Using system commands to control the agent

You can use z/OS® system commands to start, stop, cancel, or modify the agent for z/OS.

Use the following operator commands to control the agent:
S
START
P
STOP
C
CANCEL
F
MODIFY

You can enter these commands from a Multiple Console Support (MCS) console or from a program such as the Spool Display and Search Facility (SDSF). In both cases, the terminal or console operator must have the required authority to enter operator commands.

Starting the agent

To start the agent for z/OS, enter the following z/OS® operator command:
/S procname
where procname is the agent for z/OS JCL or started task procedure name.

If the agent is to run as a batch job, do not start it with an operator command. Instead, submit a batch job with the same name as the agent for z/OS subsystem. JES starts this job in the same manner as any ordinary job.

Because the agent for z/OS uses JES exits, among other things, to track the progress of z/OS® jobs, it does not start before JES is active.

Stopping the agent

To stop the agent for z/OS, enter the following z/OS® operator command:
/P procname
where procname is the agent for z/OS JCL procedure name.

Cancelling the agent

If the agent for z/OS is still active 5 minutes after you enter the STOP operator command, you must cancel it.

To cancel the agent for z/OS, enter the following z/OS® operator command:
/C procname
where procname is the agent for z/OS JCL procedure name.
If the STOP command is ineffective and you have no earlier documentation of the problem, cancel the agent adding the DUMP option so that the problem can be identified. Enter:
/C procname,DUMP
This causes the agent for z/OS to end with a dump on the SYSMDUMP file (if the ddname is in the started-task JCL).

Modifying the agent

Use the MODIFY command to start or stop one of the following agent for z/OS subtasks:
  • Data router
  • Event writer
  • Submit
and to list the status of the subtasks.
The syntax of the MODIFY command is:
/F procname,modifyoption
where:
  • procname is the agent for z/OS JCL procedure name.
  • modifyoption can be:
    STATUS, SUBTASK
    Lists all subtasks with their statuses. The status can be ACTIVE or INACTIVE.
    S=subtask
    Starts the specified subtask.
    P=subtask
    Stops the specified subtask.
    subtask is one of the following agent for z/OS subtasks:
    DRT
    Data router
    EWTR
    Event writer
    SUB
    Submit

Note that stopping the Event Writer puts the agent for z/OS in OFFLINE status (shown as UNAVAILABLE by dynamic workload broker). Jobs submitted while the agent is OFFLINE are shown in the READY status. Jobs that were submitted but not yet run when the agent went OFFLINE are placed in the WAIT status and moved to FAIL when the timeout configured for dynamic workload broker expires.

You can only start a task that has stopped earlier in the current session. If you attempt to start a started subtask or stop a stopped subtask, error message EELZ049W is issued, and no action is taken.