When Can M+R Help?

M+R helps you consolidate multiple versions of applications, fixes, enhancements, and libraries, as the following scenarios illustrate.

Working with Multiple Fixes and Enhancements

There are occasions where two or more programmers check out the same source module and simultaneously modify the code. For instance, when one programmer checks out a module to make a long-term change, the module fails in production. An emergency fix is created to patch the code. If the fix is not integrated with the long-term change, then that change regresses the emergency fix and the error is repeated.

With M+R, concurrent developments can be merged to avoid the risk of version regression.

Working with Multiple Libraries

Imagine that you have created a customized version of an application and now you receive the next release of the application. You probably want to upgrade to use the newer release. However, if some components are highly customized and/or many components have been tailored to your environment, you probably do not want to rewrite all the customized pieces of the previous version. With M+R, you can merge and reconcile multiple libraries of member versions.

M+R measures the complexity of the reconciliation so that a systems project manager can properly allocate the work among programmers who are consolidating up to eight versions of application code libraries. The project manager can then observe the progress of the consolidation effort online or print out status reports.

Working with Versions of Source and Copybook Libraries

During the application life cycle, source and copy code evolve in an asynchronous way. Suppose you have the task to merge the Year 2000 compliance changes with the maintenance changes in the source and copybook libraries. Instead of working separately to consolidate the two sets (source and copy code) of version libraries, it will be much easier and faster to have the source and copybook changes merged in one place, and reconciled right there. M+R offers this kind of tool for "synchronizing" the source and copy code in most programming languages. After specifying up to eight versions of source code libraries and the corresponding versions of copy/include code libraries, M+R expands the source with the copybooks, compares and merges the differences. You can edit the source and copybook code lines and export the reconciled code to corresponding source and copybook export libraries for compilation.

Working with JCL Code

You might have had troubles in judging the effect of slight changes in JCL code over the resulting JCL that will be executed. M+R can help you with its unique Equivalent JCL Comparison tool. M+R accepts up to eight versions of jobdeck libraries and expands the (nested) JCL procedures and include code, then substitutes the symbols, compares the equivalent JCL code, and displays the differences highlighted graphically and in colors. Using the M+R Version Browser, you can easily trace how a change in a symbolic value is propagated through the executable JCL code.

Merging Staging Versions

The staging versions facility of ChangeMan ZMF saves multiple versions of a package component that a developer creates in a series of edit-in-stage sessions. If you license the M+R Option, it is invoked automatically to let you merge 2-8 of those saved versions to create a new version that you can then stage into your package.