Version 2.8.0 (April 2023)

Welcome to the Zowe Version 2.8.0 release!

See New features and enhancements for a full list of changes to the functionality. See Bug fixes for a list of issues addressed in this release.

Download v2.8.0 build: Want to try new features as soon as possible? You can download the v2.8.0 build from Zowe.org.

New features and enhancements

Zowe Version 2.8.0 contains the enhancements that are described in the following topics.

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To watch a demo of new enhancements and updated features included in a Zowe V2 minor release, look for the release demo recording in the Zowe V2 System Demo playlist on YouTube.

System demos are typically held the week after a minor release becomes available. Check the Open Mainframe Project Calendar for the latest schedule.

Zowe installation and packaging

• Component installation can now print stdout of install scripts. (#3361)

Zowe Application Framework

ZSS

• Added the API /datasetCopy to copy data sets.
• /datasetMetadata now returns prime, secnd, and space fields for showing the primary and secondary extent sizes and the unit type for them. (#582)
• ZSS data set creation API now supports space values of BYTE, KB, and MB, instead of just CYL and TRK.

Zowe Common C

• fileCopy now copies with the target having the permissions of the source, as opposed to the previous 700 permissions.

Zlux App Manager

• Added new isSingleAppModeSimple() to iframe-adapter to differentiate between standalone mode and simple standalone mode.
• Replaced existing snapshot preview with lighter UI to significantly increase multi-app Desktop performance.

Zlux Server Framework

• Added support for zowe.verifyCertificates=NONSTRICT. (#468)
• Allow dataservices to pass CAs into the call() function. (#462)

Zlux Editor

• Renamed openFile to openBuffer in editor-control.serverice.ts.

Zowe API Mediation Layer

• A unique authentication cookie name has been added for multi-instance deployment (#2812) (6654271), closes #2812.

Zowe CLI

Zowe CLI (Core)

• Updated Imperative to add --prune option to zowe config secure command to delete unused properties. (Imperative #547)
• Added range option to zos-files view uss-file command.

Imperative CLI Framework

• Added --prune option to zowe config secure command to delete unused properties. (#547)

• Added credMgrOverride property to IProfOpts interface that can be used to override credential manager in the ProfileInfo API. (Zowe CLI #1632)

• Deprecated the requireKeytar property on the IProfOpts interface. Use the credMgrOverride property instead and pass the callback that requires Keytar to ProfileCredentials.defaultCredMgrWithKeytar.

• Added AbstractPluginLifeCycle to enable plug-ins to write their own postInstall and preUninstall functions, which will be automatically called by the Zowe plug-in's install and uninstall commands.

• Added pluginLifeCycle property to IImperativeConfig to enable a plug-in to specify the path name to its own module which implements the AbstractPluginLifeCycle class.

• Added a list of known credential manager overrides to Imperative. When a credential manager cannot be loaded, a list of valid credential managers displays in an error message.

• Added a CredentialManagerOverride class containing utility functions to replace the default CLI credential manager or restore the default CLI credential manager. Plug-ins which implement a credential manager override can call these utilities from their AbstractPluginLifeCycle functions.

• Added documentation Overriding_the_default_credential_manager describing the techniques for overriding the default CLI credential manager with a plug-in.

z/OS FTP Plug-in for Zowe CLI

• Updated example of upload file-to-data-set command in the plug-in help.

Zowe Explorer

• Added a new Zowe Explorer setting, zowe.logger, with a default setting of INFO to allow users to select the level of logging they want to see. Logging levels range from TRACE (most verbose) to FATAL (only fatal).

• Added an output channel, Zowe Explorer, for logging within VS Code's Output view so users can view Zowe Explorer logs within VS Code. The log level is set by the new Zowe Explorer setting, zowe.logger.

• Opening a dialog for Upload or Download of files will now open at the project level directory or the user's home directory if no project is opened. (#2203)

• Updated linter rules and addressed linter errors throughout the codebase. (#2184)

• Added the new setting zowe.files.logsFolder.path that can be used to override the Zowe Explorer logs folder if the default location is read-only. (#2186)

Bug fixes

Zowe Version 2.8.0 contains the bug fixes that are described in the following topics.

Zowe installation and packaging

• Component environment variables will not be aliased to the configs shorthand when the component had a configure script, but not a validate script, and zowe.useConfigmgr was enabled.

• When zowe.useConfigmgr=true, component installation will not run the installation script from the component root directory, but instead from the place zwe was executed, causing relative path differences versus zowe.useConfigmgr=false.

Zowe Application Framework

ZSS

• Changed conflicting message IDs in the ZIS dynamic linkage base plug-in.

Zowe Common C

• fileCopy would not work when convert encoding was not requested. The destination file would be created, but without the requested content.
• respondWithUnixFileMetadata would not return UID or GID of a file if the id-to-name mapping failed, which is possible when an account is removed.

Zlux App Manager

• Fixed the iframe-adapter not properly recognizing standalone mode.
• Fixed Iframes from unintentionally loading their sources multiple times during refocus and multi-app situations.

Zlux Editor

• Fixed app2app openDataset function.
• Renamed openFile to openBuffer in editor-control.serverice.ts.

Zowe API Mediation Layer

• Mitigate storing password in memory for V2 (#2858) (b1596eb), closes #2858.
• Mitigate storing password in memory for V1 (#2867) (3356b7c), closes #2867.
• Read response from http client to prevent exahusting connection pool (#2854) (137be23), closes #2854.
• Passticket generation and limit Eureka replication peers threads (#2845) (42b491e), closes #2845.
• Refactor SSL configuration (#2832) (33f4882), closes #2832.

Zowe CLI

Zowe CLI (Core)

• Fixed encoding option for zos-files view uss-file command. (#1495)
• Added notification that encoding, binary, and record options conflict on the zos-files view data-set and zos-files view uss-file commands.
• Updated Imperative to fix the zowe auth li and zowe auth lo aliases. (Imperative #964)
• Fixed URI encoding on zos-jobs commands. (#1596)
• Updated Imperative to fix an error on Windows preventing plug-ins from installing if a local file or directory contains a space. (Imperative #959)
• Updated daemon executable to resolve technical debt.
• Fixed URI encoding on zos-files commands. (#1073)
• Solved daemon issue where Windows usernames were treated as case-sensitive when checking the daemon process owner during Zowe commands.
• Fixed the login and logout handlers, fixing the li and lo aliases.
• Fixed broken plug-in install command for Windows when a file has a space in the name.
• Fixed plug-in install error not displayed correctly. (#954)
• Fixed environment file not applying to daemon client environment variables.

CICS Plug-in for Zowe CLI

• Updated xml2js dependency to resolve security vulnerability.

MQ Plug-in for Zowe CLI

• Fixed GitHub repository URL in package.json.

Zowe Explorer

• Fixed issue with silent failures when uploading members into a data set. (#2167)
• Added back fix that was accidentally removed between updates: Resolved an issue where VS Code did not provide all context menu options for a profile node after a multi-select operation. (#2108)
• Fixed issue where Paste option is shown for a multi-select operation in the Data Sets pane.
• Fixed z/OSMF profiles issue with Data Sets and Jobs with special characters in the names. (#2175)
• Fixed redundant text in error messages that included the same error details twice.
• Fixed error message when no data sets found that match pattern.
• Fixed secure credential storage not possible to enable in Theia.

Vulnerabilities fixed

Zowe discloses fixed vulnerabilities in a timely manner giving you sufficient time to plan your upgrades. Zowe does not disclose the vulnerabilities fixed in the latest release as we respect the need for at least 45 days to decide when and how you upgrade Zowe. When a new release is published, Zowe publishes the vulnerabilities fixed in the previous release. For more information about the Zowe security policy, see the Security page on the Zowe website.