Job Action Language function_JAL

This section describes how to include JAL in your BMC ThruPut Manager configuration. To find information describing how to write the JAL to implement your installation's batch processing rules, see the DAL/JAL User Guide and the JAL-Reference-guide.

Description

The Job Action Language is the heart of BMC ThruPut Manager. It is the means for your installation to apply system management to your batch workload. JAL provides you with a set of comprehensive variables and built-in functions that allow you to accurately categorize each job. In this section, we are only concerned with the actions that can be requested with JAL for each job processed by BMC ThruPut Manager. For a description of Job Action Language capabilities, refer to the DAL/JAL User Guide and the JAL-Reference-guide.

JAL and Optional Components

JAL for the BMC ThruPut Manager Base Product supports Job Classing. Additionally, there are extensions to support other components. As part of the Base Product, there are JAL extensions to support:

•  Job Setup Services (JSS)
  Additionally, your installation might add one or more of the BMC ThruPut Manager optional components:
• Dataset Contention Services (DCS)
• Job Binding Services (JBS)

JAL includes extensions to support each of these components. Details describing these extensions are provided later in this section.

JAL Execution-Control Flow

An overview of the control flow for the execution of JAL is included here to illustrate where JAL fits in the overall architecture of BMC ThruPut Manager:

JAL Actions

As the diagram shows, JAL can request that BMC ThruPut Manager take actions for each job processed. The following sections provide a summary of the possible actions.

Base Product (Job Classing)

With the BMC ThruPut Manager Base Product, you can perform job verification, and depending on the outcome, request BMC ThruPut Manager to:

• Insert warnings or information messages in JOBLOG/SYSMSGS and let the job go to execution.
• Place the job in JES2 HOLD status.
• Fail the job.
• Assign the execution class.
• Assign a class for Deferred Processing Services.
• Assign the execution priority.
• Set a CPU time limit for the job.
• Assign a performance group.
• Produce a simple list of mountable volumes and send it directly to an output device.

Job Setup Services Component Extensions.

JAL is extended to support the management of mountable volume requests. You can:

• Request a Volume List for a job that requires mountable volumes, causing the job to be placed in VOLUME hold and its Volume List to be queued for printing. A job in VOLUME hold is released automatically when media-handlers signal that its volumes are available.
• Accumulate mountable volumes for several jobs so their volumes can all be requested together. The resulting Consolidated Volume List can then be "spooled" and printed.
• Initiate asynchronous DFHSM requests for jobs with migrated data sets, and apply an HSM hold to allow time for the data set to be recalled.
• Do further analysis of jobs based on automated or manual cartridges.

Dataset Contention Services Component Extensions

There are a number of significant extensions to JAL to support the DCS Component. They allow you to:

• Set the service level that DCS gives a job.
• Determine the characteristics of a data set and the DD statement that references it, so that you can use this information to decide how DCS should manage contention for the data set.
• Repossess a required data set from TSO users who have the data set opened for input.
• Request NAGs and ALERTs to help resolve data set contention problems.
• Request data set contention recording for a job.

Job Binding Services Component Extensions

There are a number of significant extensions to JAL to support the JBS Component. They allow you to:

•  Determine whether or not a job has JECL statements, the types of the statements, and naming conventions for Binding Agents, Limiting Agents, and Batch Names.
• Add Binding statements to a job.
• Add Limiting Agents to a job.
• Determine whether or not you have "inserted" any BIND statements.
• Relate the job to a Limiting Agent.
• Determine whether or not you have reached the total number of BIND statements that you can insert (up to 24) or the number of Limiting Agents you can associate with a job (up to 24).
• Assign Batch Names to jobs so they can be grouped to define the scope of Before & After actions.

Implementation Summary

You must convert JAL source statements into a format that BMC ThruPut Manager can use. This is the purpose of the Language Processor. Your JAL source statements are the input to the Language Processor, and the output is JAL internal text, suitable for use by BMC ThruPut Manager. For details about using the Language Processor, refer to the DAL/ JAL User Guide.

The sequence required to implement JAL is:

1.  Write JAL statements defining your installation's rules.
2.  Run the Language Processor to verify your JAL source statements, and convert them into the internal text required by BMC ThruPut Manager.
3.  Add the statement JAL LOAD to the TMSS initialization statements. This indicates that there are installation rules and where they can be found (JAL internal text).

Dependencies

Internal JAL text must be provided to TMSS at startup time. The JAL LOAD initialization statement indicates where to find the internal text created by the Language Processor. The Language Processor is a separate component of BMC ThruPut Manager, and is described in detail in the DAL/JAL User Guide.

TMSS Initialization Statements

There are two TMSS initialization statements for this function:

JAL LOAD
JAL TRACE

They are documented in TMSS-initialization-statements.

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