Version 2R1M0

TheBill TM
An I.T. Resource Accounting (Chargeback) Facility

Product Description
TheBill is a software package designed to support the implementation and operation of I.T. Resource Accounting (Chargeback) systems for IT Data Processing Centres. Its main functions are to identify the resources consumed by users of data centre facilities, to classify those users, to apportion costs according to rates predetermined by the data centre and to prepare usage reports and invoices. A description of the major features of the system is given below.

Introduction
TheBill has been developed by a group of I.T. professionals who perceived the need for a fully functional but low cost facility which will support the charging of users of I.T. resources - to recover the cost of operating and maintaining a data centre and of providing associated support services.

TheBill is written in SAS. Anyone familiar with SAS will be able to set up, operate and maintain the system. Panels are provided for interactive enquiry and maintenance, however the system may be operated entirely in batch mode.

System Presentation
• The system complies with latest SAS standards.
• All processing of billing data will be done in batch mode.
• File maintenance (tables update etc.) may be done on-line or in batch mode.

Data Inputs
Input data is taken from the Merrill's Extended Guide (MXG) performance/workload database (PDB). This includes all standard MVS monitor data (e.g. Batch, TSO, IMS, CICS, DB2 etc.), Landmark's MONITOR, VTOC, VVDS, DCOLLECT, TMS, HP-UX and HP-PCS data. Future releases will support the capture of data from VAX and other Unix systems. Provision is made for non-machine inputs such as applications development and maintenance hours.

Administrative Control
A set of standard reports on usage is provided. Extra reports can be written by the user if required. The system will require maintenance in the area of cost codes and cost allocations, however the amount of maintenance will be very dependent on the changes in progress at the site.

System Capabilities
The design objective is for the system to be easily used and maintained by I.T. accounting staff. Panels may be used for the input of data collection criteria, the specification of activities within each billing unit, the setting of rates etc. A feed to general ledger may be implemented according to which general ledger system is in use at the customer site.

Report Types
Invoicing. Invoices will present the cost per data source per period, for each defined user or cost centre. More detailed information will be available from the detail files.

Invoices may be produced at any defined level of the cost code (i.e. hierarchy 1-9). This information may be retrieved at any time by on-line interrogation.

Administration/Control Reports. Standard resource usage reports and some control reports are included. Other reports may be generated as required, using SAS or any SAS based reporting system.

Rates and Budgets
Rates may be set by system, by shift, by midpoint shift or by preferred shifts. Users who have not achieved their target usage or charges may be reported. Budgets may be input by cost centre, down to a monthly level. Reports will be available for both systems.

Project Accounting
An external interface is available to input non-machine project accounting details. It will use the same cost code structures as machine inputs and will report per user hierarchy level. The ability to distinguish user activities when on multiple projects is only a function of the cost code used.

Technical Aspects
Hardware. TheBill runs under OS/390 or any other operating system which will support SAS.

System Software. The latest version of SAS is recommended. SAS/FSP is optional and may assist in the development of customised reports. The latest version of MXG is recommended. All source code is provided.

Resource Utilisation and Performance. DASD space requirements are minimised by retaining only relevant data and by using the data compression features of SAS. By using MXG data, SMF records are read only once.

Backup and Recovery. Recovery may be accomplished at any time by the use of the Detail, Month-to-Date and Year-to-Date files. Backup and recovery is based on standard data centre utilities.

Processing Description
Daily or As Required (batch). Detail data is extracted for each data source and stored in a Detail file, together with any manual inputs. Only relevant elements are extracted, to keep DASD usage to a minimum. The selection of data depends on fields and files selected by the user. A billing unit is created for each element that is used for billing. The cost centre assignments are also developed, based on user criteria.

During this extraction stage the cost centre is assigned and billing is carried out. Both these steps may be repeated at any time for applying new rates or new cost centre allocations. This detail file is kept for a day then aged. It may be saved to tape or retained on disk. The data is then summarised into one file for month-to-date totals using the source as a key to differentiate.

Adjustments may also be entered at any time during the month and stored in this file.

Month End/ Period End/ Year End.
At this stage the period is closed and a Year-to-Date file is produced. This file is used for reports and invoices.

On-line Functions
File Updates. Files may be updated in on-line or batch mode. Parameter type information entered on-line will only be effective after a batch job has been run to incorporate the parameters into SAS code.

Enquiry. On-line inquiry will be available for the detail, Month-to-Date and Year-to-Date files. This will show charges for each level and may include budget and adjustment information.

Documentation
One set of printed manuals will be provided for each customer site together with a copy in machine readable form on diskette as a member of the source library. Updates will be distributed with program updates and new releases.

Support
Full technical support is available within Australia, the U.S.A and Europe. TheBill will continue to be enhanced to meet new customer requirements, to support additional data sources and to maintain compatibility with host system updates.

Pacific Systems Management has a firm commitment to providing ongoing product support. Pacific Systems Management will also provide assistance in the planning, implementation and maintenance of chargeback systems, as an additional service.

Fees
The initial licence fee for TheBill includes documentation, installation support and the first year's maintenance. Thereafter an annual maintenance fee will apply.
The licence fee is currently US$15,000 per site. The maintenance fee (after the first year) is currently US$2,250 per annum. Fees may vary.

TheBill is a product of Pacific Systems Management Pty Limited SAS and SAS/FSP are registered trademarks of the SAS Institute Inc. MXG is the registered trademark of Merrill Consulting MVS, CICS, DB2 are products of International Business Machines VAX is a trademark of Digital Equipment Corporation Unix is a trademark of Unix Systems Laboratories

For more information please contact:
Pacific Systems Management Pty Ltd
Level 1, 12-16 Cecil Place, Prahan, Vic 3181, Australia
Telephone: +61 3 9533 7193 Facsimile: +61 3 9533 8122
Technical Support: support@psm.cx