
© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003. All rights reserved. 1
Chapter 1. Introduction to the Parallel
Sysplex
This chapter provides an overview of the Parallel Sysplex and includes brief descriptions of
the objectives and benefits of a Parallel Sysplex, its hardware components, including the
Coupling Facility hardware itself, its software components, including XCF and XES, and the
sysplex services provided by these components. The descriptions in this chapter, or even in
this book, are by no means comprehensive, and at times the description of the sysplex
services are abbreviated for ease of understanding. Some of the services available to sysplex
users ...