This Natural profile parameter allows you to define the maximum number of work files to be used during the session. Within a session, up to 32 logical work files (numbered 1 to 32) can be used.
WORK corresponds to the
NTWORK
macro in the parameter module
NATPARM. To provide different work file
definitions, WORK or NTWORK can
be specified multiple times.
| Possible settings | See Keyword Subparameters below. | |
|---|---|---|
| Default setting | See below. Depending on the access method and the environment, there may be different default settings. | |
| Dynamic specification | yes | The parameter WORK can only be specified
dynamically. In NATPARM, the macro NTWORK
must be used.
|
| Specification within session | no |
The software components for accessing work files in different
environments are called access methods. For the duration of a Natural session,
each logical work file can be assigned to one access method only. The access
method for a work file is determined by the keyword subparameter
AM (see below).
In z/OS under TSO and in batch mode, work files need not be predefined
in the JCL. Provided they are defined by subparameter AM=STD, they
can be allocated dynamically during the session by a Natural program using the
DEFINE WORK FILE
statement or the application programming interface USR2021, which
is located in library SYSEXT.
This document covers the following topics:
See also Print and Work File Handling with External Datasets in a Server Environment in the Operations documentation).
With the WORK parameter, you first specify one or
more logical work file numbers, and then several keyword subparameters, which
define the characteristics for these work files:
| WORK=((work-file-numbers),keyword-subparameters,...) |
The file numbers must be specified first and enclosed in parentheses. The numbers can be from 1 to 31. They can be specified in any sequence. Multiple numbers must be separated from one another by commas or blanks. To specify a range of numbers, you can use a hyphen (-).
The various types of keyword subparameters are described below.
For work files with different characteristics, you specify different
WORK parameters. If any previous definition (or default)
for the same work file exists, only the values for the specified keyword
subparameters are overwritten, all other values remain unchanged.
WORK=((2,12,18),AM=STD,DEST='WORK**') WORK=((1,3,6-11,15),AM=COMP,OPEN=INITOBJ,CLOSE=CMD)
With an NTWORK macro, you first specify one or
more logical work file numbers, and then several keyword subparameters, which
define the characteristics for these work files:
| NTWORK (work-file-numbers),keyword-subparameters,... |
The file numbers must be specified first and enclosed in parentheses. The numbers can be from 1 to 31. They can be specified in any sequence. Multiple numbers must be separated from one another by commas. To specify a range of numbers, you can use a hyphen (-).
The various types of keyword subparameters are described below.
For work files with different characteristics, you specify different
NTWORK macros. If any previous definition (or default)
for the same work file exists, only the values for the specified keyword
subparameters are overwritten, all other values remain unchanged.
NTWORK (2,12,18),AM=STD,DEST='WORK**' NTWORK (1,3,6-11,15),AM=COMP,OPEN=INITOBJ,CLOSE=CMD
The following keyword subparameters are available:
AM |
DEST |
OPEN |
CLOSE |
LRECL |
TRUNC |
PAD |
PADCHRO |
PADCHRI
AM=xxx specifies the type of
access method to be used.
For an online session, all work files to be used have to be assigned to a specific access method.
For a batch session, any work files not assigned to a specific access
method will be automatically detected and assigned by the standard batch access
method (AM=STD), provided that they have been predefined in the
JCL. See also FAMSTD - Overwriting of
Print and Work File Access Method Assignments.
STD |
Standard sequential files (batch, TSO, TIAM, CMS OS simulation). |
COMP |
Com-plete work files. |
SMARTS |
SMARTS work files. Work file on a SMARTS Portable File System (PFS). |
CICS |
CICS transient data or temporary storage. |
CMS |
CMS Disk and SFS files. |
PC |
Entire Connection. |
USER |
Third-party vendor work-file interface. |
OFF |
Unassigned. No automatic assignments if FAMSTD=OFF
is set.
|
0 |
Unassigned. Automatic assignments if FAMSTD=OFF is
set. This is the default value.
|
Note:
WORK=OFF is equivalent to:
WORK=((1-32)),AM=OFF). It does not affect any of the other keyword
subparameter specifications.
DEST=name specifies the
external dataset name (1 - 8 characters).
This corresponds to the
operand1 of the
DEFINE WORK FILE
statement (and can be overwritten by a DEFINE WORK FILE
specification).
The meaning of this keyword subparameter depends on the access method.
AM=STD |
If the destination is to be for multiple files, two asterisks (**)
have to be specified for the file number. These will be replaced by the
corresponding logical file number for each work file. A
The default value is Under z/VSE, only 7-character names are supported. |
AM=CICS |
There is no default value for work files under CICS. Here, the
The Natural CICS interface also supports a variable (see
|
AM=CMS |
For usage of DEST under CMS, refer to
Natural under
VM/CMS in the Operations
documentation).
|
AM=COMP |
DEST defines the name of the Com-plete
SD-file. The length is restricted to a maximum of 8 characters. If the file is
defined with TYPE=TID, the DEST value is
appended by the Com-plete stack level. The length is restricted to a maximum of
7 characters accordingly. SD-file names starting with '&&' are treated
as temporary files which are deleted automatically after Natural
termination.
|
OPEN=xxx determines when the
file is to be opened:
| Value | The file is opened |
|---|---|
INIT |
for output at session initialization. |
OBF |
according to the default OPEN value for
the different environments (Batch, CICS, Com-plete, TSO).
|
OBJ |
when the execution of the first object which accesses the file starts. This is the default value. |
INITOBF |
for output at session initialization. Any subsequent re-opening
of the file sets the default OPEN value for the
different environments (Batch, CICS, Com-plete, TSO).
|
OBJ1 |
when the execution of the first object on level 1 which accesses the file starts. Otherwise, it is opened when it is first accessed. |
ACC |
when it is first accessed by a statement. |
INITOBJ |
for output at session initialization. Any subsequent re-opening of the file will be performed when the execution of the first object which accesses the file starts. |
INITOBJ1 |
when the execution of the first object on level 1 which accesses the file starts. Otherwise, it is opened when it is first accessed. |
INITACC |
for output at session initialization. Any subsequent re-opening of the file will be performed when it is first accessed by a statement. |
CLOSE=xxx determines when the
file is to be closed:
| Value | The file is closed |
|---|---|
OBJ |
either when processing of the object in which it was first
accessed is finished, or when command mode, NEXT mode or
MAINMENU is reached.
|
CMD |
when command mode, NEXT mode or
MAINMENU is reached. This is the default value.
|
FIN |
at session end. With CLOSE=FIN, a
DEFINE WORK FILE
statement causes an error if the work file was opened already. A
CLOSE WORK FILE
statement for the work file is ignored. When the end-of-file condition occurs
during the READ WORK
FILE statement, Natural closes the work file
immediately.
|
USER |
This value specifies that a work file is closed only if the file is open and one of the following conditions is true:
|
LRECL=nnn determines the record
length (in bytes) of the dataset.
| Possible values: | 0 or 5 - 32767 |
| Default value: | 0 |
This subparameter is used particularly to check for truncation and
padding. For more information on AM=STD, see the keyword
subparameter LRECL in the section
WORK
Keyword Subparameters for AM=STD in All Environments
below.
TRUNC=xxx determines whether
the output records are truncated or not:
ON |
Output records that are longer than the record length
(LRECL) of the dataset will be truncated.
|
OFF |
Error NAT1512 will be issued if an output record is longer than the dataset record length. This is the default value. |
PAD=xxx determines whether the
output records are padded or not (applies only to datasets of fixed record
length):
ON |
Output records that are shorter than the record length
(LRECL) of the dataset will be padded with padding
characters defined by keyword subparameter PADCHRO. This is the
default value.
|
OFF |
Error NAT1510 will be issued if an output record is shorter than the dataset record length. |
This subparameter defines the character which is used for padding of
output records if PAD=ON is defined for the work file.
| Possible values: |
|
(one character (one hex character
|
| Default value: | x'00' |
This subparameter defines the character which is used for padding of input records.
| Possible values: |
|
(one character x within single quotes) (one hex character xx) |
| Default value: | x'40' |
(blank) |
The following keyword subparameters are available:
RECFM |
BLKSIZE |
LRECL
RECFM=xxxx determines the
default record format of the dataset.
The following formats are supported:
F |
Fixed |
V |
Variable |
U |
Undefined |
B |
Blocked |
S |
Spanned |
A |
ASA |
M |
Machine control characters |
The following values and also combinations of values are possible:
| Possible value: | F, FA, FM, FB, FBA, FBM, V, VA, VM, VB, VBA, VBM, VBS,
VBSA, VBSM, U, UA, UM |
| Default value: | RECFM=VB (variable blocked).
|
The RECFM specification only applies if no
record format is predefined in the JCL or (z/OS only) in the dataset DCB.
BLKSIZE=nnnnn determines the
default block size (in bytes) of the dataset.
| Possible values: | 0 or 8 - 32767 |
| Default value: | 4628 |
The BLKSIZE specification only applies if no
block size is predefined in the JCL or (z/OS only) in the dataset DCB.
LRECL=nnn determines the record
length (in bytes) of the dataset.
| Possible values: | 0 or 5 - 32767 |
| Default value: | 0 |
This subparameter is used particularly to check for truncation and padding.
For RECFM=V (B) the LRECL value
includes a 4-byte record descriptor word.
If LRECL=0 is defined, the following applies:
With RECFM=V (B), LRECL
defaults to BLKSIZE-4.
With RECFM=U, LRECL defaults to
BLKSIZE.
With RECFM=F (B), the maximum record length in the
Natural program being executed is taken when the file is opened. If no record
length from a program is available when the file is opened, for example with
OPEN=INIT, this leads to an error.
The LRECL specification only applies if no
record length is predefined in the JCL or (z/OS only) in the dataset DCB.
The following keyword subparameters are available:
REREAD |
FREE |
BUFNO |
DISP |
VMAX
REREAD=xxx sets the
REREAD option for the closing of the tape file:
ON |
The REREAD option is set for the
CLOSE SVC. This causes the volume to be repositioned to reprocess
the dataset. This is the default value.
|
OFF |
The REREAD option is not set for the
CLOSE SVC.
|
FREE=xxx determines whether the
dataset is de-allocated when the file is closed:
ON |
The FREE option is set for the
CLOSE SVC, which means that the dataset is de-allocated when it is
closed (and not at step termination).
|
OFF |
The FREE option is not set for the
CLOSE SVC. This is the default value.
|
BUFNO=nnn defines the default
number of z/OS I/O buffers of the dataset.
| Possible values | 0 - 255 |
| Default value | 0
In this case, z/OS allocates five I/O buffers per default. |
The number of I/O buffers can improve the performance of work file access dramatically. Note that the storage for I/O buffers is allocated below the 16 MB line.
The BUFNO specification applies only if the
BUFNO parameter is not specified in the JCL for the
dataset.
DISP=xxx determines that the
work file is opened for modification.
This corresponds to the JCL DD statement subparameter
DISP=MOD.
| MOD | New records are added at the end of the file. |
| NOMOD | The work file is rewritten from the start. This is the default value. |
VMAX=xxx controls the
LRECL setting for an output file with variable record
format (RECFM=V).
ON |
Providing a nonzero BLKSIZE value exists
for the file, VMAX=ON sets LRECL=BLKSIZE-4 for
variable record format, regardless of the LRECL setting
in the DCB or the LRECL subparameter.
|
NAT |
LRECL is set to the length
+4 of the largest record in the application program if this value
is less than LRECL in the DCB for the dataset.
|
OFF |
LRECL from the DCB for the dataset is
used. This is the default value.
|
The following keyword subparameters are available:
SYSNR |
LABEL |
REWIND |
BLOCKS |
DISP
SYSNR=nn determines the logical
VSE SYS number.
| Possible values: | 1 - 99 |
| Default value: | By default, the SYS number is identical to the work file number. |
LABEL=xxx d determines the tape
label processing:
ON |
The tape is in standard label format. This is the default value. |
OFF |
The tape is unlabeled with front tape mark. |
NOTM |
The tape is unlabeled without front tape mark. |
REWIND=xxx determines the
action to be taken when a tape file is closed:
ON |
The tape is rewound when the file is closed. This is the default value. |
OFF |
The tape is not rewound when the file is closed. |
UNLOAD |
The tape is unloaded when the file is closed. |
BLOCKS=nnnn specifies the
number of file blocks or file tracks to be allocated for a dynamic
NATVSE work file.
| Possible values: | 1 - 9999 |
| Default value: | 20 |
See NATVSE Dynamic Work File Allocation (DYNALLOC) Support in the Operations documentation.
DISP=(xxx,xxx)
specifies the disposition of a dynamic NATVSE work file controlled
by VSAM/SAM.
Possible value pairs are:
(NEW,KEEP) |
File is to be reset at OPEN and to be kept at
CLOSE. This is the default value.
|
(NEW,DELETE) |
File is to be reset at OPEN and to be made
inaccessible at CLOSE.
|
(OLD,DELETE) |
File is not to be reset at OPEN and to be made
inaccessible at CLOSE.
|
(OLD,KEEP) |
File is not to be reset at OPEN and to be kept at
CLOSE.
|
See NATVSE Dynamic Work File Allocation (DYNALLOC) Support in the Operations documentation.
The following keyword subparameter is available:
DISP
DISP=xxx determines the open
mode of the file:
EXT |
The open mode is set to EXTEND.
|
NOEXT |
The open mode is set to the default value OUTPUT.
This is the default value.
|
The following keyword subparameters are available:
TYPE |
DISP
TYPE=xxxx specifies the type of
CICS storage medium to be used:
MAIN |
Temporary main storage. |
AUX |
Temporary auxiliary storage. |
TD |
Transient data. |
The default value used depends on the DEST keyword
subparameter setting. If the DEST subparameter value
matches a valid CICS transient data queue, the TYPE
subparameter defaults to TD, otherwise MAIN will be
taken as the default value.
DISP=(xxx,xxx)
specifies the CICS temporary storage queue disposition.
Possible value pairs are:
(NEW,KEEP) |
The storage queue is deleted when the file is opened. This is the default value. |
(NEW,DELETE) |
The storage queue is deleted when the file is opened and when it is closed. |
(OLD,DELETE) |
The storage queue is deleted when the file is closed. |
(OLD,KEEP) |
The storage queue is not deleted. |
Note:
The DISP specification does not apply to CICS
extra-partition transient data queues.
The following keyword subparameters are available:
TYPE |
BLOCKS |
BLKSIZE
TYPE=xxx specifies the type of
storage access to be used:
SHR |
Shared access, that is, the work file is accessible by all users. |
TID |
The work file is only available to the current Com-plete terminal ID. |
DYN |
The work file is only available to the current terminal stack level. |
BLOCKS=nnnn specifies the
number of storage blocks to be allocated.
| Possible values: | 1 - 9999 |
| Default value: | 20 |
BLKSIZE=nnnn determines the
default block size (in bytes) of the dataset.
| Possible values: | 0, or 8 - 32767 |
| Default value: | 4628 |
The following keyword subparameters are available:
DEST |
TYPE |
DISP
DEST=name specifies the
workfile name (1-8 characters).
Since the DEST clause is restricted to an 8
character maximum, it is useless to define a file with absolute PFS path
specification.
The name specified in the DEST clause is
relative to the workfile root directory. The work file root directory is
specified with the environment variable
NAT_WORK_ROOT.
To specify a file with absolute path definition, the
DEFINE WORK FILE
statement must be used.
TYPE=xxx specifies the type of
storage access to be used. Possible values are:
BIN |
Each line is written to the work file without terminating end-of-line character. This is the default value. |
TXT |
Each line is written to the work file with a terminating
end-of-line character (x'15').
|
DISP=(Disp1,Disp2,Disp3)
specifies the mode of the work file. Possible values are:
Disp1=xxx |
Specifies whether an existing file should be deleted or new data should be appended to the file. |
NEW |
An existing file will be deleted if the file is opened for writing. This is the default value. |
OLD or MOD |
New data written are appended at the end of the file. |
Disp2=xxx |
Specifies whether a file should be kept or removed after access. |
KEEP |
Permanent file that will be kept after close. This is the default value. |
DELETE |
Temporary file that will be removed after close. |
Disp3=xxx |
Specifies whether a user has exclusive access to the file or not. |
SHR |
Shared access, that is, the work file is accessible by all users. This is the default value. |
OWN |
Exclusive access, the work file is accessible to the current Comp-lete user ID. Files with exclusive access are located in an additional directory which has the name of the current user ID. |
