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Definition: MVS


(1) (Machine Vision System) See computer vision.

(2) (Multiple Virtual Storage) Introduced in 1974, the primary operating system used with IBM mainframes (the others were VM, DOS/VSE and TPF). MVS is a batch processing-oriented operating system that manages large amounts of memory and disk space. Online operations are provided with CICS, TSO and other system software. MVS was enhanced many times with new functions and new names as follows.

MVS/Extended Architecture
MVS/XA manages the enhancements introduced in 1981 with IBM's 370/XA architecture, including 2GB of virtual memory.

MVS/Enterprise Systems Architecture
MVS/ESA manages the enhancements made to large scale mainframes, including 16TB of virtual memory, introduced in 1988 with IBM's ESA/370 architecture. MVS/ESA ran on all models of the System/390 ES/9000 product line introduced in 1990.

OS/390
In 1996, MVS/ESA was packaged with an extensive set of utilities that was renamed OS/390. The name MVS was still used to refer to the base control program in OS/390. See OS/390.

z/OS
In 2000, z/OS was introduced with the 64-bit zSeries mainframes. See z/OS and IBM Z.