How to interpret message numbers
Db2 issues messages to communicate system status and processing results. Messages are identifiable by unique message numbers. The message identifiers can help you understand what each message applies to.
Messages are identified by unique message numbers, which are eight to ten characters long. Db2 for z/OS® message identifiers have the following format:
DSNB209I
- DSN
- The first three characters are DSN, which is the Db2 component prefix.
- B
- The fourth character is the subcomponent identifier, which identifies the subcomponent of Db2 that issued the message. Each subcomponent has an associated hexadecimal identifier (hex ID), which is the hexadecimal representation of the subcomponent identifier. In this example, B identifies the Db2 buffer manager. For more information, see Subcomponent identifiers in Db2 messages and codes.
- 209
- The numeric identifier is three to five characters, begins at the fifth character in the message identifier, and is unique within the subcomponent.
I
-
The last character of the message identifier is the type code. Most Db2 messages use I for the type code, regardless of the severity or whether an action is required.
Some older messages use other type codes. However, the type code does not necessarily reflect the severity of these messages. Some Db2 messages are issued with return codes that indicate the severity of the message, but they are not part of the message identifiers. The following sections describe these severity codes.
The type codes for MVS system messages have the following meanings. For more information, see Format of z/OS MVS system messages.- I (information)
- System operator action is not required. Communication in this category is for advisory purposes and might provoke system operator action. The associated task continues independent of system operator action. Most Db2 messages use this type code.
- A (immediate action)
- A system operator action is required immediately. The associated task does not continue until the requested action is taken.
- E (eventual action)
- A system operator action is required eventually. However, the associated task continues.
Messages are organized by subcomponent identifier and numeric identifier, and sorted numerically within each group.
DSNH message severity codes
To indicate the severity of the messages as an aid to programmers, each DSNH message includes one of the following letters at the beginning of message text.
| Letter | Reason code | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| I | 0 | Informational |
| W | 4 | Warning |
| E | 8 | Error |
| S | 12 | Severe error |
| U | 16 | Unrecoverable error |
When unsupported non-Db2 statements are detected during SQL(ALL) precompilation and no host-related errors are detected, the return code is forced to 4 if it was 8. So, the application can proceed with the compilation and link-edit steps, and the syntax checks can be delayed until bind. If a severity 8 precompiler error message is not a host-related error, the precompiler treats it as a warning and places W instead of E in the precompiler output listing. The precompiler also issues DSNH049I to indicate that the return code 8 from the precompiler is changed to 4.
The following precompiler messages with severity levels of 8 are not changed from errors to warnings when SQL(ALL) is in effect:
- DSNH051I
- DSNH080I
- DSNH290I
- DSNH291I
- DSNH292I
- DSNH312I
- DSNH313I
- DSNH314I
- DSNH504I
For more information about the SQL(ALL) precompilation option, see Descriptions of SQL processing options.
DSNT message severity codes
Messages issued by DSNTINST, DSNTINS1, and DSNTINS2 installation CLISTs use the following internal severity levels:
| Reason code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0 | Successful execution: CLIST progress and tracing messages (processing continues) |
| 4 | Warning: some adjustments might be made by the installation CLISTs (processing and JCL editing continues) |
| 8 | Error: unable to continue (no JCL is edited) |
DSNU message severity codes
The severity codes for utility messages are returned as the job-step condition code from the job step that resulted in the messages. If additional messages having higher severity values are issued during the same job step, the higher value is reflected as the job-step condition code.
The output of DSNU messages that are sent to SYSPRINT will have a timestamp after the message number. This timestamp uses the Julian date format of HH:MM:SS:TT.
Severity values have the following meanings:
| Reason code | Severity | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Informational | No error occurred |
| 4 | Warning | A condition was detected. The user might need to take further action. |
| 8 | Error | An error was detected. Processing could not continue. |
| 12 | Severe error | An authorization error was detected. Processing could not continue. |
DSN1 message severity codes
The severity code is returned as the job-step condition code from the job step that resulted in the message. If additional messages having higher severity values are issued during the same job step, the higher value is reflected as the job-step condition code. The severity values for DSN1 messages have the following meanings:
| Reason code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0 | An informational message. No error occurred. |
| 4 | A warning message. A condition was detected of which the user should be aware. The user might need to take further action. |
| 8 | An error message. An error situation was detected and processing could not continue. |
| 12 | A severe error message. A severe error situation was detected and processing could not continue. |