CONVERSE (APPC)

Description

CONVERSE sends, then receives, data on an APPC mapped conversation.

Options

CONVID(name)

identifies the conversation to which the command relates. The 4-character name identifies either the token returned by a previously executed ALLOCATE command in EIBRSRCE in the EIB, or the token representing the principal session (returned by a previously executed ASSIGN command).

For compatibility with earlier releases, SESSION is accepted as a synonym for CONVID. New programs should use CONVID.

If the option is omitted, the principal facility for the task is used by default.

FROM(data-area)

specifies the data to be written to the terminal or logical unit, or sent to the partner transaction. This option may, when relevant, be omitted if ATTACHID is specified.

FROMFLENGTH(data-value)

is a fullword alternative to FROMLENGTH.

FROMLENGTH(data-value)

specifies the length, as a halfword binary value, of the data. For a description of a safe upper limit, see LENGTH options in CICS commands.

MAXFLENGTH(data-value)

is a fullword alternative to MAXLENGTH.

MAXLENGTH(data-value)

specifies the maximum amount (halfword binary value) of data that CICS® is to recover in response to a CONVERSE (default) command. If INTO is specified, MAXLENGTH overrides the use of TOLENGTH as an input to CICS. If SET is specified, MAXLENGTH provides a way for the program to limit the amount of data it receives at one time.

If the value specified is less than zero, zero is assumed.

If the length of data exceeds the value specified and the NOTRUNCATE option is not present, the data is truncated to that value and the LENGERR condition occurs. The data area specified in the TOLENGTH option is set to the original length of data.

If the length of data exceeds the value specified and the NOTRUNCATE option is present, CICS retains the remaining data and uses it to satisfy subsequent RECEIVE commands. The data area specified in the TOLENGTH option is set to the length of data returned.

If no argument is coded for MAXLENGTH, CICS defaults to TOLENGTH.

NOTRUNCATE

specifies that, when the data available exceeds the length requested, the remaining data is not to be discarded but is to be retained for retrieval by subsequent RECEIVE commands.

INTO(data-area)

specifies the receiving field for the data read from the terminal or logical unit, or the application target data area into which data is to be received from the application program connected to the other end of the current conversation.

SET(ptr-ref)

specifies the pointer reference to be set to the address of the data read from the terminal. pointer reference, unless changed by other commands or statements, is valid until the next CONVERSE (default) command or the end of task.

If DATALOCATION(ANY) is associated with the application program, the address of the data can be above or below the 16MB line.

If DATALOCATION(BELOW) is associated with the application program, and the data resides above the 16MB line, the data is copied below the 16MB line, and the address of this copy is returned.

If TASKDATAKEY(USER) is specified for the running task, and storage protection is active, the data returned is in a user-key. If TASKDATAKEY(CICS) is specified and storage protection is active, the data returned is in a CICS-key.

STATE(cvda)

gets the state of the current conversation. The cvda values returned by CICS are:

• ALLOCATED
• CONFFREE
• CONFRECEIVE
• CONFSEND
• FREE
• PENDFREE
• PENDRECEIVE
• RECEIVE
• ROLLBACK
• SEND
• SYNCFREE
• SYNCRECEIVE
• SYNCSEND

TOFLENGTH(data-area)

is a fullword alternative to TOLENGTH.

TOLENGTH(data-area)

specifies the length (halfword binary value) of the data to be received. If you specify INTO, but omit MAXLENGTH, “data-area” specifies the maximum length that the program accepts. If the value is less than zero, zero is assumed.

If the length of the data exceeds the value specified, but NOTRUNCATE is omitted, the data is truncated to that value, and the LENGERR condition occurs. When the data is received, the data area is set to the length of the data.

For a description of a safe upper limit, see LENGTH options in CICS commands.

Conditions

06 EOC

occurs when a request/response unit (RU) is received with the end-of-chain indicator set. Field EIBEOC also contains this indicator.

Default action: ignore the condition.

16 INVREQ

RESP2 values:

200

A distributed program link server application specified the function shipping session (its principal facility)

also occurs (RESP2 not set) in any of the following situations:

• The command is used on a conversation that is in use by CPI Communications, or that is an APPC basic conversation. In the latter case, the application should have issued a GDS SEND INVITE followed by a GDS RECEIVE.

Default action: terminate the task abnormally.

22 LENGERR

occurs in any of the following situations:

• Data received is discarded by CICS because its length exceeds the maximum that the program accepts (see TOLENGTH and MAXLENGTH options), and the NOTRUNCATE option is not specified.
• An out-of-range value is supplied in one of the options, FROMLENGTH, FROMFLENGTH, MAXLENGTH, MAXFLENGTH, TOLENGTH, or TOFLENGTH.

Default action: terminate the task abnormally.

61 NOTALLOC

occurs if the facility specified in the command is not owned by the application, or does not relate to a conversation owned by the application.

Default action: terminate the task abnormally.

24 SIGNAL

occurs when an inbound SIGNAL data-flow control command is received from a logical unit or session, or the partner transaction. EIBSIG is always set when an inbound signal is received.

Default action: ignore the condition.

81 TERMERR

occurs for a terminal or session-related error. Any action on that conversation other than a FREE causes an ATCV abend.

A CANCEL TASK request by a user node error program (NEP) may cause this condition if the task has an outstanding terminal control request active when the node abnormal condition program handles the session error.

Default action: terminate the task abnormally with abend code ATNI.