Creating a JESNEWS data set

The JESNEWS data set is EBCDIC text (news) to be printed by the JES2 print processor immediately following the JES2 information at the beginning of the output separator page. Use the JESNEWS data set to distribute information of general interest to users of a computing installation. For example, you can inform your customers of updated libraries or scheduled outages. This news can appear on the separator page itself if the number of news lines plus the number of lines on the print separator fits on a single page.

The JESNEWS data set is represented in the system by a started task (STC) with the job name $JESNEWS. The news is shared among all processors in a multi-access spool configuration; when one processor updates the news, all processors automatically pick up the updated news.

The JESNEWS data set is created by a user-defined job through the use of a SYSOUT DD statement. The user-defined job's SYSOUT DD statement must specify an external writer name of JESNEWS. When RACF® is active, the userid on the job creating the JESNEWS data set must have sufficient RACF authority to update the JESNEWS data set. If RACF is not active, JES2 issues message $HASP360 to ask the operator if the user-defined job has authority to create or change the JESNEWS data set. See Providing security for JES2 for additional information on protecting JESNEWS.

Any direct access file with a record length (LRECL) and block size (BLKSIZE) that is acceptable to IEBGENER as SYSUT1 input can be used to create the JESNEWS data set.

Note:

You must use ANSI-control characters for JESNEWS to print properly on a PSF-controlled printer.
If RACF and the SECLABEL class are active, RACF assigns the SECLABEL of the last job that updated JESNEWS to the JESNEWS profile. This could cause jobs with lower SECLABELs than the updating job to miss important information and RACF will record security violations for jobs accessing JESNEWS that did not previously occur.

For example, to create a JESNEWS data set, code:

//UP$NEWS    JOB     ...
//JESNEWS    EXEC    PGM=IEBGENER
//SYSIN      DD      DUMMY
//SYSPRINT   DD      DUMMY
//SYSUT2     DD      SYSOUT=(A,JESNEWS),DCB=(LRECL=80,
//           RECFM=FBA,BLKSIZE=80)
//SYSUT1     DD      *
                     NEWS
                     NEWS
                      .
                      .
                      .
                     NEWS
 JES2 is up and works fine.
 The computer center will be closed on Sunday, the 23rd.
/*

When defining the JESNEWS data set on the SYSOUT DD statement, all other DD parameters (except SYSOUT CLASS, DCB, HOLD, and FREE)are ignored. The class name subparameter of the SYSOUT parameter is used only to determine dummy and hold status.Any /*OUTPUT and JCL statements associated with the created JESNEWS data set are ignored. If JESNEWS is defined as a non-held data set, the news will be updated at unallocation time. If you define JESNEWS as a held data set, JES2 will update the news when the data set is released, either by the operator (through either a $O J or a $T OJ command) or by a time-sharing request. JES2 writes a message ($HASP316) to the console whenever a JESNEWS data set is replaced or deleted.

Both forms of carriage control, ANSI or machine code, are accepted (see the RECFM subparameter of DCB in z/OS MVS JCL Reference). If the JESNEWS data set exists, the page eject (skip-to-channel 1) operation following the printing of header pages is suppressed so that the installation news can be printed on the separator page. If you want the news to start on its own page, then the appropriate carriage control character should be used.

The JESNEWS is deleted by creating a null data set. This is accomplished by opening and then closing a JESNEWS data set that has no data, or by not opening the JESNEWS data set after it has been allocated. The JESNEWS data set is also deleted by a cold start. There are no restrictions as to when the JESNEWS data set can be changed.

To delete a JESNEWS data set by opening a null data set code:

//DEL$NEWS   JOB    ...
//           EXEC   PGM=IEBGENER
//SYSPRINT   DD     DUMMY
//SYSIN      DD     DUMMY
//SYSUT1     DD     DUMMY
//SYSUT2     DD     SYSOUT=(A,JESNEWS)

To delete a JESNEWS data set by not opening the data set code:

//DEL$NEWS   JOB    ...
//DELNEWS    EXEC   PGM=IEFBR14
//JESNEWS    DD     SYSOUT=(A,JESNEWS)
/*

Additionally, if you need to suppress the printing of the JESNEWS data set, use Exit 1 or Exit 23. See z/OS JES2 Installation Exits for information about these exits.