PM24643: EGL generated COBOL program fails with abend APCT due to an invalid value in the CICS EIBCALEN field

APAR status

• Closed as program error.

Error description

• Rational Business Developer V7.5.1.5:
  
  A VisualAge Generator generated COBOL program receives an abend
  AZCT which is expected when the transcation times out.
  
  After migrating the program from VisualAge Generator to Rational
  Business Developer and regenerating the program with Rational
  
  Business Developer, an abend APCT is received instead of the
  expected AZCT abend.
  
  The following is the failing scenario:
  
  1) EGL generataed COBOL program XYZ requests an exec cics
     handle abend program (ELAESABD).
  
  2) When the transaction times out and receives an abend AZCT,
     the handle abend program ELAESABD is passed control as
     expected.
  
  3) As control is being passed to ELAESABD, a commarea address of
     0's and a commarea length of 4 is passed.  Since the commarea
     address is 0's, the link to ELAESABD fails with an
     invalid_commarea_address.  This is the cause for the APCT
     abend.
  
  4) Program XYZ does not have a commarea, but it is linking to
     program ABC with a commarea that has a length of 4.
  
  5) When control is returned from ABC to XYZ, the CICS EIBCALEN
     (EIB Commarea Length) did not return to 0, but continued to
     hold the value of 4.
  
  APAR PM14429 resolved this issue when the abend occurs in a
  called program and the call is made via an EXEC CICS LINK.
  This problem still occurs when the call is made using the COBOL
  CALL statement.
  

Local fix

• A temporary fix is available from support.
  

Problem summary

• ****************************************************************
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  * PROBLEM DESCRIPTION:                                         *
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  * RECOMMENDATION:                                              *
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  The problem is that when calling the EGL abend handler
  directly, instead of through the use of HANDLE LABEL, the
  CICS environment expects that a commarea must have been set
  up initially. EGL calls its called programs directly,
  instead of using exec cics link (unless the program is
  defined as external) which bypasses the cics internal logic
  to set its internal commarea address pointer. When the
  called program abends, the abend handler EGL program is
  attempted to be invoked, but cics detects that the commarea
  length ? 0, but the address it thinks the commarea is at is
  0. This causes the APCT abend. The solution is to use exec
  cics handle abend label instead of habdle abend program.
  Once in the label section of the cobol code, then the abend
  handler is called using exec cics link. This avoids the
  commarea/length discrepancy.
  

Problem conclusion

• Software updated. Fixtest available.
  

Temporary fix

Comments

APAR Information

• APAR is sysrouted FROM one or more of the following:

• APAR is sysrouted TO one or more of the following:

Fix information

• Fixed component name

  RBD EGL FOR COB

• Fixed component ID

  5724S5001

Applicable component levels

• R751 PSN

     UP