Understanding AS/400 System Operations

GLOSSARY

PREFACE

Understanding AS/400 System Operations is for students learning computer operations and administration on the AS/400 computer system. Offering a unique approach to learning AS/400 operations with extensive end-of-chapter, hands-on labs, self-tests, and review questions, this book prepares you from the ground up to be productive at AS/400 operations—using real-world situations.

The primary goal of this book is to teach you how to perform day-to-day operations on an AS/400 computer system. Operations include IPL, starting and stopping the system, backup and recovery, and system cleanup. Procedures covered are creating and maintaining user environments, device configuration and management, security implementation, work and data management, and TCP/IP configuration. Console operations include jobs, message handling, and working with spooled files and peripheral devices. Electronic Customer Support (ECS) and Program Temporary Fix (PTF) upgrades are introduced. Most topics include a hands-on lab.

Understanding AS/400 System Operations has 20 chapters, four appendices, and a glossary. At the front of the book, the Contents provides a road map from which students can get a quick overview of the concepts presented in each chapter. Each chapter is organized into the following sections:

Chapter objectives.

Chapter text material explaining AS/400 system operation concepts.

Chapter summary.

Key terms.

Review questions.

Self-test questions.

Lab assignments.

Chapter objectives are presented on the first page of each chapter to provide a quick overview of important concepts presented in the chapter. The objectives also inform readers what is expected of them and what material is most important.

The chapter text material explains AS/400 system operation concepts and gives examples of how they might be used in a business environment.

A chapter summary gives students an opportunity to review the major concepts presented in each chapter.

Each section of key terms provides an overview of important terms presented in the chapters. The sections provide a quick reference of new terms for students.

Review questions provide students with an opportunity to reinforce the concepts presented in the chapters. These questions may be used in four ways:

For class discussion at the conclusion of a discussion of the chapter.

As homework assignments at the conclusion of each chapter.

As quizzes.

As class reviews for examinations.

Students are provided with self-test questions to measure their understanding of the system operation concepts presented in the chapters. These questions consist of fill-in-the-blank, true-false, and illustrative system-operations questions.

With most chapters, several practice assignments are provided. These assignments require the use of the concepts presented in the chapter and give students an opportunity to apply their knowledge of skills introduced in the chapter.

The lab assignments supplement the chapter material and provide an opportunity for students to practice the different aspects of the AS/400 operations environment.

IBM CERTIFICATION TESTING

Understanding AS/400 System Operations prepares students for two IBM AS/400 certification exams: Test #052, AS/400 Associate System Operator Certification and Test #053, the AS/400 Professional System Operator.

OBJECTIVES OF THIS BOOK

Upon completion of this book, you should be able to:

Describe the functions of the operating system.

Send messages and respond to inquiries.

Use common CL commands.

Manage jobs.

Control work management.

Describe security problems and solutions.

Track and manage jobs on the system.

Manage print functions.

Identify various device configurations.

Perform backup, restore, and PTFs.

INSTRUCTOR’S MANUAL

An Instructor’s Manual has been prepared by Marge Hohly and has been tested for quality assurance. The manual is available to those colleges that adopt this book. Support materials include overhead transparency masters, a test bank, lab setup instructions, user environment material/definitions, lab submission sheets, and AS/400 objects required for labs.

TO THE READER

This book is appropriate for introductory computer students. Although no previous AS/400 experience is required, we suggest that, before studying AS/400 operations, students have some understanding of basic computer concepts. A course in AS/400 concepts or at least some exposure to the AS/400 computer system is recommended.

If you know another operating system, you might be able to proceed more quickly through the text. We hope you find the approach more conceptual than you might have experienced with other textbooks. Accordingly, we recommend that you read the text in sequence and practice each topic by completing the lab assignments at the end of each chapter. If you have studied a course in AS/400 concepts or at least have some exposure to the AS/400, you could consider skimming the first four to six chapters. However, you should complete the labs to confirm your knowledge of each topic area.

We welcome your comments, criticisms, and suggestions. Please submit suggestions by email at textbooks@midrangecomputing.com. Requests for reprint permissions should be addressed to the Permissions Department, Midrange Computing. For product-ordering information, visit our Web site at www.midrangecomputing.com or contact:

Wendy Quirk, Account Executive

Midrange Computing

5650 El Camino Real

Carlsbad, CA 92008

Telephone: 1-800-477-5665, ext. 213

email:wquirk@midrangecomputing.com

1

BACKGROUND OF THE AS/400

CHAPTER OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this chapter, you should be able to:

Describe the history of the AS/400.

Describe the basic architecture of the AS/400 computer system.

Describe the various parts of an AS/400 menu screen.

Explain the purpose of the command line.

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE AS/400 ENVIRONMENT

The AS/400 computer system consists of a family of IBM midrange computers based on a single hardware/software architecture. From the beginning, it has represented a milestone in reliability, ease of use, and system integration not found in any other computer system.

The AS/400 is also a linch pin in IBM’s System Application Architecture (SAA) connectivity scheme between mainframe, midrange, and personal computers. SAA is a unified approach to software design and interplatform communications. The SAA solution is based on a set of software interfaces, conventions, and protocols that provide a framework for designing and developing applications. Ultimately, the goal of SAA is an environment that is transparent to the user.

THE EVOLUTION OF IBM MIDRANGE COMPUTERS

The evolution of IBM minicomputers, now referred to as midrange computers, began with the announcement of the System/3 minicomputer system in June 1969. The System/3, which was the first computer system totally developed at the IBM plant in Rochester, Minnesota, was designed as a punched card-oriented computer system. Because mainframe computers controlled the high-end segment of the market, the System/3 was aimed at low-end commercial users running small-size batch applications.

Although the System/3 seems laughable by today’s computer standards, its impact on the computer industry, like other Rochester efforts, cannot be overemphasized. It represented significant advances in the technology of its time. Before the System/3, computer architecture design took place in New York City and New England. All computers followed the same model for hardware design originally developed at MIT.

Rochester is located in cold, southern Minnesota, remote enough that its designers were free to rethink how computers should work. The System/3 was the first, the Adam or Eve, of the IBM midrange line, and it represented two new concepts in computing:

A small, efficient computer would sell as well as the huge, expensive behemoths that the mainframes had become.

The single computer model that had been the industry standard was not the only option.

The System/32 was the System/3’s offspring. Announced in January 1975, it was still card-based, but it also touted direct keyboard data entry and a screen display that could present up to six rows of text 40 characters long. The System/32 was primarily single-user, although toward the end of its life cycle, IBM offered a model that supported five data-entry terminals simultaneously.

In April 1977, IBM announced the System/34—the first multiuser minicomputer system in the world. The system was designed to meet the demand for a low-cost computer system that provided interactive multiuser facilities and managed multiple local and remote workstations, each being up to 5,000 feet away from the computer. The System/34 quickly became the most installed computer system in the world, boasting more installations than the mighty mainframe. IBM began to see that the minicomputer was not going away.

The IBM Rochester facility was never one to rest on its successes, however. While the other midrange computers were enjoying such popularity, IBM began a secret project in 1975. They again threw away all computer architecture models, even their own, and started a new design. This became the System/38 that was announced in 1978. When the first models shipped, it turned out they were very slow. IBM did not want the System/38 to be known for anything negative, so they did the unheard of and pulled the System/38 off the market until performance was achieved. It was not until 1980 that System/38s started to be installed.

This System/38 architectural design represented a divergence from its S/3X predecessors, offering several innovative concepts. One concept was machine independence. Prior to this, when a computer company came out with a new processor chip, customers had no choice but to replace their existing hardware with new. This implied converting existing data and programs. So every couple of years, customers had a major replacement and conversion project. The System/38 was designed so that the hardware could be changed at any time in the future with no impact to the customer.

Another concept pioneered in the System/38 was the large amount of built-in functions. For the first time, customers received a computer that already contained a relational database, superior security system, extensive backup/recovery tools, performance, journaling, and other functions. Other concepts unique to the System/38 were an advanced operating system and object-based architecture. Object-based architecture is very similar to object-oriented architecture. The difference between them is IBM disabled the object-oriented functions that caused problems. The cost was relatively small, but that is why the machine is referred to as object-based. We will discuss objects more in this chapter but, for now, think about how advanced the System/38 was. It took the rest of the industry until 1990 before the idea of object-orientation even caught on, and then it was years before it found its way into anything commercial. But, starting with the System/38, IBM midrange customers had an object-based architecture.

For its time, the System/38 was fairly pricey for midrange computer customers, so IBM developed the original System/3-based computer line as a low-end offering. In May 1983, while the System/38 was getting all the headlines, IBM announced the System/36, the successor to the System/34. Surprising to IBM, most System/34 customers elected to upgrade to the System/36 rather than the System/38. The migration was much easier and cheaper. System/38 customers tended to be new customers to IBM’s midrange computers.

The System/38 was a giant leap in the evolution of computer genealogy, and it had some unforeseen limitations that affected its upward growth. While the System/38 had been touted as hardware independent, it only was to a point. In 1985, IBM started, under code name Silverlake, development of the successor to the System/38. Silverlake would be the computer that would carry IBM midrange customers into the next millennium and beyond.

In June 1988, IBM announced the first Application System/400 (AS/400), the B-series that began shipping in September 1988. The first AS/400s did not seem as radical a change from the System/38 at first, but customers did notice dramatic speed and capacity improvements immediately. Over the years, speed and capacity increased once a year, at a rate of about 10 percent per year. The advantage was that any IBM AS/400 that was upgraded to the latest release could expect a 10 percent growth in its computing power without having to change equipment. That growth matched typical business growth. The claim, though, that the AS/400 was hardware-independent remained untested until 1995.

One aspect of the original AS/400 computer architecture was that the instruction set that its processor used was complex—the computer was known as a complex instruction set computer (CISC). That meant that a single instruction carried with it as much detail as was needed to execute. The alternative was a reduced instruction set or reduced instruction set computer (RISC).

Actually, there is nothing reduced about a RISC machine; it has as much functionality as a CISC computer. The instruction lengths on a RISC machine are all equal, where the instruction lengths on a CISC machine are variable and can be quite large. A computer designed to process a known instruction length can be many times more efficient than one designed to handle variable length instructions. For instance: When taking a taxi across town; using the CISC method, you would say, Take me to the airport, and sit back and enjoy the ride. Using the RISC method, you would issue continual instructions, Turn left at the next light. Slow down here. Now turn right. CISC is easier, but RISC may get you where you are going faster and more directly. Besides, with CISC, you need a driver who knows his way around, while with RISC, you can use any driver.

The CISC-to-RISC migration was the biggest undertaking of the AS/400 since its birth. Remember that one of the major promises of the System/38 was hardware independence? Some people in the computer world were critical that System/38 customers were forced to sell their old equipment and purchase a new AS/400. The 38-to-400 change did not show customers true machine independence, but the CISC-to-RISC change did. Changing the processor architecture was an undertaking unparalleled in the history of computers, and it proved AS/400’s claim to machine independence. There was more to the change than the instruction set; the new processor was going from a basic 48-byte word (that is bytes, not bits) to 64-byte basic addressing. This was more than a processor upgrade; this was a complete architecture change.

The AS/400’s capacity to handle this change without requiring its customers to go through either a program or database conversion proved the AS/400 to be a true hardware-independent computer. Customers only had to replace a board, and in some cases, increase disk capacity and memory slightly; and they had the next generation of AS/400 installed. They did not have to sell one computer and buy another; they did not have to copy programs off and recompile them; and they did not have to take large database files to flat files and reload them on another machine. Except in very unusual circumstances, all AS/400 customers made the migration over a weekend.

The AS/400 was not just basking in glory—IBM renewed it every year with a rich set of new features and functions. It also broadened its market to the point that the AS/400 range of current models went from a low price of $7,000 to somewhere around $2 million. Except for storage and speed differences, every AS/400 is identical in how it executes its programs and operates on the data it supports. Any size business can get into an AS/400 at any level and grow to any level.

While all this was going on, there was a large group of customers fiercely loyal to the System/36 that came out in 1983. Not a database machine, the System/36 still boasted very low cost of ownership, reliability, and ease of use. Even though the System/38 (and the AS/400) could support System/36 customers’ applications and the machine’s operating system directly, many refused to make the jump to AS/400.

With the continued popularity of and demand for the System/36 in the user community, IBM developed an AS/400-based alternative. It announced the AS/400 Advanced 36 in 1994. Available today for those customers, the Advanced 36 uses state-of-the-art 64-bit RISC technology just like its big brother.

Just to add a few more sprinkles on the AS/400 cake—in 1994, IBM Rochester foresaw the tremendous business potential that the Internet would offer. To meet the growth ahead of the rest, IBM developed a new series of AS/400s known as the Enhanced series, or e-series. This line was formally announced in August 1997. The new Enhanced series offers high performance through models equipped with up to twelve individual processors. For example, the top-of-the-line AS/400 e-server has a twelve-way processor. Multiple processor computers are referred to as n-way.

Every major announcement from IBM breaks new ground. This was the first time IBM offered packages of software and hardware preconfigured and preloaded. With this approach, the customer literally unpacked and plugged in the AS/400, and they had a powerful Internet server.

Collectively, the System/3, System/32, System/34, System/36, and System/38 are known as the System/3X family of midrange computers.

AS/400 ARCHITECTURE

LAYERED DESIGN CONCEPT

The key to the AS/400’s uniqueness starts with its architecture. It boasts a layered design concept that is one factor that distinguishes it from traditional computers. This concept isolates machine hardware and system software through a series of horizontal interfaces as shown in Figure 1-1. This layering is the key to the AS/400’s machine independence. The layered design allows low-level functions to be replaced by improved technology at any time, yet causes minimal disruption to the high-level software.

Figure 1-1: AS/400 layered software architecture.

When you refer to items at or near the top (application software) layer, you are at the high level of the architecture. Conversely, the bottom layers are referred to as low-level architecture. LIC means licensed internal code. The vertical licensed internal code (VLIC), horizontal licensed internal code (HLIC), and system licensed internal code (SLIC) layers are collectively referred to as the machine interface (MI). Generally, AS/400 items are referred to as being above or below the MI layer.

In plain language, VLIC translates instructions passed to the MI. It hands the translated instructions to the HLIC that deals directly with the hardware. When IBM was coming out with the RISC architecture, it rewrote millions of lines of the MI layer and, in the process, combined VLIC and HLIC into a single layer, SLIC. By the way, the SLIC layer is written in C++ and makes heavy use of objects. This layer is sometimes referred to as the kernel of the machine.

DATA STORAGE AND AS/400 OBJECTS

The AS/400 is an object-based computer, meaning that everything is stored as an object. An object can best be described as an entity that exists on the AS/400 upon which procedures can be performed by the AS/400. There are many types of objects that can be stored on the AS/400. Some of the more common objects discussed in this book include programs, data files (databases), and libraries. Object names consist of the given name concatenated with the object type. For example, a file object (file type *FILE) could be named OBJ1. A program has an object type *PGM associated with it. Because each object name is a concatenation of the name and the type, you could have a file named OBJ1 and a program named OBJ1, and the AS/400 would not get confused—it would know one is a file and one is a program.

This object type and name association is implicit; AS/400 professionals are not often aware of it. More commonly, objects on an AS/400 can be grouped into libraries. A library can be anything the user wants it to be, but it is usually a group of related objects. ARLIB could be the name of the library that contains all the programs and files that make up the Accounts Receivable (AR) application. Another organization may elect to only keep the programs in ARLIB and have another library named ARDATA for the application’s database files.

When an AS/400 developer refers to a program or file, he often concatenates the library and file together to identify the object and its location. If the developer wanted the master file named MASTFILE in the ARDATA library, ARDATA/MASTFILE would be entered. Doing this explicitly is optional—many people get by with using the object name without a library qualifier. This works because the AS/400 will assign a default library to that name. We are getting ahead of ourselves, though; we will discuss libraries more extensively later. For now, just remember that objects are implicitly associated with an object type and explicitly or implicitly associated with a library.

Internally, data in the AS/400 objects database is stored in the form called the Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code (EBCDIC). This is different from the internal form used in PCs, called the American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII). The two forms were defined by separate organizations in the 1950s to represent alphanumeric characters (letters and numbers). When transferring data between the AS/400 and PCs, data conversion must be done.

SINGLE-LEVEL STORAGE

Another distinguishing factor between traditional computer systems and the AS/400 is the AS/400’s single-level storage. With single-level storage, the AS/400 makes no distinction between disk storage and main memory and, thus, treats main memory and disk storage as if they are one vast region in main memory. Files stored on disk are treated as addressable memory. Therefore, all disk and main storage appear as one seamless linear address space and the system accesses all data in the same way.

Single-level storage is unique to AS/400s. Other computers first identify the region in memory or disk storage, then the address within the region before attempting to access an object.

Single-level storage addressing means that at a low level, below the MI, a single virtual address space exists. This storage space encompasses both main storage and disk storage and is large enough to contain all data to be stored on the system. Functions operating above this MI see data as objects that are being stored in contiguously addressable locations within the auxiliary storage and main storage.

Although the AS/400 can very quickly locate objects through this addressing scheme, it still makes the distinction of objects in addresses that are executable versus those in addresses that are only for storage. This is because operations cannot be performed on an object that is not in main storage—so the system moves a part or all of the object from auxiliary storage into main storage as it is needed, and moves it back into an auxiliary storage when it is not needed.

An entire object does not have to be in main storage when active; using virtual storage, the machine automatically divides a program or storage area into blocks called pages. Only the pages that are needed at the time are kept in main storage. When a new page is needed, pages in memory that have not been used in a while are placed in a holding area on the disk to make room for space for pages that will be used. The actual process of moving pieces of programs or data between memory and the Direct Access Storage Device (DASD) is called paging. Machines that use paging increase the efficiency of their memory many times and are called virtual computers. Sometimes the memory is referred to as virtual storage. Virtual storage gives the appearance that the system has more than enough main storage for all active jobs at all times.

TYPES OF COMPUTER PROGRAMS

A program is a set of instructions that enables a computer to process data. There are two types of computer programs: system programs that control the overall operations of the computer, and application programs that actually perform tasks required by users. The term used to describe all types of programs is called software.

OPERATING SYSTEM SOFTWARE

All programs run under the control of an operating system. An operating system is itself a series of programs that monitor and control the overall operations of the computer. The programs that comprise the operating system are normally supplied by the manufacturer and are designed to be the interface between the users of the computer system and the lower-level hardware layer.

The AS/400’s operating system is called Operating System/400, or OS/400. OS/400 is unique to the AS/400; it does not run on any other computer. In addition, it is a rich operating system, providing many integrated features that form the foundation of the computer system. OS/400 provides a complete, fully integrated set of batch and interactive work management functions that make processing application programs efficient and productive. It controls the execution of programs and provides services such as controlling resources, scheduling jobs, controlling input and output, and managing data. Among these built-in features is its powerful DB2/400 database and support facilities, interactive workstation support, security, software development support, and extendable architecture. In short, OS/400 is a resource manager: it allocates the computer’s processor, main storage (memory), I/O devices, and data resources to the various users in the most efficient manner possible. OS/400 also provides the following services: user interfaces, security, work management, message handler, communication support, job control language, object management, database management, spooling support, and Electronic Customer Support (ECS).

One of the most powerful features of the AS/400 is that it is controlled through a single, consistent control language that is supported by the operating system. Regardless of which AS/400 model an organization has, they all use the same operating system. They function in the same way, whether it’s an earlier model or the new Enhanced series.

APPLICATION PROGRAMS

The top level of the AS/400 architecture is the application software. It is at this level that software developers develop application programs. An application program operates on input data and converts it to meaningful output information. A computer can process data only as efficiently and effectively as it is programmed. Figure 1-2 diagrams how a computer processes data.

Figure 1-2: The basic flow of computer data.

The set of instructions in an application program is written by a computer professional called a programmer or software developer. Some application programs are designed to obtain a quick solution to a onetime problem; others run periodically on a regularly scheduled basis to provide users with the information they need. An application program to display the average grade for a set of exams entered as incoming data would be an example of a onetime job. An application program to print student transcripts each semester would be an example of a program that would be run periodically or on a regular basis.

A computer program generally computerizes business procedures. A set of related programs forms an application. A set of applications is called an information system.

There are two major types of programs on any computer: interactive and batch. Programs that accept input data from a workstation, immediately process that data, and do something with the output (display it back out and/or write it to disk) are interactive programs. An example of an interactive program would be an order entry program. As orders are received, they are immediately entered into the computer for processing and shipping. Batch programs process large volumes of input at periodic intervals. For these types of batch applications, the data stored in a file is processed from beginning to end. Batch programs typically run when interactive programs are at a minimum—at night and on weekends, for example. Examples of batch programs are daily balance or reconciliation programs, and monthly processing programs.

INTEGRATED LANGUAGE ENVIRONMENT (ILE)

The Integrated Language Environment (ILE) allows software developers to include small, reusable code modules, written in different languages, that call each other from within a single program. The addresses of each module are resolved at compile time rather than dynamically as the program executes, thus speeding the execution process. The result is improved performance since the modules can be written in the appropriate language suitable for each different module.

Modular programming means that instead of writing one large program, applications are developed as separate, smaller units or modules. This provides more flexibility in the development process, allows easier integration into third-party software packages, and keeps down maintenance costs.

ACCESSING THE AS/400 COMPUTER SYSTEM

USER PROFILE

Before signing onto the AS/400, every user must obtain a user ID and password. Normally, a system administrator or security officer creates the user ID (user profile). The user ID uniquely identifies an individual to the AS/400 and is the user’s signature.

A password is used in conjunction with the user ID to identify a user to the AS/400. It is a secret name that the user assigns to his or her user ID so that no one else can sign onto the AS/400 using that person’s user ID. Unlike the user ID, users should not know one another’s passwords. The secret password prevents others from breaking into a person’s AS/400 account. Change your password on a regular basis.

THE AS/400 SIGN-ON PROCESS

The sign-on screen shown in Figure 1-3 is used to enter the necessary data into the AS/400 so it can identify a user of the system.

Figure 1-3: An AS/400 sign-on screen.

To sign onto the AS/400, enter your user ID on the line identified as user. Press either the Field Exit key (the right Ctrl key) or Field Advance key (the Tab key) to move the cursor to the password field. Then enter your password on the line identified as Password and press Enter. You should change your password often for security reasons. It is the password that prevents others from stealing your identity and signing onto your unique AS/400 account.

Once you enter the data into the sign-on screen and press Enter, the system verifies that you are an authorized user of the system by checking your user ID name and password. If you are authorized, you are signed onto the AS/400 and an initial screen appears. The initial screen will usually be the AS/400 Main Menu screen, but it can be a screen specified in your user profile.

THE AS/400 SIGN-OFF PROCESS

Once signed onto the AS/400, there are two long lines at the bottom of the screen marked with a separator symbol: ===>. These lines actually make one very long line known as the command line. Get to know this line, as most AS/400 commands and menu options are taken by entering something on this line. There are two ways to sign off the AS/400:

If you are at a menu screen that has a sign-off option, enter the option number on the command line and press Enter. The AS/400 Main Menu screen contains an option 90 for sign off. To sign off from this menu, enter 90 on the command line and press Enter.

If you are at a screen that has a command line at the bottom, enter signoff or signoff on the command line and press Enter.

Note:

The OS/400 operating system is not case sensitive when entering commands, so signoff is the same as entering SIGNOFF.

LAB #1: THE BACKGROUND OF THE AS/400

Upon completion of this lab, you should be able to:

Demonstrate how to sign on and sign off the AS/400 computer system.

Change your password.

Navigate the AS/400 menu system.

Before beginning this lab, make sure your workstation (microcomputer) is connected to the AS/400. Since there are many different ways to connect a workstation to the AS/400, we will not discuss the various possibilities here. If you need instructions or help getting to the sign-on screen, ask your instructor for assistance.

NAMING CONVENTIONS FOR THIS LAB

Most organizations establish naming convention rules that must be followed within the user environment. These rules are established to make maintaining the AS/400 easier for operators and system administrators. They normally apply to the creation of user profiles, output queues, libraries, and so on. Since there are certain objects that must be named uniquely (libraries are one example), it is important that you follow the naming rules at your location.

To establish a user environment that follows the naming conventions of your location, Figure L1-1 is provided. Your instructor will provide you with the information needed to complete the table. In this way, you will have preassigned names to use as you establish your environment.

During the lab, every time you encounter one of the identifier names that begin with user (userID, userLIB, userOUTQ), substitute user with your assigned name. As you complete the lab assignment, you will create and modify your environment to reflect your specific assigned names.

Figure L1-1: Naming conventions.

SIGNING ON AND OFF THE AS/400 COMPUTER SYSTEM

When a user signs onto the AS/400, a work session is started. A work session is considered the time from when a user signs onto the system to the time he or she signs off the system. Before you can establish a work session on the AS/400, you must sign on, or identify yourself, to the computer. The sign-on screen shown in Figure L1-2 is used to enter the necessary data into the AS/400 so it can identify which user is signing onto the system.

AS/400 SIGN ON

As shown in Figure L1-2, the sign-on screen is a specific screen that allows users to identify themselves to the AS/400.

System information is displayed in the upper-right corner of the screen.

What is the system name of the AS/400? _________________________

Which subsystem is your interactive job running in? _________________

What is the name assigned to the display station? __________________

Figure L1-2: AS/400 sign-on screen.

The cursor is automatically positioned at the USER field. To begin the sign-on procedure:

Enter userID (user ID for your profile) in the User field. Do not press any other keys (i.e., Enter key or Field Exit key) at this time.

Note:

Normally, you would press the Field Exit key or the Tab key next and continue by entering your password. Before we continue, however, let us distinguish between the Enter and Field Exit keys.

With the cursor located at the end of the USER field:

Press Enter.

You see the sign-on screen similar to Figure L1-3.

Figure L1-3: An AS/400 sign-on screen with invalid password error message.

Notice the error message CPF1107 - Password not correct for user profile at the bottom of the screen. This message indicates that the user pressed Enter and sent the data to the AS/400 with an invalid password. Sending the sign-on screen to the AS/400 without entering a password is the same as sending an invalid password.

There are three keys strongly associated with AS/400 screen entry that are often confused. These are:

Field Exit: Pressing the Exit key advances the cursor to the next available field (top to bottom, left to right). If the cursor is in the middle of the field and there is old data present, the old data will be wiped out. If the field contains data that is to be right-adjusted (like numeric data), pressing this key will perform the adjustment.

Field Advance (or Tab): The Field Advance key acts like a tab. It advances the cursor to the next available input field (top to bottom, left to right). Adjustments and data-clearing do not take place.

Enter: When the Enter key is pressed, the screen’s current contents are sent to the AS/400. The cursor returns to the top-left field (unless the program positions it on another field). This is the only time screen data goes into the AS/400. Other computers send each keystroke into their hosts; the AS/400 sends a screen at a time and only does so when this key is pressed.

If Enter is pressed from the screen shown in Figure L1-3 instead of the Field Exit key or Field Advance key (Tab key) after entering the user ID, the AS/400 will respond with this error message. The Enter key is pressed only after all of the data required for the screen has been entered.

Remember to press either the Field Exit key or the Field Advance key (Tab key) to move from field to field on the screen. The Enter key should be pressed only when the entire screen needs to be sent to the AS/400.

In this example, Enter was pressed after entering the user ID without entering a password, which is the same as entering an invalid password.

To correct the invalid CPF1107 password error:

Reenter user ID and press the Field Exit key (or Tab key).

Notice that the cursor exits the USER field and moves to the Password field.

Enter your password. (Your initial password will be the same as your user ID, and you will be required to change this password when you initially sign on.)

Note:

If you make an error while entering your user ID or password, tab to the beginning of the User field and reenter your user ID. Press the Field Exit key to delete everything from your last character to the end of the line and move to the Password field. Enter your password and press Enter.

Once you enter the data into the sign-on screen and press Enter, the system verifies that you are an authorized user of the system by checking your user ID name and password. If you have entered the correct user ID and password, you are now signed onto the AS/400. Normally, your initial screen either will be the AS/400 Main Menu screen shown in Figure L1-5 or a screen assigned in your user profile by the system administrator. In this case, however, you are signing on for the first time and are being prompted to change your password with the screen in Figure L1-4.

The only time the AS/400 will prompt you to change your password in this manner is if you are signing on for the first time, when your password has expired, or when the security person has marked the password as expired. Usually when the system administrator creates user profiles, he or she will specify that the password must be changed upon signing on for the first time.

CHANGING YOUR INITIAL PASSWORD

When you initially sign onto the AS/400, you will be prompted to change your password. Thus, when you press Enter after entering your user ID and password, Figure L1-4 appears.

Figure L1-4: Change Password screen with sample field values.

Your initial password was userID, the same as your user ID. You are going to change the initial password to BIGBLUE. This will be a temporary password. Later in this lab, you will have an opportunity to change the password to a password of your choice.

Remember that you must enter the new password the same both times. You must also press Enter only after all three fields have been entered.

Note:

None of the information shown in bold print in Figure L1-4 will be visible on the screen.

THE AS/400 MAIN MENU SCREEN

Once the AS/400 has verified your user ID and password, the sign-on procedure is complete. The first screen you normally see is the AS/400 Main Menu screen as shown in Figure L1-5. Depending upon your user profile setup and security restrictions, your AS/400 Main Menu screen may contain fewer options.

Figure L1-5: AS/400 Main Menu screen.

The AS/400 Main Menu screen is quite different from the sign-on screen. Menu screens like the AS/400 Main Menu screen are divided into several elements.

In the upper-left corner of the menu screen is the menu name that has been assigned to the menu. As you can see, Main is used as the menu name for the AS/400 Main Menu screen. This screen name is used to distinguish this menu from other menus. We will see later how this name can be used to quickly jump to a particular menu. The menu title, AS/400 Main Menu, is located in the center of the screen header and describes the purpose of the screen. In the upper-right corner of the screen is the system name, BLUE400 on our system, which should be the same system name shown on the sign-on screen.

In the middle of the screen is the numbered list of menu options. This list identifies which functions can be performed from this menu.

The Selection or command ===> lines are located after the menu options near the bottom of the screen. This is where you key in your selection from the menu. In addition to menu selections, commands can be entered that allow users to control the operations of the system. These commands are part of the operating system’s Control Language (CL).

Below the command line, at the bottom of the screen, is a list of function keys that are active for this screen. By active, we mean that only those function keys identified in the function key area can be used with this screen. Pressing a function key not listed will result in the system message Function key not allowed.

Below the list of function keys and their descriptions is a message line. In the example, there are no messages and it contains the IBM copyright notice. This message line is the line that the system will use to communicate to the user.

We will examine how menu screens can be used in the next section; but first, let us see how to sign off the AS/400.

SIGNING OFF THE AS/400

We will illustrate the sign-off procedure here so you will have the necessary information about signing off the AS/400 if the need arises before you finish this lab in its entirety.

You can sign off the AS/400 by entering 90 on any menu screen that has the 90 Sign off option, such as the AS/400 Main Menu screen in Figure L1-6. To sign off:

Enter 90 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

Once you press Enter, your work session ends and the system returns you to the AS/400 sign-on screen that was displayed in Figure L1-2.

Figure L1-6: Entering 90 on the command line to sign off the AS/400.

You may also sign off the AS/400 by entering the Signoff (SIGNOFF) command on any command line. Figure L1-7 illustrates how to enter the SIGNOFF command on the command line to sign off the AS/400. To use this method:

Enter signoff or SIGNOFF on the command line.

Press Enter.

Figure L1-7: Entering signoff on the command line to sign off the AS/400.

You now know the sign-on and sign-off procedures for the AS/400. Sign back onto the AS/400 now and continue with the lab. If you need help with the sign-on procedure, refer back to the earlier session on signing onto the AS/400. Remember to enter the new password you entered on the Change Password screen. You will not see the changed password as you enter it.

Note:

Although you have signed off the AS/400, you may not have disconnected the PC from the communications line that linked the PC to the AS/400. Since there are different methods used to connect and disconnect a workstation to an AS/400, we will not discuss that aspect here. Your instructor will inform you of the procedures that are necessary at your location to disconnect your PC from the AS/400.

NAVIGATING THE MENUS

Let us consider how menu screens, such as the AS/400 Main Menu screen can be used to perform different AS/400 tasks.

CHANGING YOUR PASSWORD

Since it is important to protect your password and change it often, let us examine how to change your password as a way of learning about menu screens.

Several methods can be used to change your password. In this section, we demonstrate how to change your password through menu navigation. In a future lab, we demonstrate how to change your password using a CL command.

Menus help you get started on a task by providing a list of options from which to choose. Using menus is easier to learn than entering a long string of commands each time you want to perform a task because you do not have to remember any command names.

Examine the options on the AS/400 Main Menu screen and try to determine which selection might be used to change your password. Sometimes the menu descriptions are not clear enough to determine which selection is correct. Guessing at menu selections is allowed and sometimes welcomed as a method of learning new AS/400 concepts. As you progress forward through menu screens, Function key F3 (Exit) and F12 (Cancel) can be used to return to previous screens.

Changing your password is a user function. Therefore, option 1 (User Tasks) is the required option on the AS/400 Main Menu screen to begin the menu navigation that allows you to change your password. To select an option from a menu screen, enter the number corresponding to your menu selection on the command line and press Enter.

To select the User Tasks option from the AS/400 Main Menu screen:

Enter 1 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

Figure L1-8 illustrates the User Tasks menu screen. This menu is named User and results from selecting option 1 from the AS/400 Main Menu. Note that the User Tasks menu screen has the same general format as the AS/400 Main Menu screen, although the specific options are different.

Figure L1-8: AS/400 User Tasks menu.

The User Tasks menu screen provides a selection of different options relating to user-specific tasks. It is easy to see that option 8 is the option that you are looking for to change your password.

To change your password, on the User Tasks menu screen:

Enter 8 on the Selection or command line ===>.

Press Enter.

The Change Password screen shown in Figure L1-9 appears. This screen is referred to as an entry screen because it displays fill-in-the-blank fields for the user to enter the necessary parameters for the command. If you wish to return to the User Tasks menu screen without changing your password, press F12 (Cancel) or F3 (Exit).

Figure L1-9: Change Password screen.

To change your password:

Enter your current password (BIGBLUE) in the Current password field.

Press the Field Exit key (right Ctrl key).

Now you have to decide on a new password. Try to make your password a series of letters and numbers that only you will know. For example, use the first character of each word in a phrase such as My birthday is May 15, where the password would be MBIM15.

Note:

If you have a password on another system, you might use that. If you have access to several computer systems, it is often a good idea to keep the passwords on them the same. That means changing the passwords of all your systems when one needs changing.

In addition, your new password cannot be the same as your current password. If you try to enter a new password that is the same as your current password, the system will respond with an error message.

Enter your new password in the New password field.

Press the Field Exit key.

Enter the new password a second time in the New password (to verify) field.

Press Enter to send the data to the AS/400 system.

The system will return to the User Tasks screen and respond with the message Password changed successfully.

Press F3 (Exit) or F12 (Cancel) to return to the AS/400 Main Menu screen.

DETERMINING THE OS/400 VERSION NUMBER

The examples in this book were written on an AS/400 running V4R4 of the OS/400 operating system. To practice the menu system of the AS/400, let’s follow a menu path to determine which version of the operating system your system is running.

Note:

Depending on how your user profile is set up, you may not have access to the commands needed to do this next section. If you find this section does not work, skip it and continue with the next section.

To begin the menu navigation for the version number, select the Define or change the system option on the AS/400 Main Menu screen:

Enter 7 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

This takes you to the Define or Change the System menu screen, called Define, shown in Figure L1-10.

From the Define or Change the System menu screen, select the Work with licensed programs option (option 2):

Enter 2 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

Figure L1-10: Define or Change the System menu screen.

The Work with Licensed Programs screen, called LICPGM, in Figure L1-11, appears.

Figure L1-11: Work with Licensed Programs menu screen.

From the Work with Licensed Programs menu screen, select the Display installed licensed programs option (option 10):

Enter 10 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

It may take several seconds for the system to gather the necessary information about the licensed programs. Be patient. The Display Installed Licensed Programs screen in Figure L1-12 appears.

Figure L1-12: Display Installed Licensed Programs screen.

Function key F11 (Display Release) is a toggle key that switches between three options: Display release, Display option, and Display status. Use F11 to display the installed release version number for the currently installed software.

From the Display Installed Licensed Programs screen, press F11 to display the version number of the currently installed software:

Press F11 on the Display Installed Licensed Programs screen.

The Display Installed Licensed Programs screen changes and the Installed Release column shown in Figure L1-13 appears.

Depending upon the release of OS/400 and software installed, the list of licensed programs on your screen could differ slightly from that shown in Figure L1-13. Make sure your screen shows the licensed program ending in SS1. This is the designation for the operating system.

Figure L1-13: Display Installed Licensed Programs screen with Installed Release.

Look under the Installed Release column to find the version number of the OS/400 operating system. This release number will be in the format VxRxMx, where V means Version, R means Release, M means Modification, and x refers to the actual release number. Therefore, the release number of the OS/400 operating system in Figure L1-13 is V4R4M0 (Version 4, Release 4, Modification 0).

Which version (Installed Release) of the OS/400 operating system is running on your AS/400? ____________________________________________

If an AS/400 is running under release V4R4M1, what does V4R4M1 mean?

_________________________________________________________

Exit the Display Installed Licensed Programs screen and return to the Define or Change the System screen.

Press F12 (Cancel) twice to return to the Define or Change the System screen.

DETERMINING THE AS/400 MODEL NUMBER

Let us navigate the menu system again to determine the model number of your AS/400. The model number is stored as part of the system values. System values are a group of attributes that are used by the system administrator to control the operation and environment of the system.

You need programmer privileges on the AS/400 to work with the Define screen. If you do not have this privilege, skip this section and continue with the next topic.

From the Define or Change the System screen in Figure L1-14, select the Work with system values option (option 8):

Enter 8 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

Figure L1-14: Selecting option 8 from the Define or Change the System screen.

The Work with System Values screen in Figure L1-15 appears.

The Work with System Values screen is a list panel or work with panel that contains a list of objects from which the user can perform some type of processing. The information on the screen is arranged in columns, each with a description. At the left of each item is an input field (OPTION) where an option number from the upper part of the display may be entered. These options vary depending on the purpose of the list screen and the user’s authority.

In the example, the items listed are system values. The only option available is Display (option 5). The reason that Display is the only option available is that students have limited authority to the system. The system security officer or another user with the proper security would have full authority to change any of the system values.

A list may contain more items than can be displayed on a single screen. When this happens, More... appears in the lower-right corner of all but the last list screen, as shown in Figure L1-15. The word Bottom appears in the lower-right corner of the last screen when you reach the end of the list. The Page Up and Page Down keys are used to move from one screen to another.

Figure L1-15: Work with System Values screen.

To determine the AS/400 model number:

Press the Page Down key until the system value QMODEL appears in the list. The screen should look similar to the Work with System Values screen in Figure L1-16.

Enter 5 in the Option column beside the system value QMODEL.

Press Enter.

Figure L1-16: QMODEL system model shown in Work with System Values screen.

The QMODEL system value in Figure L1-17 appears.

Figure L1-17: The QMODEL System Value screen.

What is the model number of your AS/400 system? ____________________

Exit the Display System Value screen and return to the Define or Change the System screen.

Press F3 (Exit) twice and return to the Define or Change the System screen shown in Figure L1-14.

DETERMINING WHICH COMPILERS ARE INSTALLED

Next, we will investigate which compilers are installed on your system. Compilers are products that turn human-readable source code into machine-readable programs. If the AS/400 Main Menu screen is shown on the screen, the Define or change the system option should be selected. Since we stopped at the Define or Change the System menu screen during our search for the system model number, we can continue from there.

From the Define or Change the System menu screen in Figure L1-14, select the Work with licensed programs option (option 2):

Enter 2 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

The Work with Licensed Programs menu screen in Figure L1-18 appears.

Figure L1-18: Work with Licensed Programs menu screen.

From the Work with Licensed Programs menu screen, select the Display installed licensed programs option (option 10):

Enter 10 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

The system will take some time before returning. The Display Installed Licensed Programs screen appears with a list of licensed programs that are installed on the system. To find out which compilers are installed:

Press the Page Down key to search through the installed licensed programs.

Which compilers are installed on your system? There could be more than one. List one or two.

_________________________________________________________

Once you have determined which compilers are installed, return to the AS/400 Main Menu screen:

Press F3 (Exit) twice and return to the AS/400 Main Menu screen.

SIGNING OFF THE AS/400

You have completed this lab assignment. Let us review the two methods that you can use to sign off the AS/400.

If you are at the AS/400 Main Menu screen shown in Figure L1-19:

Enter 90 on the Selection or command ===> line.

Press Enter.

If you are at a screen that has a command line, you can enter the SIGNOFF command to sign off the system. Figure L1-19 illustrates the SIGNOFF command entered on the command line, identified as the Selection or command ===> at the bottom of the AS/400 Main Menu screen. To use the SIGNOFF command:

Enter SIGNOFF or signoff on the command line.

Press Enter.

Figure L1-19: Entering the signoff command on the command line to sign off the AS/400.

You should now have an understanding of how to sign on and off the AS/400 and to navigate the AS/400 menu systems.

END-OF-CHAPTER AIDS

CHAPTER SUMMARY

The AS/400 (Application System) evolved from the System/3X family of computers that got its beginning in Rochester, Minnesota, in 1969.

The AS/400 is a multiuser, multitasking computer system.

The AS/400 architecture:

The layered design concept of the AS/400 isolates machine hardware and system software through a series of horizontal interfaces.

The main advantage of the layered design concept is that upgrades can be made at the low-level functions without any impact on the high-level software.

The machine interface (MI) separates the OS/400 operating system from the hardware.

Approximately 90 to 95 percent of the OS/400 operating system resides above the MI. As a result, the operating system is not affected by hardware changes.

CISC-based systems:

i. Named for complex instruction set computer.

ii. The architecture for all older model AS/400s.

RISC-based systems:

i. Named for reduced instruction set computer.

ii. IBM’s new family of AS/400s.

Everything stored and used by the AS/400 is an object.

The AS/400 uses single-level storage that makes no distinction between disk storage and main memory.

The operating system, OS/400, monitors and controls the overall operation of the AS/400.

Programs are divided into two types: operating system and application programs.

Application programs perform user tasks.

Operating system programs control and monitor the system.

Programs execute either interactively or in batch.

KEY TERMS

alphanumeric characters

American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII)

application program

Application System/400 (AS/400)

batch programs

command line

complex instruction set computer (CISC)

DB2/400

Direct Access Storage Device (DASD)

Electronic Customer Support (ECS)

entry screen

Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code (EBCDIC)

function keys

horizontal licensed internal code (HLIC)

kernel

information system

input data

Integrated Language Environment (ILE)

interactive programs

library

licensed internal code (LIC)

list panel

machine independence

machine interface (MI)

menu name

menu options

menu title

message line

midrange computers

modular programming

multiuser minicomputer

n-way

object

object-based architecture

object-based computer

operating system

Operating System/400

OS/400

output information

pages

paging

password

program

programmer

reduced instruction set computer (RISC)

sign-off option

sign-on screen

single-level storage

software

software developers

System Application Architecture (SAA)

system licensed internal code (SLIC)

system name

system values

user ID

vertical licensed internal code (VLIC)

virtual storage

work session

work with panel

CHAPTER SELF-TEST

Self-test questions found throughout the book are designed to help you evaluate your understanding of the topics presented in the chapter. The solutions to these self-test questions are in appendix D.

True-False Questions

___ 1. A library is an object.

___ 2. When the Enter key is pressed, the cursor will move to the next field on the screen.

___ 3. Entering SIGNOFF on a command line is the only method to sign off the AS/400.

___ 4. ASCII is used to represent data in the AS/400.

___ 5. The AS/400 was developed in Rochester, NY.

___ 6. The AS/400 treats all storage as a single large region of memory.

___ 7. The AS/400 evolved from a midrange computer for which the market was the low-end commercial user.

___ 8. The AS/400 demonstrates the concept of hardware independence.

Fill in the Blanks

The AS in AS/400 is an abbreviation for ______________ __________________.

The AS/400 is a(n) computer system that can interact with many users at a time.

The AS/400 is a(n) system able to perform several functions over the same time period.

The current AS/400s and OS/400 are based on (CISC/RISC) ______________ architecture.

Application programs