Rational Developer for System z, Version 7.6

About the Import COBOL Files wizard

This topic provides general information about the Import COBOL Files wizard and describes some minor restrictions.

General information

The Import COBOL Files wizard has two main functions:
  • It converts existing COBOL structures to service flow project messages that you can subsequently reference to pass data into or out of an invoked flow or an invoked nonterminal application; and
  • It allows you to immediately create new operations (program definitions) that reference the new messages.

The main situation in which you can use this wizard is where you have one or more existing COBOL data structures that you want to use as patterns for passing data into or for receiving data back from an invoked flow or an invoked nonterminal application. Rather than having to use the message definition editor to manually create a service flow project message for each COBOL data structure, you can use the Import COBOL Files wizard to automatically convert the COBOL structures to messages.

Also, you can optionally use the wizard to create one or more operations (program definitions) each of which can reference any of the new messages as an input message, as an output message, or as a fault message.

Requirements for COBOL source files imported from a remote z/OS system

The Import COBOL Files wizard has the following requirements for importing COBOL source files from a remote z/OS® system:

Note:

You can change the default behavior of the remote file extension in the Preferences window. Follow theses steps:

  1. On the main menu of the workbench, select Window > Preferences. The Preferences window opens.

  2. In the left pane, select Importer > COBOL.

  3. In the right pane, select the More COBOL options tab.

  4. In the File Extension Support list:
    1. Select an extension, such as .cbl.
    2. Click Edit.
    3. Select Full program or Data structures only.

Names of imported data structures

Normally the Import COBOL Files wizard assigns the same name to an imported data structure (such as ACCOUNTINFO) that the original data structure had in its original COBOL source file (ACCOUNTINFO).

However, if the data structure is named DFHCOMMAREA in the original COBOL source file, then the wizard generates a name for the imported data structure based on the pattern <program_id> + _DFHCOMMAREA, where <program_id> is the program ID of the program from which the data structure is extracted (for example QUERYACC_DFHCOMMAREA). This change is made to avoid name collisions between multiple data structures having the commonly used name DFHCOMMAREA.

Minor restrictions

You should be aware of the following minor restrictions:

  • First is a general restriction that applies throughout the service flow project tools, not just in the Import COBOL Files wizard: A message in a message file, or an operation in a operations file, can be referenced only from a suitable artifact in the same subproject as the message file or operations file.

  • If the message set containing the message file does not have a Custom Wire Format (CWF) layer, then only the logical information appears in the model. You can add the physical layer to the message set before or after importing a COBOL data structure but it is recommended that you add the physical layer before you import the file. For information on adding a CWF layer, see Adding a physical format.

  • In order to import composite COBOL files from a remote file system, you need to modify the Remote Systems view to enable the Show Dependencies function (see Importing COBOL files from a remote z/OS system).


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