JCL (EN/NL/FR)

This 2 day ABIS course teaches participants how to code JCL statements in a zOS mainframe environment. Course suitable for anyone working on a zOS mainframe; basic ISPF knowledge is required in order to be able to successfully attend this course.

Remark: Course description in English; Dutch and French versions are available on the ABIS website. Courses are planned in Dutch, English, and French. Consult the ABIS website for alternate course formats.

Content overview: (1) how to code JCL (Job Control Language) statements to obtain a correct execution of programs and the correct treatment of data sets (2) the interpretation of job output via SDSF (Spool Display and Search Facility) in order to correct possible errors as soon as possible (3) the use and creation of procedures.

Topics:

• Job Entry Subsystem (JES) and batch processing
  • The JOB statement: accounting information, job scheduling parameters, execution parameters, job output specification
  • The EXEC statement: PGM, PROC, PARM, COND, TIME, etc.
  • The DD statement: data set description, resource specification, output description, in-stream data sets, etc.
  • The IF-THEN-ELSE construction
  • The OUTPUT statement
• Job log and job output • SDSF manipulation
• Special datasets and associated parameters: concatenation • partitioned and sequential data sets • temporary data sets • backward references • GDG • SMS parameters • JOBLIB • STEPLIB • ...
• INCLUDE and JCLLIB
• Use of procedures: definition • parameters • changing and adding • symbolic parameters
• Debugging of JCL, frequent abends, ...
• JES2 control statements

Intended for/Audience: Programmers, operators, system programmers, schedulers.

Background/Prerequisites: Basic knowledge of ISPF/PDF is necessary (see course ISPF/PDF basics). You can test yourself to see if you have enough background by printing and filling in the self-test available on the ABIS website.

Training Method/Didactics: About half of the time is spent on practical exercises.

Duration: 2 days.