Big data software provider Syncsort has updated technology that provides mainframe data to Splunk security tools, providing critical data monitoring for mainframe environments, the company said.

The new release of Ironstream, which provides mainframe machine data in real-time to Splunk Enterprise and Splunk Cloud customers, uses data collected by Zen z/OS suite, which Syncsort recently acquired. This provides IBMz network and security data and alerts to Splunk security solutions so data-center administrators can use advanced visual analytics in their security strategies, the company said.

Syncsort provides software that collects data for better management of big-data environments, while Splunk provides software to provide operational intelligence that makes systems more secure, he said.

Securing the mainframe environment has always been tricky because of the need to manage data on so many different systems, said Snehal Antani, chief technology officer of Splunk, in a press release. The new release of Ironstream will help better collect and aggregate mainframe security for management by Splunk’s solutions, he said.

"Mainframe monitoring tools present major challenges and difficulties for security engineers and administrators who need to navigate back and forth between systems to troubleshoot problems," Antani said. "Ironstream helps make it easier to collect, transform, and securely forward mainframe security data into Splunk Enterprise and Splunk Enterprise Security, where users can easily search, analyze and visualize the data to gain valuable end-to-end insights across Mainframe and other platforms in a single UI and advanced analytics engine."

Syncsort Ironstream integrates with Splunk solutions to make it easier to collect mainframe data and correlate it with data from other platforms, according to Syncsort. This allows for a 360-degree analysis of mainframe data without need for access to the systems or particular mainframe expertise, the company said.

Using Ironstream within Splunk’s solutions also makes it easier to identify unauthorized access to the mainframe system or other security risks as well as provides real-time alerts to identify problems in a variety of system environments, including CICS, DB2, IMS and MQ, according to Syncsort.

Other features of the new release of Ironstream include real-time views of mainframe SMF data to identify real or potential failures as quickly as possible for more effective management of problem resolution, as well as general higher operational efficiency by augmenting legacy silo monitors with new technologies that better correlate events across systems, according to Syncsort.

Harvey Tessler, founder and general manager, mainframe at Syncsort, said using Ironstream in Splunk simplifies the data hairball many legacy mainframe monitors because because of their attempt to cover every aspect of the systems they’re looking after. As a result, they have technology gaps that don’t identify security threats, something the combination of technologies can help rectify, he said in the press release.

“With Ironstream and Splunk solutions, users can get a 360-degree view of enterprise-wide historical and real-time network management and security data without requiring this deep technical knowledge, straining systems resources, or adding costs,” he said.

The new release of Ironstream is now available online from Splunk's App Store.