VSAM

Virtual Storage Access Method

Allows for interactive updates (adds,
changes, and deletes)

1-1
Three Types of VSAM files

KSDS
Keyed Sequence Data Set
RRDS
Relative Record Data Set
ESDS
Entry Sequence Data Set

1-2
KSDS
 Allows for users to access records
sequentially or randomly
 Includes an index and data components
 A CLUSTER consists of both the index and
data components together
 Index relates a value in a key field to the
actual location of the record on disk
 Index is only used in random (or dynamic)
processing

1-3
 VSAM Data Component Storage Concepts

 Control Interval (CI)

 Fixed amount of storage; Must be multiple of 512
 Usually 2048 or 4096 bytes
 Data records are stored in a CI
• A CI of 4096 bytes can store forty 100-byte records

 Control Areas (CA)

 One cylinder in size
 Size of a cylinder varies by disk drive
 Contains numerous CIs

1-4
Approximate number of records
in a CI

(CI size - 10) / record length

1-5
Records in a CI

 Calculate the number of records in a CI

formula on previous slide
 Determine the percentage of records in a
CI to be added or insert in an average CI
 Concept of FreeSpace
• Space where records can be added “on the fly”

1-6
CI in a CA

A fixed number based on CI size and

disk drive
For disk drive with ACD001:
• CI of 2048: 315 CI in a CA
• CI of 4096: 180 CI in a CA
Determine the percent of the CI to be
left open for additions
Known as CA freespace

1-7
Freespace in a CI

Is used to add records which belong

in the CI
Records in a CI are shifted
automatically within the CI to
accommodate the inserted record

1-8
CI Splits
 If there is no freespace in the CI in
which the record is to be inserted:
 CI split
 Half of the records in the CI are moved to a
free CI in the same CA
 The inserted record is then inserted in the
proper CI
 These happen routinely and are
accomplished quickly

1-9
CA splits

 If a CI needs to split and there is no free CI

in the CA: CA split
 Half of the CI are moved to a free CA (usually
at the end of the file, there is unused space)
 Therefore, each of the two CI have 50% free
space
 The original CI can now split
 CA splits have much overhead and should be
avoided!!!

1-10
Avoid CA splits
 Reorganization of files
 Import: Copy the VSAM file to a sequential
dataset
 Export: Delete and reload the VSAM file from
the sequential data set: Resets the freespace
as in the define cluster
 Allocate adequate freespace
 Analyze the primary key

1-11
Primary Key Analysis
Is the pattern in the PK
Example: The Financial Aid office must
keep three years of data on-line.
• Previous year: State reporting
• Current year: Distributing aid to students
• Next year: Granting/guaranteeing aid for
next year

1-12
Primary Key Analysis
Key options for the financial aid file
 1-digit year + SSN
• Little on-line activity on first third of file
• Most “adds” are in last third: CI/CS split
likely
SSN + 1 digit year
• Activity is spread evenly throughout the file
• Recommended

1-13
VSAM Index Component

 Every KSDS as an index component for

each primary key AND each foreign key
 Base cluster: Primary key index and
Data components
 Foreign key index is known as the
alternate index

1-14
Primary Key Index and Data

Two parts of the index:

Sequence set
Index set

1-15
Primary Key Index and Data

 Sequence Set
 Lowest level of the index component
 Contains information that relates key values
to a specific CI
 Links the highest PK in a CI to the address of
that CI
• Stores all the key-address pairs for the Cis in a CA
in one CI of the sequence set
• There is a separate CI in the sequence set for each
CA in the data

1-16
Primary Key Index and Data

 Index Set
 Highest level of the index component
 Key-address pairs stored in one CI (can be
stored in main memory for processing
efficiency)
• Address Pointer links to address of the appropriate
sequence set
• Based on size of data component (number of
cylinders or CA needed to store data component),
you may need a intermediate index

1-17
Alternate Index and Data Component

 Alternate index relates alternate key to

primary key
 Then uses the primary key index to locate the
data
 Can have unique or non-unique AI
 Figure 2-4 (unique)
 Figure 2-5 (non-unique)

1-18
Alternate Index

 Systems analyst determines whether to

update the AI each time the cluster is
changed
 Can cause much overhead to update all
indices especially in the case of a CA
split
 Other alternative is to re-build the index
periodically (every night)

1-19
 Relative Record Data Set (RRDS)

 Lets the user access each record at random

without the overhead of maintaining an
index
 Instead each record in a RRDS is numbered,
starting with 1 for the first record
 RRDS consists of a specified number of
areas or slots
 Known as the relative record number (RRN)

1-20
RRDS

 May need a routine to convert the PK of a

record to a relative record number
 Hashing
• Most common hashing routine: The
remainder option on the divide
 Can cause empty slots. Can waste storage;
But we avoid CI/CA splits
 Difficult to HASH if PK is non-numeric

1-21
RRDS
 Collision
 If hashing routine results is same RRN for
two different PK
 Must set secondary searching technique in
case of collisions
• Usually linear probing: check the next
record up to a maximum number of tries.
 Needed to know if record to be added already
exists
 Needed to determine if record to be retrieved
exists without reading entire file

1-22
RRDS
 Advantages
 No index overhead
 Direct relationship between data and
location of the data
 Permits both random and sequential
processing
 If good hashing routine with minimal
collisions: performance efficiency is
excellent

1-23
RRDS
 Disadvantages
 Storage efficiency
 Collisions
 Difficulty in determining good hashing
technique
• Difficulty with alphabetic key
 Does NOT support the concept of FK or AI
 Not widely used

1-24
ESDS

 Entry Sequenced Data Set

 The simplest type of VSAM file
 Records are stored sequentially at time of
entry

1-25
ESDS

Similar to sequential processing

Does allow to OPEN EXTEND to add
records to the end of the file

1-26
ESDS

 Author does not recommend it

 Says it is restricted to sequential processing
 BUT you can build an AI for a FK
 BUT as of my current COBOL manuals,
COBOL cannot use the AI and processing
must be sequential.
 This is my current topic for career day
questions
1-27