OpenExtensions for z/VM
Hierarchical file systems
An OpenExtensions for z/VM user can create, store, and access the hierarchical file systems familiar to UNIX users (and similar to the file systems of DOS and OS/2).
With the hierarchical file system support provided by OpenExtensions for z/VM services:
- Filenames and pathnames can be much longer than with traditional CMS file system names.
- Terminals and communication pipes are accessed as files.
- The hierarchical structure encourages an enterprise and its users to organize sets of files in a natural way (for example, by area, by department, by group of users, by user, and so forth).
OpenExtensions for z/VM provide facilities to make accessible (or
remove from accessibility) different subsets of files in any
hierarchical structure by logically mounting
any particular
hierarchy. A particular hierarchy that has been mounted can later be
unmounted.
An OpenExtensions for z/VM hierarchical file system is a new type of CMS file system called a BFS (byte file system). BFS files and traditional CMS files can be copied back and forth.