CICS RE: CICS ABEND AZCE When LU 6.2 Message

SYMPTOMS

When an input, or output, LU 6.2 message is sent by a COMTI application that uses a CICS Remote Environment (non-link), a CICS ABEND AZCE results. The following error information is made available to the client program in the Err structure:

Error Number: 1410 (0x582)
Description: (1410) The transaction program xxxx abended. Host LU is aaaaaaaa Local LU is bbbbbbbb. See NT Event Log for SNA Error Log Data. Retry the request.

The following entry is recorded in the application event log:

Event ID: 401
Source: COMTI
Type: Warning
Category: General

(401) COM Transaction Integrator Received SNA-defined Error Log Data text:

DFHAC2206 15:32:27 WNWCI51C Transaction BOFE failed with abend AZCE.
Updates to local recoverable resources backed out.

EXPLANATION The host LU terminated the conversation with COM Transaction

Integrator abnormally, and sent information about the error. The message text of the SNA Error Log GDS Variable is displayed above.

CAUSE

The explanation from the IBM Manual, CICS for MVS/ESA Messages and Codes Version 4 Release 1 is as follows:

AZCE

Explanation: An intersystem error has been detected during APPC mapped processing. The length of application data that is to be received (as determined from the LL fields and concatenation flags) exceeds the CICS implementation limit of 32767 for receive and converse commands, or 65000 for CICS transaction routing and function shipping requests.

COMTI uses a mapped LU 6.2 conversation, thus the 32,767-byte limit applies. It is a CICS limitation, not an SNA Server limitation or a COMTI limitation.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in COM Transaction Integrator for CICS and IMS version 1.00, a component of SNA Server version 4.00. This problem has been corrected in the latest U.S. service pack for SNA Server version 4.00. For information on obtaining the service pack, query on the ollowing word in the Microsoft Knowledge Base (without the spaces):

S E R V P A C K

MORE INFORMATION

After the service pack is installed, COMTI will send large messages in chunks of 32,763 bytes. To accommodate this, the host application must continue to receive data until the change direction indicator is received, marking the end of the received data. The following excerpt from a host COBOL application illustrates how the data may be received, where CUR-STATE is used to monitor for the SEND state indicator:

      ID DIVISION.
      PROGRAM-ID. BUG457X.
      ENVIRONMENT DIVISION.
      DATA DIVISION.
      WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
      01  MISCELLANEOUS-VARIABLES.
          05 DATA-POINTER         POINTER VALUE NULL.
          05 DATA-RECEIVED        PIC S9(8) COMP VALUE 0.
          05 SENT-SO-FAR          PIC S9(8) COMP VALUE 0.
          05 SENT-AMT             PIC S9(8) COMP VALUE 0.
          05 CUR-STATE            PIC S9(8) COMP VALUE 0.

      01  ALIGNED-VARIABLES COMP SYNC.
          05 MAXIMUM-LENGTH       PIC S9(8) VALUE ZERO.
          05 ACTUAL-LENGTH        PIC S9(8) VALUE ZERO.
          05 CMD-RESP             PIC S9(4) VALUE ZERO.

      01  REPLY-DATA.
          10 BYTES-RECEIVED       PIC ZZZ,ZZ9.
          10 FILLER               PIC X VALUE SPACE.
          10 FILLER               PIC X(15) VALUE
             'BYTES RECEIVED.'.
          10 FILLER               PIC X(32744) VALUE SPACES.

      LINKAGE SECTION.
      01  NONLINK-DATA            PIC X(32767).

      PROCEDURE DIVISION.

     *    RETRIEVE THE REQUEST DATA.
     *    NEED TO ADD PERFORM LOOP TO EOD.
          COMPUTE MAXIMUM-LENGTH = 32763.

          PERFORM UNTIL CUR-STATE = DFHVALUE(SEND)
              MOVE ZERO TO ACTUAL-LENGTH
              EXEC CICS RECEIVE
                SET(DATA-POINTER)
                MAXFLENGTH(MAXIMUM-LENGTH)
                FLENGTH(ACTUAL-LENGTH)
                STATE(CUR-STATE)
                NOTRUNCATE
              END-EXEC

              ADD ACTUAL-LENGTH TO DATA-RECEIVED
          END-PERFORM.
     [...]

REFERENCES

IBM Manual: CICS for MVS/ESA Messages and Codes Version 4 Release 1 Document Number GC33-1177-01.