Backward and forward referencing

In STOP mode, you can obtain reports on any data in the data gatherer's in-storage buffer or, with data set support, data contained in user-defined data sets through the use of the BREF (backward referencing) and FREF (forward referencing) commands. You can also do this by using the Date, Time, System and Range fields on the report panels.

Issue this command from a report screen. If you issue this command on a non-report screen, RMF™ displays the last report viewed for the current Date and Time, and for the Range specified on the Session Options panel. If you have not viewed any reports during the session, RMF displays the Workflow/Exceptions (WFEX) report.

Depending on the parameters specified, and on whether or not you are using data-set support, you can display data from either:

The data gatherer's in-storage buffer on any or all of the systems in a sysplex
The data gatherer data sets on any or all systems in the sysplex
or
Preallocated data sets

You can use the DI report to list, by system ID, the beginning date/time and end date/time for samples stored on each data set used during data set recording.

Please keep in mind that the easiest way to specify all these values is to enter them directly into the report header line, as in Figure 1, rather than on BREF or FREF commands:

Figure 1. Header of Monitor III Single-System Reports

                        RMF V2R2  TITLE                         Line 1 of 30
Command ===>                                                  Scroll ===> HALF

Samples: nnn     System: syst  Date: mm/dd/yy  Time: hh.mm.ss  Range: 100   Sec

The syntax of the BREF and FREF commands is:


>>-+-BREF-+--+-------+--+-------+--+-------+--+-------+--------><
   '-FREF-'  '-| D |-'  '-| T |-'  '-| R |-'  '-| S |-'   

D

|--+-DATE-+--=--mm--+-.--+--dd--+-.--+--yy----------------------|
   '-D----'         +-/--+      +-/--+       
                    '- --'      '- --'       

T

|--+-TIME-+--=--hh--+-:--+--mm--+-:--+--ss----------------------|
   '-T----'         +- --+      +- --+       
                    '-.--'      '-.--'       

R

|--+-RANGE-+--=--+------------+---------------------------------|
   '-R-----'     +-nnnM-------+   
                 |      .-S-. |   
                 '-nnnn-+---+-'   

S

|--+-SYSTEM-+--=--systemname------------------------------------|
   '-S------'

The parameters are all optional, and indicate the following:

DATE

Specifies the month, day, and year of the data you want. If you omit this parameter, RMF uses the date displayed on the screen. Leading zeroes can be omitted. The sequence you use for the month, day and year on the BREF/FREF commands must be the same as the sequence specified on the language options panel. RMF supports a sliding window which covers the time frame:

Current® Year - 50 ←→ Current Year + 49

This sliding window will be used to define the correct value of the century.

TIME

Specifies the hour, minute, and second of the data you want to retrieve first. If you omit this parameter, RMF uses the begin or end time of the report currently displayed on the screen. The conditions under which RMF uses the begin or end time are described later in this section. Leading zeroes can be omitted. Seconds or hours can be omitted if they are zeroes. For example, specify TIME=9.5 or TIME=9:5, rather than TIME=09.05.00 or TIME=09:05.00.You can use T as an abbreviation for TIME.

RANGE

Specifies the time range over which you want RMF to summarize and present the sampled data. Valid time range values are 0 to 9999 seconds or 0 to 166 minutes. If you specify a value without M or S, RMF uses seconds. If you omit the RANGE parameter, RMF uses the RANGE value currently on the screen. You can use R as an abbreviation for RANGE.

SYSTEM

Allows you to report on any single system in the sysplex. For systemname specify the name of the system you want to report on. All following single-system reports show data from the specified system, until you specify another system.

Note:

If the data defined by the DATE, TIME, and RANGE parameters is not available in the data gatherer's storage or, if you have specified data sets, in either the data gatherer's storage or user-defined data sets, RMF issues a message to indicate which data is available.
If you have specified data sets during a Monitor III data gatherer session, time gaps in the recorded sets of samples might have occurred during data set recording. If, during the reporter session, RMF detects gaps for the requested RANGE time, the following occurs:
- If all of the data defined by the DATE, TIME, and RANGE parameters is not available because of a time gap, RMF issues messages describing the BEGIN/END time of the gap.
- If part of the data defined by the DATE, TIME, and RANGE parameters is not available because of one or more time gaps, RMF issues a message to indicate the BEGIN/END time of the first gap. RMF displays the available data, but because some reported values like TCB + SRB time depend on the actual time of the sampling, the results can be misleading.
If the TIME specified is not exactly at the beginning of a MINTIME interval, or the RANGE is not a multiple of MINTIME, RMF might present more data than you request. RMF always presents the data that includes the TIME and RANGE values you specify except if the begin or end time of an interval lies within a time gap.
You should be aware that a large RANGE value increases the local storage area and CPU time needed by the data reporter.

The BREF and FREF commands perform the same function when you specify a DATE and/or TIME value (with or without a RANGE value). Both commands allow you to pinpoint the time at which you want to start viewing data collected either prior to or subsequent to entering STOP mode.

The BREF and FREF commands perform different functions when one of the following conditions occurs.

RANGE is the only parameter specified
No parameters are specified.