Integrated CICS translator

When you compile a COBOL program using the CICS compiler option, the COBOL compiler works with the integrated CICS® translator to handle both native COBOL and embedded CICS statements in the source program.

When the compiler encounters CICS statements, and at other significant points in the source program, the compiler interfaces with the integrated CICS translator. All text between EXEC CICS and END-EXEC statements is passed to the translator. The translator takes appropriate actions and then returns to the compiler, typically indicating which native language statements to generate.

If you compile the COBOL program by using the cicstcl command, it uses the integrated CICS translator. The cicstcl command invokes the compiler with the appropriate suboptions of the CICS compiler option.

Although you can still translate embedded CICS statements separately, it is recommended that you use the integrated CICS translator instead. Certain restrictions that apply when you use the separate translator do not apply when you use the integrated translator, and using the integrated translator provides several advantages:

• You can use to debug the original source instead of the expanded source that the separate CICS translator generates.
• You do not need to separately translate the EXEC CICS statements that are in copybooks.
• There is no intermediate file for a translated but not compiled version of the source program.
• Only one output listing instead of two is produced.
• REPLACE statements can affect EXEC CICS statements.
• You can compile programs that contain CICS statements in a batch compilation (compilation of a sequence of programs).
• Extended source format is fully supported.