IBM z/OS Data Set Mobility Facility (zDMF) is a host-based, dataset-level migration tool that moves allocated CKD datasets on z/OS with orchestration to minimize planned outage and support storage refreshes, EAV consolidation, and encryption-related dataset re-creation.
Published Oct 13, 2026
| Starting Price | Not publicly listed (quote-based / licensing dependent); see vendor product overview and feature pages | Not publicly listed (quote-based); see vendor product overview and feature pages | Tooling often already owned with z/OS; primary costs are labor, risk, and downtime |
| Primary use case | Dataset-level online/non-disruptive migrations, consolidation, EAV moves, some DB2 storage reclaim scenarios; see vendor product overview and feature pages | Volume-level transparent migration across vendor arrays/platform contexts; see vendor product documentation/whitepaper | Smaller migrations, low urgency, environments that can tolerate planned outages |
| Key strengths | Granular migrations (selective dataset moves), multivendor CKD support, DIVERT-based migration phases | Broader migration scope and transparent volume moves | Low incremental software cost; full control via custom scripting and operational procedures |
| Key weaknesses | Not all dataset types supported; some migrations may still require application restarts; limited public performance metrics (see vendor technical documentation) | May exceed requirements if only a subset of datasets needs migration; product complexity | Higher outage risk, higher manual effort, longer timelines |
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