Updated September 2026 for IBM Developer for z/OS 17 and Application Delivery Foundation for z/OS 5.0. The original 2023 version of this post listed the two program numbers the wrong way round; they are corrected below.
So, you’ve been told your company bought “IDz”, but when you ask which package, you get shrugs. It matters: “IDz” is used for the desktop client, but the mainframe side is ordered, installed, and licensed as one of several distinct packages, and they don’t include the same tools.
The short answer: they nest
Each package contains the one before it. IDz is the IDE. IDz Enterprise Edition (IDzEE) is IDz plus the tooling for a Git-based build and deployment pipeline. Application Delivery Foundation for z/OS (ADFz) is IDzEE plus the problem-determination tools: Application Performance Analyzer, Fault Analyzer, and File Manager.
| Capability | IDz | IDzEE | ADFz |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eclipse-based IDE, editors, remote compile and syntax check | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| IBM Explorer for z/OS (Remote System Explorer) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| z/OS Debugger in the Eclipse IDE | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Full-featured debugging across Eclipse, VS Code, and 3270 | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| VS Code and browser-based editing | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| Code scanning (z/OS Source Code Analysis) and code coverage | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| IBM Dependency Based Build (DBB) | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| IBM Wazi Deploy | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| Application Performance Analyzer, Fault Analyzer, File Manager | — | — | ✓ |
| Current program number | — | 5755-AB5 (V17) | 5755-AB1 (V5.0) |
IBM also now sells IBM Developer for z/OS Select, which gives developers a choice of VS Code or Eclipse without the rest of the Enterprise Edition tooling. If someone quotes you “IDz”, ask which of the four it is.
What the Enterprise Edition adds
IDzEE is the edition for teams moving to Git and a CI/CD pipeline. Dependency Based Build tracks the dependencies between programs and copybooks, so a build recompiles only what a change actually affects. Wazi Deploy is a scripted, Python- and Ansible-driven deployment tool that runs from the command line inside your pipeline and handles post-deploy tasks such as CICS new copies and Db2 binds.
One correction to the 2023 version: DBB itself doesn’t require Git. But if your builds pull source from Git on z/OS, you need a Git client installed there; Rocket Software’s z/OS port of Git, which handles EBCDIC code-page conversion, is the long-standing option.
What ADFz adds on top
ADFz folds in what IBM used to sell as the Problem Determination Tools: Application Performance Analyzer for finding where a batch job or transaction spends its time, Fault Analyzer for abend analysis, and File Manager for working with data sets and Db2 and IMS data. If your shop already licenses those separately, ADFz may cost less than renewing them next to IDzEE.
Licensing and enablement
Base IDz is licensed per Authorized User or per Floating User; the floating model needs a license server set up. IBM positions IDzEE under an enterprise license rather than per-seat pricing. IDzEE and ADFz are ordered through Shopz, and each is enabled on the host with its own PRODUCT statement in the IFAPRDxx parmlib member:
/* IDz Enterprise Edition */
PRODUCT OWNER('IBM CORP') NAME('IBM IDz EE') ID(5755-AB5)
VERSION(*) RELEASE(*) MOD(*) FEATURENAME(*) STATE(ENABLED)
/* Application Delivery Foundation for z/OS */
PRODUCT OWNER('IBM CORP') NAME('IBM APP DLIV FND') ID(5755-AB1)
VERSION(*) RELEASE(*) MOD(*) FEATURENAME(*) STATE(ENABLED)Enable the one you actually bought, not both. ADFz already contains IDzEE, so enabling both suggests entitlement you may not have. Before you edit the member, check the product you ordered in Shopz.
Upgrading from an older release? The numbers changed: IDzEE 16 was 5755-A05, and ADFz 4.0 was 5755-A01. An IFAPRDxx member written for those releases won’t enable the new ones.
Which one do you need?
- Developers editing, compiling, and debugging, with an existing SCM: base IDz covers it.
- Moving to Git with automated builds and deployments: IDzEE. DBB and Wazi Deploy are the pieces you’ll build the pipeline from.
- That, plus paying separately for Fault Analyzer, File Manager, or Application Performance Analyzer: price ADFz against the combined renewal.
Not sure what you own, or what you should? Sorting that out is the first step of our IDz implementation services: we audit what you’re licensed for and map it to how your teams actually work before the next renewal. Book an assessment.