DELAY

Delays the processing of a task.

Syntax


DELAY

>>-DELAY--+------------------------------------+---------------->
          +-INTERVAL(hhmmss)-------------------+   
          +-TIME(hhmmss)-----------------------+   
          |      .-------------------------.   |   
          |      V                         |   |   
          +-FOR----+-HOURS(data-value)---+-+---+   
          |        +-MINUTES(data-value)-+     |   
          |        '-SECONDS(data-value)-'     |   
          |        .-------------------------. |   
          |        V                         | |   
          '-UNTIL----+-HOURS(data-value)---+-+-'   
                     +-MINUTES(data-value)-+       
                     '-SECONDS(data-value)-'       

>--+-------------+---------------------------------------------><
   '-REQID(name)-'

Conditions: EXPIRED, INVREQ

Note: INTERVAL and TIME are not supported for C or C++ programs.

Description

DELAY suspends the processing of the issuing task for a specified interval of time or until a specified time of day.

The following example shows how to suspend the processing of a task for five minutes, using the INTERVAL option:

EXEC CICS DELAY
          INTERVAL(500)
          REQID('GXLBZQMR')

The following example shows how to suspend the processing of a task until 12:45 p.m., using the TIME option:

EXEC CICS DELAY
          TIME(124500)
          REQID('UNIQCODE')

The INTERVAL and TIME options are not supported for C or C++ programs, which should use the corresponding FOR and UNTIL options instead.

It is possible to enter the interval or time value in two ways, using the FOR and UNTIL options:

A combination of at least two of HOURS(0 through 99), MINUTES(0 through 59), and SECONDS(0 through 59). For example, HOURS(1) SECONDS(3) means one hour and three seconds (the minutes default to zero).
As one of HOURS(0 through 99), MINUTES(0 through 5999), or SECONDS(0 through 359999). For example, HOURS(1) means one hour; MINUTES(62) means one hour and two minutes; and SECONDS(3723) means one hour, two minutes, and three seconds.

The C or C++ program equivalent of the INTERVAL example follows:

EXEC CICS DELAY
          FOR MINUTES(5)
          REQID('GXLBZQMR')

The C or C++ program equivalent of the TIME example follows:

EXEC CICS DELAY
          UNTIL HOURS(12) MINUTES(45)
          REQID('UNIQCODE')

For more information about the use of time fields in C or C++ programs, . For more information about the use of time fields in COBOL programs, see Replaced arguments when programming with COBOL.

Options

FOR

Specifies the interval of time for which the task processing is to be suspended, together with one or more of the HOURS, MINUTES, and SECONDS options.

This option must be used instead of INTERVAL in C or C++ programs. FOR HOURS(0) is the default.

HOURS(data-value)

Specifies, as a 32-bit binary value, the number of hours for use in conjunction with FOR or UNTIL. The value must be in the range 0 through 99.

INTERVAL(hhmmss)

(This option is for COBOL only.) The option specifies the interval of time that is to elapse from the time at which the DELAY command is issued until processing is resumed. The specified interval is added to the current clock time by CICS® to calculate the time when processing is to resume.

INTERVAL(0) is the default. The maximum permitted INTERVAL value is 995959.

The INTERVAL option is not supported for C or C++ programs, which use the corresponding FOR option instead.

MINUTES(data-value)

Specifies, as a 32-bit binary value, the number of minutes for use in conjunction with FOR or UNTIL. The value must be in the range 0 through 59 if HOURS or SECONDS is also specified, or in the range 0 through 5999 otherwise.

REQID(name)

Specifies a name that uniquely identifies the DELAY command.

This option can be used when another task is to be provided with the capability of canceling an unexpired DELAY command. When you write applications in COBOL, the name can be up to eight characters long, each of which can contain any bit pattern and need to be unique within the TXSeries system. Do not use X'FA' through X'FF' as the first character of the name. These characters are reserved for TXSeries use.

Note: You need to adhere to these rules for C, C++, and PL/I. Ensure that the names provided are full eight characters in length.

SECONDS(data-value)

Specifies, as a 32-bit binary value, the number of seconds for use in conjunction with FOR or UNTIL. The value must be in the range 0 through 59 if HOURS or MINUTES is also specified, or in the range 0 through 359999 otherwise.

TIME(hhmmss)

(This option is for COBOL only.) The option specifies the time when the task resumes processing. For more information about using this option, see Considerations when using C and C++ compilers.

The TIME option is not supported for C or C++ programs, which use the corresponding UNTIL option instead.

UNTIL

Together with one or more of the HOURS, MINUTES, and SECONDS options, specifies the time when the task should resume processing.

This option must be used instead of TIME in C or C++ programs.

Conditions

EXPIRED

Occurs if the specified time has already expired when the command is issued.

Default action: Ignores the condition.

INVREQ

Occurs for the following conditions, depending on the options that are specified on the DELAY command:

Hours are out of range.
Minutes are out of range.
Seconds are out of range.
The DELAY command specifies a REQID name that already exists.

Default action: Terminates the task abnormally.