What's new in HCL Z Data Tools 16.1

New features and enhancements in V16.1.4, June 2026

This version of Z Data Tools rolls up a number of miscellaneous fixes.

The View/Compare Load Module (VLM/CLM) functions have been enhanced to improve the accuracy and detail of compilation metadata. The reported CSECT compilation date now includes the time (if available) in hh:mm:ss format. This enhancement provides more precise information for identifying and comparing load modules, particularly in environments where multiple compilations occur on the same date. See Load Module Information panel and Comparing load modules.
Enhanced support for Unicode fields in selection criteria and freeform expressions. You can specify plain text values when using the TFLD function with supported comparison and content-matching operators. An example is added for the SURNAME field demonstrates case-insensitive matching using CU operator. See TFLD and Entering criteria as a freeform expression for more details.
A new topic Managing record selection criteria in Z Data Tools, has been added. The topic describes how to save and retrieve record selection criteria during template editing by using the RA, SR, and GR commands on the Field Selection/Edit panel. It introduces reference groups for storing criteria and enables reuse of saved selection conditions across sessions.
Updated instructions to the topic Installation requirements for Z Data Tools on Eclipse for generating dynamic software compatibility reports through HCL Software Product Compatibility Reports (SPCR) to help users obtain the latest supported operating systems, hardware requirements, and software prerequisites.
A new Installation requirements topic has been added to Z Data Tools on VS Code, describing both host and client requirements. The existing installation requirements topic for Z Data Tools on Eclipse has been updated with current version information and references to SPCR.
Updated the topics to clarifies the relationship between the PROD_EDIT option and the default values of the TABLE_LOCKING, TABLE_LOCKING, and EDIT_MAX_ROWS options. Documentation for each option now specifies how its default value is determined based on the current PROD_EDIT setting, ensuring that users understand the dependencies between these configuration options.

New features and enhancements in V16.1.3, February 2026

This version of Z Data Tools rolls up a number of miscellaneous fixes.

Z Data Tools has been updated to align its handling of the ISPF Packed format with the global ISPF setting Global_Disable_Pack, when a new Z Data Tools option ISPFGLBL is enabled. See ISPFGLBL:

A new ISPFGLBL option is introduced in the Customization Guide. When set to YES, Z Data Tools enforces ISPF global settings; when NO (default), Z Data Tools behavior remains unchanged and independent of ISPF globals.
If ISPF globally disables packed data:
- Users can still read and interpret existing packed data, but cannot save or rewrite data in packed format.
- PACK-related options and commands (PACK, PACK=ASIS) become unavailable or are ignored, and data is always saved in standard format.
Updated multiple User Guide sections to document the enforced behavior when ISPF packed format is restricted.
Enhanced panels and informational messages to clearly notify users when ISPF packed data is disabled and explain Z Data Tools resulting behavior. see Editor Options panel.
Added new system messages HFMBB674 - HFMBB678 to explicitly indicate when packed format usage, related commands, or options are unavailable or overridden. See Z Data Tools messages.
Z Data Tools now supports creating VSAM Database data sets and alternate indexes with up to five key names. These are the only Z Data Tools functions that currently support VSAM Database. See VSAM Define panel and AIX Entry Detail panel.
Support for the PASSWORD=REMEMBER option has been removed. Use PASSWORD=PASSTICKET for HFM/CICS logon handling. See topic Starting ZDT/CICS.

New features and enhancements in V16.1.2, November 2025

This version of Z Data Tools rolls up a number of miscellaneous fixes. It includes the following new support:

You can now specify a list of members in the DD statement in the JCL as an alternative to specifying them in a $$FILEM control statement for a number of Z Data Tools functions. For more information about the format used to specify members, and the functions that support this method, see JCL syntax for Z Data Tools batch jobs.
Added a new processing option to generate the HFMMLST DD containing the selected members to be processed. See Advanced Member Selection panel and Advanced Member Selection panel for load libraries.
Support for regular expressions and picture strings:
- Regular expressions are now supported in all View and Edit sessions when specifying a search string for FIND, CHANGE, and EXCLUDE primary commands. For more information on specifying regular expression strings, see:
- Picture strings are supported for the search and replace values for functions that perform change processing, and search values for functions that perform contains processing.
  Regular expressions are now supported for search values of functions that perform change and contains processing.
  For more details see:
  - Using picture strings and regular expressions with external REXX functions
Z Data Tools has been enhanced to support a user exit when running the HFMSRCHK edit or view function key. See F4 edit macro exit for complete details.
The FNot and CNot behavior in a View or Edit session is changed to match field or record areas that do not contain any occurrence of the search string. See FIND/FX primary command and CHANGE/CX primary command.
For enhanced security, define data set profiles for data sets allocated to HFMAUTH DD with UACC(NONE) and encrypt these files. For more details, see Preparing for Z Data Tools Remote Services.
The recommended environment to access CICS resources using Z Data Tools is via the TSO/ISPF environment. For installations using CICS via the ZCC server environment, HFM3PRFD should specify *PASSWORD=PASSTICKET. *PASSWORD=REMEMBER will be deprecated in a future release. For more information, see the topics Checklist for installing and customizing Z Data Tools to access CICS resources and Modifying and submitting HFM3INST and HFM3PRFD.

New features and enhancements in V16.1.1, June 2025

This version of Z Data Tools rolls up a number of miscellaneous fixes. It includes the following new support:

New option, F5 Clear, has been added to the Enhanced Search Command panel to clear all fields on the panel. See Enhanced Search command panel for an example.
A new edit option has been added to use an auxiliary data set when viewing a large non-VSAM data set that will not fit into memory. See the new edit option in Editor Options panel and the new option VIEWAUX.

New features and enhancements in V16.1.0, April 2025 (refresh)

This refresh version of Z Data Tools rolls up a number of miscellaneous fixes. It also includes the following new support:

Z Data Tools provides a Microsoft Visual Studio Code extension client with an intuitive interface to access, edit, and manage data sets and files on z/OS systems. See Z Data Tools on VS Code for more details about downloading the extension.

New features and enhancements in V16.1.0, First edition, March 2025

This version of the documentation provides information applicable to Z Data Tools Version 16, Release 1. This version includes the following new support:

A new processing option, "Start", has been added to the menu panels for the enhanced search report. Select this processing option to start applicable options in another ISPF session. See Using F4 from any edit or view session when positioned on a string or word and Using F4 for enhanced search report filtering commands for more information about the options that support the "Start" option.
A new option, "MLIST" has been added to both the List and Search Options panel and the Report View Options panel. Select this option to produce an ISPF member list for up to 16 data set names referenced in the current view or edit session. See Using F4 from the command line and Using F4 for enhanced search report filtering commands for more information.

Z Data Tools provides updated internal COBOL and PL/I compilers with this version. Starting with this version, by default, the internal default COBOL compiler is used and additional internal compilers are provided.
To determine which Z Data Tools COBOL compiler is to be used, a new option, ALTCOB, has been added. See ALTCOB for more information about the available COBOL compilers.
To determine which Z Data Tools PL/I compiler is to be used, a new option, ALTPLI, has been added. See ALTPLI for more information about the available PL/I compilers.
To discover the level of the internal PL/I compiler being used, a new command is available, SHOWPLI, from both batch and the Z Data Tools command line. See Customizing for processing PL/I include books for more information about submitting this command.
Updated the security configuration to reflect compiler behavior changes; the Facility class profile FILEM.COBOL.INTERNAL is no longer used and has been replaced by FILEM.COBOL.EXTERNAL, due to the Z Data Tools internal compiler now being the default. See Customizing for processing COBOL copybooks.
Z Data Tools provides the SHOWCOB command, from both batch and the Z Data Tools command line, to determine which COBOL compiler is being used, internal or external. When the Z Data Tools internal COBOL compiler is being used, more detailed messages are provided with this release to indicate why it is being used. See Customizing for processing COBOL copybooks for more information.
Auto detect for compiler languages now supports Assembler and is more efficient. See "Auto detect" in Selecting your compiler language.
A new option has been added to the Editor Options panel, Show nullable column indicators, so that ZDT/Db2 displays an indicator for columns with nullable status. See Editor Options (4 of 8) panel for more details. For example output, see Table Edit panel, Table Browse panel, and Table View panel.
New keywords for the Z Data Tools DEFV function to produce VSAM define statements for Data, Index, and Catalog names in addition to supporting alternate Index, Path, and GDG data sets. See DEFV (Define VSAM Statements) for the syntax and details.
ZDT/Db2 IVP updates for supported versions of Db2 Version 12 and later. See the section Verifying the customization of ZDT/Db2 for the updates.
Support for Db2 Version 13 has been extended to Function level 505 in DDL generation (GEN command).
Enhancement of SQL prototyping. See Basic SELECT Prototyping panel.
Added support for simple comments in SQL statement execution. See Enter, Execute and Explain SQL Statements panel.

The Size column can now be changed to a User column showing the last user to modify the member on the Enhanced Reference and Index member list displays. This is supported via F11 (USER column) and F10 (Size column) function keys. See Field Descriptions for the Enhanced Reference List panel.
Proclib and Parmlib data sets are now available for selection via the Enhanced Edit key Select option 3. See Using F4 from any edit or view session when positioned on a string or word.
Reference data set list definitions are now supported. Leaving the Reference data set name blank now provides for the selection from a predefined Reference data set list if an HFMLREFS DD is found, as well as selection from a user history. See Defining a Reference data set selection list.
Index data set list definitions are now supported. Leaving the Index data set name blank now provides for the selection from a predefined Index Data Set List if an HFMLIDXS DD is found, as well as selection from a user history. See Defining an Index Data Set List.

A comma character (,) is now supported in place of a decimal separator when processing numeric values. This new support includes a new Z Data Tools installation option, COMMADEC, an additional option on the Compiler Language Selection panel, and a new keyword definition in the SET (Set Processing Options).
Load Module link date and time:
- View Load Module member lists now support link date and time. The new option Link date and time is optional. See Load Module Information - Selection panel.
- The Enhanced edit key menu has been updated to include a new option 14, Load, which can be used to produce a view load module member list on one or more load libraries with optional link date and time and duplicate members displayed. See Using F4 from any edit or view session when positioned on a string or word.
- A new option, 5 Load, has been added to the List and Search options panel that invokes the view load module member list for all the load libraries found in the view or edit session. See Using F4 from the command line
Four new options (Dslist, UDlist, Search, Change) have been added to the menu displayed when pressing F4 (enhanced edit key) from the command line of an enhanced search report. See Using F4 for enhanced search report filtering commands.
You can now create your index definition member with an ISPF dialog that guides you in generating an index definition member. See Index data set name panel and Index language/data set groups panel.
The DEFV function now supports generating the DATACLASS, MANAGEMENTCLASS, and STORAGECLASS values via a new keyword, SMS=YES. See DEFV (Define VSAM Statements) for the complete syntax.
Data set detail panels now display the encryption status and key label of a data set, and data set definition panels provide the option of specifying a key label when defining a data set. When an encrypted data set is copied to a previously non-existent data set using the DSNOUT keyword with the DSC command, Z Data Tools attempts to create the new data set with the same key label as the original data set. See Allocate (Two) panel, Non-VSAM Allocate panel, Non-VSAM Entry Detail panel, VSAM Define panel, and VSAM Entry Detail panel.

Enhancements to the enhanced ISPF processing:
- Extended member lists are now produced for view or edit functions when a partitioned data set with a generic or blank member name is being processed.
- A view or edit of a DD statement containing concatenated partitioned data sets now supports an extended member list for all corresponding cataloged data sets.
- Variables defined in an INCLUDE member are now processed and resolved when processing data set names.
- Option 4, Dslist, has been extended to support the display of an ISPF data set list when positioned on a DD statement, and a UNIX directory list when positioned on a UNIX path or file name. See Using F4 from any edit or view session when positioned on a string or word for more information.
- Two new prefix commands are available for the enhanced reference list display:
  - L: produces an ISPF data set list.
  - U: produces a UNIX directory list.
  For more details about these prefix commands, see Line Commands.
- Pressing the function key with 4 in the command line when viewing or editing produces a data set list for up to 30 data set names referenced in the session.
- Pressing the function key with 4U in the command line when viewing or editing produces a UNIX directory list for up to 30 path or file names referenced in the session.