New Project Proposal - Lua/TSO — scripting platform for z/OS (System REXX replacement)

[drblez]

Project description

Lua/TSO — scripting platform for z/OS (System REXX replacement)

Lua/TSO is a scripting platform for z/OS aimed at replacing system REXX for automation. It provides a Lua VM with host APIs for TSO/ISPF/datasets/AXR and TLS via System SSL, designed to work with datasets and core z/OS services.

Statement on alignment with Open Mainframe Project Mission and Vision statements

Lua/TSO aligns with the Open Mainframe Project mission by advancing open‑source tooling for z/OS automation and lowering barriers to mainframe development. It modernizes system scripting by providing a Lua‑based platform that integrates with core z/OS services (TSO/ISPF/AXR) and supports secure connectivity via System SSL. The project encourages community collaboration around reusable automation and modern developer workflows on z/OS.

Are there similar/related projects out there?

Related projects include System REXX (the current standard for z/OS automation), Zowe (modern CLI/REST/UI access to z/OS), and ZOAU utilities used from higher‑level languages. There are also Lua/Python/Perl ports for z/OS USS, but they target the Unix subsystem rather than direct TSO/ISPF/dataset integration.

Sponsor from TAC

To be appointed

Proposed Project Stage

Sandbox

License and contribution guidelines

License: Apache-2.0. Contribution guidelines: see CONTRIBUTING.md (issues + pull requests welcome).

Current or desired source control repository

https://github.com/drblez/luaz

External dependencies (including licenses)

None at the moment (no external dependencies in the repository yet). Target platform dependencies are standard z/OS components (TSO/ISPF/AXR, System SSL), which are part of IBM z/OS.

Initial committers

Initial committers: drblez (Ruslan Stepanenko)
How long: since January 2026
Extent of contributions: 1 initial commit (repo initialization + RFC + licensing)
Diversity of community: currently single‑maintainer, no multi‑org contributor base yet.

Infrastructure requests

No special infrastructure is required at this time. Just only standard MF for my membership level

Communication channels

GH, email drblez@gmail.com, Telegram @drblez

Communication channels

GH

Website

https://github.com/drblez/luaz

Release methodology and mechanics

No releases yet. Planned methodology: semantic versioning with Git tags, GitHub Releases, and a short changelog per release.

Social media accounts

https://blog.drblez.ru/
https://www.instagram.com/drblez

Community size and any existing sponsorship

Just one )))

[nkultashev]

I’ve long wanted to have a full-fledged replacement for TSO and System REXX. It would be great if drblez manages to make this happen.

[jmertic]

Hi @drblez - thanks for this! The TAC is seeing if there is any support for this amongst IBM and Broadcom, or any of the other TAC representatives. The TAC is wanting to ensure projects can be successful, so if you could reach out to one of the TAC members for a support for this, that would be great. Thanks and let me know if you have any questions.

[jmertic]

Bumping this up @drblez - if you could let us know on the previous comment, that would be great and we can proceed from there. Thanks!

[drblez]

I just needed access to a mainframe with some minimal configuration for development, as I don't have access to a licensed z/OS to run on Hercules. If you could advise me where to go with this problem, I'd be grateful.

[jmertic]

Hi @drblez I'm putting this in the queue for mainframe access. If you have more details on your requirements, that would be great. We are in the process of first getting OMP hosted projects on the mainframe, but plan to then in the next wave add other open source projects approved by the OMP TAC. Thanks!

[jmertic]

Hi @drblez - seeing if this is still active work ongoing on this project. The code repository doesn't show any commits in the last 4 months. Let us know - thanks!