Submitting a Create Transaction Candidates request
A Create Transaction Candidates request collects data on all transactions in a CICS region during the time period you specify. At the end of the collection period, AutoStrobe builds a list of transactions that exceed the thresholds you specified.
To submit a Create Transaction Candidates request:
Select Option C, CANDIDATE CREATION, from the Strobe - AutoStrobe Options panel shown in the following figure:Strobe - AutoStrobe Options Panel
The Strobe - AutoStrobe SMF Candidate Utility panel is displayed.- Type Y in the SWITCH TO AutoStrobe TRANSACTION OPTION field.
Press Enter.The Strobe - AutoStrobe Create Transaction Candidates panel is displayed. It will appear by default whenever you select the Candidate Creation option, until you select the Batch Option on this panel.
Strobe - AutoStrobe Create Transaction Candidates panel
- Complete the following required fields or accept the default values:
- Jobname
- Program
- Starting Time for Collection Period 1
- Ending Time for Collection Period 1
- Days to Collect (Default is 7 days.)
- Qualifying minimum thresholds for transaction counts response time, and CPU time. The defaults in order are: 500 executions, 1 second, and 100 microseconds.
Press Enter to submit the request.
Fields for the Strobe - AutoStrobe Create Transaction Candidates Panel
The following sections describe the fields on the Strobe - AutoStrobe Create Transaction Candidates panel.
SWITCH TO AutoStrobe BATCH OPTION
To display the AutoStrobe batch candidate SMF utility, type Y.
Jobname
The name of the CICS region for which AutoStrobe will collect data on transactions. Wildcards are not allowed.
Stepname
The step name of the CICS region for which AutoStrobe will collect data on transactions. *ALL is not allowed.
Program
The default IBM program name for CICS (DFHSIP) or the name in use at your site.
System
The system ID on which AutoStrobe will collect data on CICS transactions in multisystem environments. Valid values are a specific system ID or *ALL to collect transaction data on all on MVS images. The default is the current system.
Days to Collect
The number of days AutoStrobe will collect data on all transactions in a CICS region, which is also called the candidacy period. The valid values are 1–31 days. AutoStrobe must collect data for the entire candidacy period before it can build the candidate list and calculate suggested thresholds for the transactions on the list. The default is 7 days. We recommend that AutoStrobe collect data for at least three days. The longer AutoStrobe collects data, the more accurately it can calculate the suggested thresholds.
Schedule
Type Y to display the Strobe - AutoStrobe Transaction Candidate Request Scheduler panel, which enables you to specify the days of the week to collect data in the CICS region upon pressing Enter. N is the default.
Immediate Eligibility
Type Y to direct AutoStrobe to begin collecting transaction data in the CICS region as soon as the Create Transaction Candidates request is submitted. Type N for AutoStrobe to begin collecting transaction data the next time the CICS region starts up. Y is the default.
Specify Times, Collection Period CP-1, Collection Period CP-2
Starting
Type the time at which you want AutoStrobe to start collecting information about the transactions in the CICS region.
You can specify two different time periods. At least one is required.
Ending
Type the time at which you want AutoStrobe to stop collecting information about the transactions in the CICS region.
For each time period, the ending time must be greater than the starting time. Specify the time according to the format in the Strobe installation parameter data set.
Qualifying Minimum, Collection Period CP-1, Collection Period CP-2
Tran Count
The minimum number of run times a transaction must exceed during the collection period to qualify as a transaction candidate. Valid values are 1–9999. The default is 500.
Response Time
The average response time a transaction must exceed during the collection period to qualify as a transaction candidate. Valid values are .1–999.9 seconds. The default is 1.0.
CPU Time
The average CPU time a transaction must exceed during the collection period to qualify as a transaction candidate. Valid values are .00001–9.99999 seconds. The default is .00010.
Specifying a Schedule for Transaction Data Collection
You can use the Strobe - AutoStrobe Transaction Candidate Request Scheduler panel to specify the days during which AutoStrobe collects data on all transactions in a CICS region. You can specify:
- Starting date
- Days of the week
- Specific dates to exclude.
The first time you display the panel, all the days of the week are populated with Ys, which means AutoStrobe will collect data on the transactions every day of the week. To restrict the days of the week during which data collection occurs, clear the Ys.
Strobe - AutoStrobe Transaction Candidate Request Scheduler Panel
The following sections describe the fields in the Strobe - AutoStrobe Transaction Candidate Request Scheduler panel.
Select day of week by entering a Y
Type Y under the days of the week on which you want AutoStrobe to collect data about the transactions in the CICS region.
Type N or leave the field blank under the days of the week when you do not want AutoStrobe to collect data on the transactions. The default value is Y.
Starting Date
Type the date (using the format specified on the panel) when AutoStrobe should start collecting data about the transactions in the CICS region.
Exclude dates generated above
Type the dates when you do not want AutoStrobe to collect data for transactions in the CICS region. The default value is blank, which means AutoStrobe does not skip any dates during the candidacy period.