Copy screen

The Start Copy Screen (STRCPYSCN) command allows you to be at your workstation and see the same displays that are seen by someone at another workstation.

You must be signed on to the same IBM® i platform as the user. If that user is on a remote system, you can use display station pass-through to sign on that system, and then enter the STRCPYSCN command to see the other displays. Screen images can be copied to a database file at the same time they are copied to another workstation or when another workstation cannot be used. This allows you to process this data later and prepares an audit trail for the operations that occur during a problem.

To copy the display image to another display station, the following requirements must be met:

  • Both displays are defined to the system
  • Both displays are color or both are monochrome, but not one color and the other monochrome
  • Both displays have the same number of character positions horizontally and vertically

When you type your own display station ID as the sending device, the receiving display station must have the sign-on display shown when you start copying screen images. Graphics are copied as blanks.

If not already signed on to the same system, use the following process to see the displays that another user sees on a remote system:

  1. Enter the Start Pass-Through (STRPASTHR) command:
    STRPASTHR RMTLOCNAME(KC105)
  2. Log on to the application server (AS).
  3. Enter the STRCPYSCN command using the SRCDEV, OUTDEV, and OUTFILE parameters. The parameters have the following meaning:
    • SRCDEV specifies the name of the source device, which is the display station that is sending the display image. To send your display to command to another device, enter the *REQUESTER value for this parameter.
    • OUTDEV specifies the name of the output device to which the display image is sent. In this example, the display image is sent to the display station of the person who enters the command (*REQUESTER). You can also name another display station, another device (where a third user is viewing), or to no other device (*NONE). When the *NONE value is used, specify an output file for the display images.
    • OUTFILE specifies the name of the output file that will contain an image of all the displays viewed while the command is active.
    STRCPYSCN SRCDEV(KC105)
              OUTDEV(*REQUESTER)
              OUTFILE(KCHELP/TEST)

    An inquiry message is sent to the source device to notify the user of that device that the displays will be copied to another device or file.

  4. Type a g (Go) to start sending the images to the requesting device.

The sending display station's screens are copied to the other display station. The image shown at the receiving display station trails the sending display station by one screen. If the user at the sending display station presses a key that is not active (such as the Home key), both display stations will show the same display.

While you are copying screens, the operator of the receiving display station cannot do any other work at that display station until the copying of screens is ended.

To end the copy screen function from the sending display station, enter the End Copy Screen (ENDCPYSCN) command from any command line and press the Enter key.

ENDCPYSCN

The display you viewed when you started the copy screen function is shown.