Defining console devices

You can operate CICS® from a console device 3 .

You can use a terminal as both a system console and a CICS terminal. To enable this, you must define the terminal as a console in the CSD. (You cannot define consoles in the TCT.)

Suitably authorized TSO users can enter MODIFY commands from terminals connected to TSO. To enable this, define the TSO user as a console device in the CSD.

You can use each console device for normal operating system functions and to invoke CICS transactions. In particular, you can use the console device for CICS master terminal functions to control CICS terminals or to control several CICS regions in conjunction with multiregion operation. Consequently, you can be a master terminal operator for several CICS regions.

You can also use console devices to communicate with alternate CICS regions if you are using XRF. Such communication is limited to the CICS-supplied transaction, CEBT.

For more information about operating CICS from a console device, see the CICS Operations and Utilities Guide.

Defining console devices to CICS

You can define console devices to CICS using either the DEFINE TERMINAL command of the DFHCSDUP utility, or the CEDA DEFINE TERMINAL command using RDO. Each console can be defined explicitly, or you can define autoinstall model definitions, and use the CICS terminal autoinstall facility for consoles to install consoles automatically.

If want to use the console autoinstall facility, specify AICONS=YES|AUTO as a system initialization parameter, and define TERMINAL model definitions that specify AUTINSTMODEL(YES) and the AUTINSTNAME attribute.

System consoles

System consoles are defined to MVS™ in the SYS1.PARMLIB library, in a CONSOLnn member, which defines attributes such as NAME, UNIT, and SYSTEM. The name is the most significant attribute, because it is the name that CICS uses to identify the console. The name is passed to CICS on an MVS MODIFY command. Note that although consoles also have a numeric identifier, this is allocated by MVS dynamically during IPL, and its use is not recommended for defining consoles to CICS.

For information about defining console devices to MVS, see the OS/390 MVS Initialization and Tuning Reference.

For information about defining MVS consoles to CICS, see Defining MVS consoles to CICS.

TSO users as consoles

TSO users that issue commands to CICS, using either the TSO CONSOLE command or SDSF, do not require MVS definitions as consoles in the CONSOLnn member. MVS activates a console automatically using the user's TSO/E user ID as the console name

Note:
The TSO user issuing the CONSOLE command can use the NAME option to specify a console name different from the TSO user ID.

To communicate with a CICS region from TSO or SDSF, you need to install a CICS console definition that specifies the TSO user ID (or the name specified on the console command) as the console name.

For information about the TSO CONSOLE command, see the OS/390 TSO/E System Programming Command Reference, SC28-1972

For information about defining TSO users to CICS, see Defining TSO users as console devices.

Defining MVS consoles to CICS

To use an MVS console as a CICS master terminal, you either define it to CICS explicitly by a terminal definition entry in the CSD, or use the CICS console autoinstall facility.

Start of changeEach console you define is identified on the TERMINAL definition by the CONSNAME(name) attribute. CICS no longer supports the CONSOLE(number) attribute. Identify a console device attached to an MVS in a sysplex by its name, using the CONSNAME attribute.End of change

For an example of the DEFINE command required to define a console, see Figure 2.

Figure 2. Defining consoles and a TSO user in the CSD using DFHCSDUP
//DEFTERM  JOB (accounting information),MSGCLASS=A,
//         MSGLEVEL=(1,1),CLASS=A,NOTIFY=userid
//CONSDEF  EXEC PGM=DFHCSDUP
//STEPLIB  DD DSN=CICSTS31.CICS.SDFHLOAD,DISP=SHR
//DFHCSD   DD DSN=CICSTS31.CICS.DFHCSD,DISP=SHR
//SYSPRINT DD SYSOUT=*
//SYSIN    DD *
*
*  Define a console for CICS
DEFINE TERMINAL(trmidnt)  GROUP(grpname)  TYPETERM(DFHCONS)
       CONSNAME(consname)  DESCRIPTION(MVS CONSOLE consname)
*
*  Define a TSO user as a console device for CICS
DEFINE TERMINAL(trmidnt)   GROUP(grpname)     TYPETERM(DFHCONS)
       CONSNAME(tsouser)   DESCRIPTION(TSO USER tsouser)
       USERID(tsouser)
*
*  Define an AUTOINSTALL model definition for a console device
DEFINE TERMINAL(autc)     GROUP(grpname)     TYPETERM(DFHCONS)
       CONSNAME(console)  DESCRIPTION(Autoinstall model for a console)
       USERID(*FIRST)     AUTINSTNAME(name) AUTINSTMODEL(YES)
*
ADD GROUP(grpname) LIST(yourlist)
*
LIST   LIST(yourlist)  OBJECTS
/*
//

Defining TSO users as console devices

You can define TSO users as console devices to CICS using either an explicitly-defined TERMINAL definition for each TSO user, or use the console autoinstall facility. To define a TSO user as a console, specify the console name used by the TSO user on the CONSNAME attribute of the DEFINE TERMINAL command. By default, the console name is the user's TSO user ID. You are recommended to define consoles to CICS with preset security by using the USERID operand, so that the TSO user does not have to sign on using the CESN transaction. Otherwise, the TSO user’s CICS signon password is displayed when entered for the CESN transaction.

For an example of the DEFINE command required to define a TSO user, see Figure 2.

For information about defining consoles (or terminals) with preset security, see the CICS RACF® Security Guide.

Note:
Substitute your own values for the operands that are shown in italics in the DEFTERM job shown in Figure 2.
AUTINSTMODEL(YES)
Specifies whether this TERMINAL definition can be used as a model for autoinstall purposes.
AUTINSTNAME(name)
The name assigned to this autoinstall model definition, and by which the model is known to the autoinstall control program.
CONSNAME(consname)
A unique 8-character console name, which corresponds to the NAME parameter in the CONSOLnn PARMLIB member that defines the console, or matches the console name used by a TSO user.

You must define CONSNAME even for an autoinstall model.

GROUP(grpname)
A unique name for the group to which the console resource definition is to belong.
LIST(yourlist)
The startup group list containing the group in which you have defined the console definitions. If your new group list does not include the required CICS-supplied resources as well as your own, specify DFHLIST and yourlist on the GRPLIST system initialization parameter of your CICS startup job.
TERMINAL(trmidnt|autc)
A unique 4-character terminal identifier trmidnt as the name by which CICS is to identify the console in the TCT terminal entry (TCTTE), or a dummy name autc in the case of an autoinstall model definition.
USERID(tsouser)
The CICS preset security userid to be used to sign on this console device. For more information about preset terminal security, see the CICS RACF Security Guide.

If you have defined a console device in your CSD as CONSNAME(INTERNAL), you can use it to issue commands using MVS job control language. It is also used by authorized programs that use the MGCR macro to issue MVS commands.

Having defined the console devices in the CSD, ensure that their resource definitions are installed in the running CICS region. You can install the definitions in one of two ways, as follows:

  1. Include the group list that contains the resource definitions on the GRPLIST system initialization parameter in the CICS startup job.
  2. During CICS execution, install the console device group by using the RDO command CEDA INSTALL GROUP(groupname), where groupname is the name of the resource group containing the console device definitions.

DFHLIST, the CICS-defined group list created when you initialize the CSD with the DFHCSDUP INITIALIZE command, does not include any resource definitions for console devices. However, the CSD is initialized with 2 groups that contain console definitions:

DFH$CNSL
This group contains definitions for three consoles. The group is intended for use with the installation verification procedures and the CICS-supplied sample programs. You can add this to your own group list, and alter the definitions to define your own console devices.
DFHTERMC
This group contains a single definition of an autoinstall model definition for an MVS console.

If you decide to create new terminal definitions for your console devices, you can specify the CICS-supplied TYPETERM definition, DFHCONS, on the TYPETERM(name) parameter. This TYPETERM definition for console devices is generated in the group DFHTYPE when you initialize the CSD.

For information about TERMINAL definitions, see the CICS Resource Definition Guide.


3.
A console device can be a locally-attached system console, a TSO user defined as a console, or an automated process such as NetView®.

[[ Contents Previous Page | Next Page Index ]]