BeginnerFAQs
Translating mainframe words into words you know
A rough dictionary for anyone arriving from another platform.
| Mainframe term | Roughly equivalent to |
|---|---|
| Dataset | File |
| Partitioned dataset (PDS/PDSE) | Directory of files, flat |
| Member | A file inside that directory |
| Address space | Process, with stronger isolation |
| Started task | Daemon or service |
| JCL | A job definition or shell script — but declarative, no logic |
| Job step | One command in a pipeline |
| Abend | Crash, with a structured code |
| SDSF | Process viewer plus log viewer |
| LPAR | A very strong virtual machine, in firmware |
| Sysplex | A cluster |
| CICS region | An application server |
| Transaction ID | A route or endpoint name |
| Load module | A compiled binary |
| Bind (DB2) | Preparing and caching a statement, ahead of time |
| Catalog | A filesystem index mapping names to locations |
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