Defining groups for shared asynchronous output

You can define groups of data store connections, IMS Connect instances, or both, in which the members of the group can retrieve the asynchronous output for any other member of the group. These groups use the OTMA super member function.

When a super member group is not defined, asynchronous output can be retrieved only by using the client ID of the originating client and the originating IMS Connect instance. The dependency on the original client ID and IMS Connect instance can present problems if, for example, either the originating client ID is unknown, as might be the case when the ID is automatically generated, or the original instance of IMS Connect is unknown, as might be the case when a product like the z/OS® Sysplex Distributor is used.

Even when the client ID and IMS Connect instance are known, there is still a risk presented by the IMS Connect instance being a single point of failure; if the IMS Connect instance should fail, the asynchronous output could not be retrieved until the IMS Connect instance was brought back up.

You create a super member group by defining IMS Connect instances and individual data store connections as participants of the super member group. Each participant within the same super member group must specify the same super member name on the SMEMBER parameter in the IMS Connect configuration member in the IMS.PROCLIB data set. For IMS Connect, the SMEMBER parameter is on the HWS statement. For data store connections, the SMEMBER parameter is on the DATASTORE statement.

By default, the data store connections defined to an instance of IMS Connect are participants in the super member group that the instance is a participant in, if any; however, by specifying the SMEMBER parameter on the DATASTORE statement, a data store connection can belong to a different super member group or to no super member group at all. Specifications for super member groups made on the DATASTORE statement, override any super member group specification made on the HWS statement.

Note that if a DATASTORE statement does include the SMEMBER parameter but the HWS statement does, when the attributes of the data store connection are displayed they will not include the super member group name that, by default, the data store is a participant in. You must display the attributes of the HWS statement to see the super member group name.

To define an IMS Connect instance as a participant in a super member group, specify a super member name on the SMEMBER parameter on the HWS configuration statement.
The super member name specified on the HWS configuration statement becomes the default super member name for all data store connections defined to the instance of IMS Connect that do not specify a super member group of their own.
To define a data store connection as a participant in a super member group other than the super member group specified on the HWS configuration statement, specify a super member name on the SMEMBER parameter on the DATASTORE configuration statement.
A super member name specified on the DATASTORE statement overrides for this data store connection any super member name that is defined on the HWS configuration statement
To prevent a data store connection from participating in a default super member group defined by an IMS Connect instance, specify SMEMBER='####' on the DATASTORE configuration statement that defines the data store connection.

Example

The following example of an IMS Connect configuration statement includes specifications for super member groups. The SMEMBER parameter on the HWS configuration statement defines the IMS Connect instance HWS1 as participating in the super member group SHRD and sets SHRD as the default super member group for all data store connections defined in this configuration member.

In the example, the data stores defined to the IMS Connect instance HWS1 each participate in super member groups as follows:

IMS1 participates in the SHRD super member group defined on the HWS configuration statement because its DATASTORE statement does not include the SMEMBER parameter.
IMSY and IMSN both participate in the super member group SHR1
IMSX participates in super member SHR2, possibly with other data store connections from another instance of IMS Connect
IMSA does not participate in any super member group

Note: AT-TLS is the recommended method to enable SSL for IMS Connect.

HWS=(ID=HWS1,XIBAREA=100,RACF=Y,SMEMBER=SHRD)                            
TCPIP=(HOSTNAME=TCPIP,PORTID=(9999,LOCAL),RACFID=GOFISHIN,TIMEOUT=0,     
IPV6=N,                                 
EXIT=(HWSSMPL0,HWSSMPL1,HWSCSLO0,HWSCSLO1))            
DATASTORE=(ID=IMS1,GROUP=XCFGRP1,MEMBER=HWS1,TMEMBER=IMS1)            
DATASTORE=(ID=IMSY,GROUP=XCFGRP1,MEMBER=HWSY,TMEMBER=IMS1,SMEMBER=SHR1) 
DATASTORE=(ID=IMSN,GROUP=XCFGRP1,MEMBER=HWSN,TMEMBER=IMS1,SMEMBER=SHR1) 
DATASTORE=(ID=IMSX,GROUP=XCFGRP1,MEMBER=HWSX,TMEMBER=IMS1,SMEMBER=SHR2) 
DATASTORE=(ID=IMSA,GROUP=XCFGRP1,MEMBER=HWSA,TMEMBER=IMSA,SMEMBER=####) 
IMSPLEX=(MEMBER=HWSPLEX1,TMEMBER=PLEX1)                                  
IMSPLEX=(MEMBER=HWSPLEX2,TMEMBER=PLEX2)