Managing a workload

This example describes how to use the Web User Interface (WUI) to get CICSPlex® SM to manage a workload: that is, to route all work from a single routing region to a suitable target region.

For this task, a suitable target region is the one with the shortest queue of work requests, relative to the maximum number of tasks permitted in the target region. This queue of work, also called the load count, is the queue of all active and queued user tasks. By default, tasks queued for both MAXTASKS and TRANCLASS are included in the load count. Use of the Task load queue mode attribute in the CSYSDEF resource table allows sites to exclude tasks queued for TRANCLASS from the load count. For more information about the Task load queue mode attribute in the CSYSDEF resource table, see CICS system definitions - CSYSDEF.

The TOR (CICS®PT01) is the requesting region and the routing region, and the three AORs (CICSPA01, CICSPA02, and CICSPA03) are all target regions. None of the CICS regions are currently running.

If some of your work requests can't be routed freely (perhaps you want work requests from a particular user always to go to the same target region, for example), don't worry. You'll see how to add that requirement in a later example task (Routing a specific transaction to a specific target region).

  1. Create a CICS system group that will include all of the target regions among which the work requests (the workload) can be routed dynamically.
    • From the main menu, click Administration > Topology administration > System groups to open the System group definitions tabular view.

      If the current context is not PLXPROD1, specify PLXPROD1 in the Context field and click Refresh.

    • Click Create to open the System group definitions create view.
    • Type the following:
    • Click Yes to create the system group

      The System group definitions tabular view is redisplayed, this time showing an entry for CICS system group CSGTGTS1.

    At this point, the group CSGTGTS1 exists, but is empty.

  2. Specify to CICSPlex SM which target regions belong to the group. To add target regions to CICS system group CSGTGTS1:
    • From the main menu click Administration > Topology administration > System definitions to open the CICS system definitions tabular view
    • Select the entries for the CICS systems CICSPA01, CICSPA02 and CICSPA03 and click Add to CICS system group .
    • In the Group which member will join field, type CSGTGTS1 and click Yes to 3 remaining. This adds the three selected systems to your new group.
  3. Create a workload specification:
    • From the main menu click Administration > Workload manager administration > Specifications to open the WLM specifications tabular view.
    • Click Create, and type the following information: Leave the remaining fields empty or accept the defaults.
      Note:
      • A Primary search criterion value of USERID is shown in this example, though in fact it does not matter whether you specify USERID or LUNAME, because the Primary search criterion value has no effect on simple workload searching. It is used only for some kinds of workload separation, which is the subject of a later example. You must supply a value because CICSPlex SM doesn't know, at this stage, that you aren't going to use this workload specification for workload separation.
      • The Default target scope value is the name of the single target region, or group of target regions, to which work requests can be routed.
      • The Algorithm type value, QUEUE, tells CICSPlex SM to select the target region that has the shortest queue of work requests.
      • The Description is optional, but is worth providing. (When you are confronted with a list of specification names, and have no way of telling one from another, you will appreciate its value.)

    Click Yes. The WLM specification tabular view is redisplayed, this time showing an entry for the new WLM Specification, WLSPAY01.

  4. Tell CICSPlex SM about the region that is going to be routing the work requests to the target regions in group CSGTGTS1. To associate the workload specification with a routing region:
    • In the WLM specifications view, select the entry for the WLSPAY01 specification, and click Associate CICS system.
    • In the CICS system field, enter the name of the routing region (CICSPT01, in this example) and click Yes.
    To check that the association between the routing region and the workload specification has worked:
    • On the WLM specifications tabular view, click the name WLSPAY01 to show the details of this specification.
    • Click the link CICS systems associated with this workload specification to show the WLM specifications to CICS system links tabular view (LNKSWSCS object).
    Note: You can also access this view from the main menu by clicking Administration > Workload manager administration > Specifications to system links.
  5. Activate workload management in the routing region:
    • From the main menu click Administration > Topology administration > System definitions to open the CICS system definitions tabular view.
    • Select the entry for CICSPT01 and click Update, to open a detail view of CICSPT01.
    • Change the AOR dynamic routing mode field to YES. Click Yes to return to the CICS system definition tabular view.

      This change takes effect when the target region CICSPT01 is next started.

  6. Activate workload management in the target regions:
    • From the CICS system definitions tabular view, select the entry for CICSPA01 and click Update to open a detail view of CICSPA01.
    • Change the Workload manager status field to YES. Click Yes to return to the CICS system definitions tabular view.

      This change takes effect when the target region CICSPT01 is next started.

    Repeat this step for target regions CICSPA02 and CICSPA03.

When the routing region and the target regions have been started, you can check that the workload is active from the main menu by clicking Active workloads (WLM) > Active workloads. This opens the Active workloads tabular view, showing the workload specification WLSPAY01 as active.

To see which target regions are being routed to, click Active workloads (WLM) > Active workload target distribution factors. The displayed view shows all active target regions being routed to by workload WLSPAY01. All of the target regions listed belong to the CICS system group CSGTGTS1.