System and method for executing user channel programs on mainframe computers

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

opening a storage volume associated with a mainframe computer executing z/OS operating system;

obtaining access to a required area of the storage volume, wherein the method further comprises obtaining access to the required area of the storage volume by obtaining supervisor privileges, and wherein obtaining the supervisor privileges comprises linking a Java load module with an Authorization Code value of 1 ‘AC(1)’ attribute, and saving in an Authorized Program Facility (APF) controlled library;

receiving a call from a program programmed in a high level programming language and executed on the mainframe computer, to execute a user channel program, wherein the user channel program may refer to any location within the required area of the storage volume, wherein the call from the program is received and processed by code implemented in a second high level programming language which provides channel command words to an assembly code unit, wherein the assembly code unit calls the user channel program in response to the channel command words; and

processing the user channel program to provide the channel command words to Execute Channel Program (EXCP).

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the high level programming language is Java and the second high level programming language is C.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein obtaining access to the required area of the storage volume comprises obtaining supervisor privileges.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein opening the storage volume comprises building Data Control Block (DCB) and Data Extent Block (DEB) data structures.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein obtaining access to the required area of the storage volume comprises setting start cylinder and head number CCHH and end cylinder and head number CCHH fields of the DEB to boundaries of the required area.

6. A computerized apparatus having a processor, the processor being adapted to perform the steps of:

opening a storage volume associated with a mainframe computer executing z/OS operating system;

obtaining access to a required area of the storage volume, wherein the processor is further adapted to obtain access to the required area of the storage volume by obtaining supervisor privileges, and wherein obtaining the supervisor privileges comprises linking a Java load module with an Authorization Code value of 1 ‘AC(1)’ attribute, and saving in an Authorized Program Facility (APF) controlled library;

receiving a call from a program programmed in a high level programming language and executed on the mainframe computer, to execute a user channel program, wherein the user channel program may refer to any location within the required area of the storage volume, wherein the call from the program is received and processed by code implemented in a second high level programming language which provides channel command words to an assembly code unit, wherein the assembly code unit calls the user channel program in response to the channel command words; and

processing the user channel program to provide the channel command words to Execute Channel Program (EXCP).

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the code implemented in a high level programming language comprises a header and implementation.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the second high level programming language is C.

9. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the high level programming language is Java.

10. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the processor is further adapted to obtain supervisor privileges for obtaining access to the required area of the storage volume.

11. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein opening the storage volume comprises building Data Control Block (DCB) and Data Extent Block (DEB) data structures.

12. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein obtaining access to the required area of the storage volume comprises setting start and end fields of the DEB to boundaries of the required area.

13. A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium retaining program instructions, which program instructions when read by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method comprising:

opening a storage volume associated with a mainframe computer executing z/OS operating system;

obtaining access to a required area of the storage volume, wherein the method further comprises obtaining access to the required area of the storage volume by obtaining supervisor privileges, and wherein obtaining the supervisor privileges comprises linking a Java load module with an Authorization Code value of 1 ‘AC(1)’ attribute, and saving in an Authorized Program Facility (APF) controlled library;

receiving a call from a program programmed in a high level programming language and executed on the mainframe computer, to execute a user channel program, wherein the user channel program may refer to any location within the required area of the storage volume; and

processing the user channel program to provide channel command words to Execute Channel Program (EXCP), and wherein the program instructions comprise:

a code unit programmed in a second high level programming language for processing the user channel program; and

an assembly code unit for providing the channel command words to EXCP.

14. The computer program product of claim 13 , wherein the code unit programmed in high level programming language comprises a header and an implementation.

15. The computer program product of claim 13 , wherein the high level programming language is Java and the second high level programming language is C.

16. The method of claim 3 , wherein obtaining supervisor privileges comprises linking a Java load module with an ‘AC(1)’ attribute, and saving in an Authorized Program Facility (APF) controlled library.