Utility locks on the catalog and directory

When the target of a utility is an object in the catalog or directory, such as a catalog table, the utility either drains or claims the object.

When the target is a user-defined object, the utility claims or drains it but also uses the directory and, perhaps, the catalog; for example, to check authorization. In those cases, the utility uses transaction locks on catalog and directory tables. It acquires those locks in the same way as an SQL transaction does. For information about the SQL statements that require locks on the catalog, see Objects that are subject to locks.