byte address and buffers above the 2-GB bar features of IBM MQ V8, the use of IBM MQ accounting and statistics, how to capture and review information to resolve or mitigate performance and capacity problems, and how to create application profiles. Hands-on lab exercises throughout the course reinforce the lectures and provide familiarity with advanced tasks and updated capabilities.

After completing this course, you should be able to:

• Explain how SSL/TLS contributes to authentication and confidentiality
• Describe how to configure SSL/TLS in IBM MQ z/OS queue managers and IBM MQ clients
• Implement SSL/TLS with multiple certificate authority (CA) certificates
• Implement various types of channel authorization rules
• Describe how to configure and manage queue-sharing groups
• Explain how to incorporate shared message data sets and storage class memory to maximize coupling facility storage
• Describe how to add a queue-sharing group to an existing IBM MQ cluster
• Implement 8-byte record byte address and buffers above the 2-GB line
• Describe how to use statistics and accounting capabilities for problem determination, tuning, and capacity planning activities

This course is designed for z/OS IBM MQ administrators and other technical professionals who are responsible for IBM MQ security, architecture, availability, and performance-related tasks.

Before taking this course, you should:

• Successfully complete IBM MQ V8 System Administration for z/OS (WM302G), or have equivalent experience
• Be proficient working with z/OS, or successfully complete Fundamental System Skills in z/OS (ES10G)

• Course introductionIBM MQ baseline
• Exercise: Configuring the IBM MQ lab environment
• Channel security with SSL/TLS
• Exercise: Configuring SSL/TLS for queue managers and channels
• Channel security with channel authentication rules
• Exercise: Configuring channel authentication rules
• Queue-sharing groups
• Exercise: Configuring queue-sharing groups and shared queuesIntra-group, distributed queuing, and clustering with queue-sharing groups
• Exercise: Intra-group and distributed queuing with queue-sharing groups
• Eight-byte relative byte address (RBA) and buffers above the 2-GB line
• Exercise: Implementing 8-byte relative byte address and buffers above the 2-GB line
• Introduction to IBM MQ for z/OS statistics and accounting
• Exercise: Getting started with IBM MQ statistics and accounting records
• Course summary