The mainframe computers are not dead o_O !?

The mainframe computers are not dead o_O !?

That was my reaction when I discovered that the mainframe computer is not a phrase from the past and is still in use. Even more so, it runs a big part of our day-to-day lives. I was also shocked because I had never heard of modern mainframes while working in the IT sector for ten years. I'm not a stranger to hardware, I love to assemble custom PCs or tinker with Raspberry Pi. However, I have never encountered any information on the IBM mainframe.

When I started learning about modern mainframes, they blew my mind. Here are some facts about modern mainframe computers.

  • Companies that need high security and availability and/or are transaction-intensive are the primary users of mainframes.
  • Up to half of the world's information is still processed by mainframes.
  • Mid- and large-size companies are the primary users of the mainframes.
  • The use of mainframes is growing.
  • IBM's mainframe hardware is even tested with ray radiation to ensure data integrity.

Industries that extensively use mainframes

  1. Banking
  2. Retail
  3. Insurance
  4. Healthcare
  5. Government
  6. Travel and Transportation
  7. Utilities 
  8. Telecom

Some tech specs for nerds

IBM Z-16 mainframe computer

  • Up to 200 CPU cores
  • Up to 40TB of memory
  • AI Acceleration on CHIP
  • ~166 GB/s Mbus bandwidth connection between cores on one chip
  • ~50 GB/s bandwidth between different mainframe drawers
  • Capable of handling up to 1 trillion secure web transactions per day

Full technical speceficaiton of IBM z16 Technical Overview

Watch Dave's Garage to learn more about IBM mainframe computers.

In pursuit of the job opportunity and to satisfy my burning curiosity, I started looking for mainframe-related courses and discovered that IBM has a Z Xplore program and I started IMB Z Xplore - Concepts course.

Through this course, I got familiar and practical experience of using:

  • z/OS
  • Zowe - integrated framework for z/OS
  • JCL - Job Control Language
  • DataSets
  • ZoweCLI
  • REXX - Restructured Extended Executor
  • USS - UNIX System Services

And received certeficate of completion IMB Z Xplore - Concepts

I recommend the IBM Z Xplore program if you are interested in mainframes and want to learn more. It's a free, well-designed learning experience with exciting challenges that are fun and engaging.