Using Language Environment abend and reason codes

An application can end with an abend in two ways:

User-specified abend (that is, an abend requested by the assembler user exit or the ABTERMENC runtime option).
Language Environment-detected unrecoverable error (in which case there is no Language Environment condition handling).

When Language Environment detects an unrecoverable error under CICS®, Language Environment terminates the transaction with an EXEC CICS abend. The abend code has a number between 4000 and 4095. A write-to-operator (WTO) is performed to write a CEE1000S message to the system console. This message contains the abend code and its associated reason code. The WTO is performed only for unrecoverable errors detected by Language Environment. No WTO occurs for user-requested abends.

Although this type of abend is performed only for unrecoverable error conditions, an abend code of 4000–4095 does not necessarily indicate an internal error within Language Environment. For example, an application routine can write a variable outside its storage and corrupt the Language Environment control blocks.

Possible causes of a 4000–4095 abend are corrupted Language Environment control blocks and internal Language Environment errors. For more information about abend codes 4000–4095, see z/OS Language Environment Runtime Messages. Following is a sample Language Environment abend and reason code. Abend codes appear in decimal, and reason codes appear in hexadecimal.

12.34.27 JOB05585  IEF450I XCEPII03 GO CEPII03 - ABEND=S000 U4094 REASON=0000002C