Curriculum
From your first command to running the bank.
You learn inside ZedBank, a fictional bank running on the mainframe. Nine tracks take you from your very first command to writing, supporting, and securing the systems it runs on. Each one a real job, with Zed guiding every step.
One path, in the order the work demands. Your role at the bank grows as you go. Hands-on lessons put you in the lab driving the system; concept lessons build the mental model with Zed first.
- 01
Mainframe101 Orientation
5 lessons · Getting startedYour role: New starter, finding your feet
Your first day: what the lab is, how a lesson works, and your very first command on the system.
- 02
Mainframe Fundamentals
32 lessons · ConceptsYour role: New technology analyst
What a mainframe is and why it still runs the world: processors, memory, LPARs, z/OS, and the subsystems you'll meet.
- 03
Getting Around the Mainframe
20 lessons · Hands-onYour role: Technology analyst, platform team
Find your way around the terminal, datasets, jobs, and the spool. A full day at the bank, end to end.
- 04
JCL Fundamentals
34 lessons · Hands-onYour role: Junior batch operations analyst
Read and write JCL, submit jobs, and work the spool and return codes, with conditions, disposition, IDCAMS and SORT.
- 05
COBOL Fundamentals
34 lessons · Hands-onYour role: Junior core banking developer
Read, edit and run COBOL against the bank's data: divisions, arithmetic, IF and EVALUATE, PERFORM, and file I/O.
- 06
DB2 Fundamentals
26 lessons · Hands-on + conceptsYour role: Trainee data & application support analyst
Query the bank's relational data with SQL, then embed it in COBOL: joins, keys, indexes, views and cursors.
- 07
CICS Fundamentals
27 lessons · Hands-on + conceptsYour role: Branch systems support analyst
Work the online transactions that update real business data: sign on, screen maps, and a live teller workflow.
- 08
RACF Fundamentals
25 lessons · Hands-on + conceptsYour role: Junior security administration analyst
Users, groups, and profiles the way security teams work: access levels, granting access, and access-denied triage.
- 09
REXX Fundamentals
25 lessons · Hands-onYour role: Operations automation trainee
Automate routine operations with REXX: variables and control flow, parsing input, and reading and writing files.
Every track runs on ZedBank's own systems: the same datasets, jobs, and transactions carry through from one to the next, so the skills stack instead of resetting. The path keeps growing through the beta.
Start with your first day.
Join the private beta and begin the first tracks inside ZedBank.