Testing without Breakpoints

1. On a blank CICS screen, type XPED and press Enter.

This activates Code Debug CICS, sets the abend trap option, and displays the Primary Menu as shown in the following figure. The Primary Menu will only display certain choices if the corresponding BMC BMC product or functionality—such as Xchange, Code Coverage, or CICSPlex support—is installed and active in the CICS region.

Primary Menu (XPED/XPRT)

Code Debug CICS is now turned on and ready to intercept any abends that may occur.

2. To turn on the trace facility, type SET TRACE ON on the COMMAND line and press Enter.

3. Press Clear to return to CICS to start your test.

4. On a blank CICS screen, type XASM and press Enter. The Demonstration Transaction screen appears as shown in the following figure.

Demonstration Transaction Screen

5. To cause an ASRA abend, type 00001 and press Enter. The CWDEMASM demo program is intercepted when the abend occurs, and the Source Listing screen (2.L) is displayed. This gives you the opportunity to fix the problem, re-execute the statement, and continue the test. The display is “clipped” to show only the source code.

6. If you prefer to also see the OPCODE, type SET JUST OFF and press Enter. The display shows the offset and assembly from the source listing, as shown in the following figure.

Executing SET JUST OFF on the Assembler Source Listing Screen (2.L)

The module and CSECT names are displayed on the third line of the screen along with the assembly date and time to indicate which program is executing. The keep window is next, where all data items from the current statement are automatically displayed. The message on the STATUS line, ASRA (DATA EXCEPTION) at CWDEMASM.603, indicates that an ASRA has been intercepted. In the source statements that follow, the current statement is identified with an arrow =====>.

In this example, the ASRA occurs because one of the fields in the current statement contains bad data. Note the value of WRKHOUR. The bad data in this field is causing the ASRA.

7. The contents of other data items can be checked by using the PEEK primary command. Type PEEK WRKTAX in the COMMAND field and press Enter. Code Debug CICS will transfer to the Defined Storage screen (2.3) with the contents of WRKTAX positioned to the top of the screen as shown in the following figure

Defined Storage Screen (2.3) Accessed with PEEK Command

8. Press PF3 (END) to return to the Source Listing screen (2.L).

9. As you could see in Executing SET JUST OFF on the Assembler Source Listing Screen (2.L), the contents of WRKHOUR is non-numeric. This is designated by question marks (?????) in the field contents. To view the actual contents of WRKHOUR, do the following:

a. Place the cursor on WRKHOUR in the keep window and press PF8 (DOWN) to position it to the top line.
b. Type HEX ON in the COMMAND field and press Enter.

The hex value for WRKHOUR will be displayed in the keep window as shown in the following figure.

Source Listing Screen (2.L) Showing Contents of WRKHOUR

10. Type HEX OFF in the COMMAND field and press Enter.

11. Autokeeps are displayed only for the statement currently executing. To continue displaying the value of WRKHOUR as you step further through the program, set an explicit keep as follows:

a. Move the cursor next to WRKHOUR in the keep window.

b. Type K and press Enter.

Another way to set this keep would be to type KEEP WRKHOUR in the COMMAND field and press Enter.

A feature called Intelligent Autokeeps is an extension to Code Debug’s autokeep facility. This feature is enabled by default, but can be disabled in your individual profile settings. With Intelligent Autokeeps enabled, if an autokeep variable could be modified by the execution of the current statement, it will be redisplayed in the keep window when you step to the next statement. This intellikeep can often eliminate the need to set, then later remove, an explicit keep. The Intelligent Autokeeps feature will not display an autokeep if a duplicate explicit keep has been set.

12. At this point, two methods can be used to prevent the ASRA abend from occurring:

a. The first method is to change the value of WRKHOUR to a valid number:

1. Change ????? to 40 and press Enter. This can be done for the explicit keep or the autokeep for WRKHOUR.

2. Press PF9 (GO 1) to get to the next statement as shown in the following figure.

Changing the Value of WRKHOUR on the Source Listing Screen (2.L)

b. Instead of changing the value number, the second method is to change the Assembler instruction using the VERIFY command.

1. Type GT on statement 603 and press Enter.

2. Type VERIFY 603 on the COMMAND line and press Enter. The result of the VERIFY command is shown in the following figure.

Changing the Value of WRKHOUR Using the VERIFY Command

c. If WRKHOUR still had bad data, you could get temporarily past the ASRA by changing the instruction to multiply CURRPAY by PAYHOUR9 as follows:

1. Change the second operand of the instruction from D25A to D2F9 and press Enter.

2. Press PF9 to single-step past the modified instruction.

You have now changed the value of CURRPAY, and temporarily corrected the ASRA.

13. Press PF12 (GO) to continue processing. If any other abends occur, Code Debug CICS will intercept them. Upon completion, the following figure is displayed. The GROSS PAY shown will depend on the way in which you resolved the abend.

Transaction Complete Screen

14. Always end your debugging session as described in Exiting Code Debug CICS and Ending a Debugging Session.