EXECKEY option

CICS® programs should be defined as EXECKEY(USER), unless there is some reason for defining them as CICS-key in your CICS system. Defining programs as EXECKEY(USER) prevents them from overwriting CICS.

Converters and the resource checker should not be regarded as application programs when defining storage. You are recommended to define them as EXECKEY(CICS). This allows them to modify CICS-key storage.

When the Decode and Encode functions allocate storage to hold the converted data, that storage should be allocated as CICS-key.

User-written XDR routines must be defined as EXECKEY(CICS).

If you specify EXECKEY(USER) for the CICS program, ensure that TASKDATAKEY(USER) is specified for the alias. USER is the default TASKDATAKEY setting in the alias definition in the supplied group DFHRP.

If you have CICS programs that need to be specified with EXECKEY(CICS), you are advised to specify TASKDATAKEY(CICS) for the alias that will execute them.

CICS operates with storage protection when the system initialization parameter STGPROT is set to YES, or allowed to default to YES.