PIPELINE resources

A PIPELINE resource is used when a CICS® application is in the role of a web service provider or requester. It provides information about the message handler programs that act on a service request and on the response. Typically, a single PIPELINE definition defines an infrastructure that can be used by many applications.

The information about the processing nodes is supplied indirectly: the PIPELINE specifies the name of a z/OS® UNIX file containing an XML description of the nodes and their configuration.

An inbound web service request (that is, a request by which a client invokes a web service in CICS) is associated with a PIPELINE resource by the URIMAP resource. The URIMAP identifies the PIPELINE resource that applies to the URI associated with the request; the PIPELINE specifies the processing that is to be performed on the message.

For service providers deployed using the CICS web services assistant, URIMAP resources are created automatically when the pickup directory is scanned. This scan occurs when the PIPELINE resource is installed or as a result of a PERFORM PIPELINE SCAN command. The URIMAP resource that provides CICS with the information to associate the WEBSERVICE resource with a specific URI is a required resource. The attributes for this resource are specified by a web service binding file in the pickup directory. The URIMAP resource that provides CICS with the information to associate the WSDL archive file or WSDL document with a specific URI is an optional resource and is created if either a WSDL file or WSDL archive file are present in the pickup directory.

For service requesters, CICS does not create any URIMAP resources automatically when the PIPELINE resource is installed or as a result of a PERFORM PIPELINE SCAN command.

PIPELINE resources in CICS bundles

You can use a CICS bundle to create, edit, and install a PIPELINE resource definition. If you create a PIPELINE resource in this way, you must use the CICS bundle to manage the lifecycle of that resource, and you cannot manage the resource independently.

You can inquire on a PIPELINE resource that is dynamically generated by a CICS bundle, by using the EXEC CICS INQUIRE PIPELINE or CEMT INQUIRE PIPELINE command. However, you cannot issue a DISCARD command against a dynamically generated PIPELINE resource, or use a SET command to change the status of the resource. You must issue the commands against the BUNDLE resource, and CICS applies them to the PIPELINE resource.

You can modify the attributes of a dynamically generated PIPELINE resource, but the changes are not cataloged and will not be recovered across a warm restart of CICS. If you want to change an attribute of a PIPELINE resource that was installed by a bundle, disable and discard the CICS bundle, and install a new version of the bundle with the required changes.

For more information about defining resources in CICS bundles, see Defining CICS bundles.