Columbus Z REFLECT is a VTAM and local 3270 printer emulator that intercepts IBM 3270 print data streams sent to VTAM printers from your business applications and redirects them to the JES spool where they can be managed by mainframe output management systems such as Columbus Z.
Columbus Z REFLECT can also distribute print data streams to Columbus OM and Columbus Central for additional document enhancement and multi-channel delivery.
This approach reduces developer effort and increases flexibility as changes can be made to the output destination without making changes to your business applications. It also makes better use of printer hardware by allowing legacy print data streams to be sent to any networked printer.
Output management
Redirecting legacy print data streams to an output management system such as Columbus Z makes it possible to print your documents on any VTAM or TCP/IP attached printer on the network, and increases resilience as documents can be sent to an alternative device in the event of a printer failure.
Increased throughput
Print throughput increases as output can be routed to the operating system spool, or sent directly to Columbus OM, avoiding the operating spool altogether.
CICS and IMS output management
Columbus Z REFLECT lowers business risk by bringing CICS and IMS output under the control of an output management system; the problem of lost VTAM print output following CICS termination is eliminated.
Zero development effort
Columbus Z REFLECT 'logical printers' appear to your applications in just the same way as physical printers, so there is no need to modify your applications to redirect your output.
Flexible configuration
All logical printers, spool characteristics, closure comparison criteria and authorized users are defined in a configuration file, which is loaded at Columbus Z REFLECT startup time and can be updated by authorized users.
Online displays
Authorized users can view and modify printer and spool definition characteristics, and configure displays – for example to run in different national languages.
Security
To ensure security for your business documents, Columbus Z REFLECT provides comprehensive internal features for user authorization and also integrates with external security products such as RACF, using a standard SAF interface.