Some reasons for recommending DB2 Connect are:

1. Performance. As the proprietary software for DB2 interconnectivity, it is optimised for transmission of DB2 objects. No extra conversion is required, and data can be transmitted in block fashion rather than by the record (or row) of data.
2. Data transfer and conversion. Via DRDA, DB2 takes care of all conversion issues such as ASCII to EBCDIC, or codepage issues. It provides for proper acknowledgement of data receipt and integrity, and takes care of the platform specific internal formatting of data by DB2.
3. Scheduling. Since DB2 Connect provides seamless access to data, the mainframe or the RS6000 can access the data as though it is on its own platform. There are therefore no unneccessary overheads in data transmission or receipt, and no extra handling required to provide a straightforward path through either platform's usual scheduling software, such as OPC/ESA on the OS/390.
4. Utilities. DB2 UDB contains a full set of utilites that can be used to access statistics regarding table usage, location, content and performance. DB2 Connect allows the full range of any platform's supplied DB2 utilities to be used on another platform.

5. Full Support. DB2 Connect is IBM's strategic solution for DB2 UDB - Universal Database, so as to make DB2 a platform independent DBMS. DB2 has been supported for over 11 years, and will remain so for the forseeable future. Tailor-made scripts or programs, however, receive no external support, and may require modification when external products change, as they may be release dependant. DB2 connect makes data access painless over releases and platforms, whether RS6000 running on AIX, S/390 running MVS or Linux, or Windows on a PC.
6. Portability. DB2 UDB allows data to be portable from one platform to another, allowing quite quick transfer of an operation to that platform. DB2 Connect helps to make the move seamless, as utilities that work on one platform can be retained via a "CONNECT TO INST1 USER XYZ USING XXYYZZ" statement format in the scripts when the data moves.