HCL Workload Automation, Version 9.4

Setting options for the access methods

An options file is a text file located in the methods directory of the HCL Workload Automation installation, containing a set of options to customize the behavior of the access method. The options must be written one per line and have the following format (with no spaces included):
option=value
All access methods use two types of options files: a global options file and one or more local options files. The names of the local options files are generically referred to as XANAME_<accessmethod>.opts on extended agents and DYNAMIC_AGENT_FILE_<accessmethod>.opts on dynamic agents. The file names specified for the local options files for both types of agents must respect the following rules:
  • BothXANAME and DYNAMIC_AGENT_FILE in the file name must be upper case alphanumeric characters. For example, if the installation of the r3batch access method includes two extended agent workstations, CPU1 and CPU2, the names of the local options files are CPU1_r3batch.opts and CPU2_r3batch.opts.
  • Double-byte character set (DBCS), single-byte character set (SBCS), and bidirectional text are not supported. For information about acceptable values for the extended agent workstation name, See Table 1.
Dynamic agents and IBM Workload Scheduler for z/OS agents
Global options file
A common configuration file created by default for each access method installed, whose settings apply to all the dynamic agent workstations defined for that method. When the global options file is created, it contains only the LJuser option, which represents the operating system user ID used to launch the access method. You can customize the global options file by adding the options appropriate for the access method.
The name of the global options file is accessmethod.opts, which, depending on your operating system, corresponds to:
For PeopleSoft
psagent.opts
For SAP R/3
r3batch.opts
For z/OS
mvsjes.opts, mvsopc.opts
Local options file
One or more configuration files that are specific to each access method. The name of this file is optionsfile_accessmethod.opts and they are saved to the path <TWA_DIR>/TWS/methods.
In a distributed environment
  • If you are defining a job to run the access method by using the Dynamic Workload Console, it is the options file you specify in the New > Job definition > ERP > Access Method XA Task tab.
  • If you are defining the SAP R/3 job to run the access method by using the Dynamic Workload Console, it is the options file you specify in the New > Job definition > ERP > SAP Job on Dynamic Workstations XA Task tab.
  • If you are defining the job to run the access method by using composer, it is the options file you specify in the target attribute of the job definition.
If you do not create a local options file, the global options file is used.
In a z/OS environment
  • If you are defining a job to run the access method by using the Dynamic Workload Console, it is the options file you specify in the New > ERP > Access Method XA Task tab.
  • If you are defining the SAP R/3 job to run the access method by using the Dynamic Workload Console, it is the options file you specify in the New > ERP > SAP XA Task tab.
  • If you are defining the job to run the access method by using the JOBREC statement, it is the name of the workstation where the access method runs.
If you do not create a local options file, the global options file is used.

If you do not specify an option in the optionsfile_accessmethod.opts file, while the access method is running, the product uses the values specified for that option in the global options file. If you do not specify options either in the optionsfile_accessmethod.opts or in the global option file, the product issues an error message.

If the SAP R/3 access method is installed for AGENT1 workstation, but you have two external SAP systems on which to schedule jobs, then in the <TWA_DIR>/TWS/methods directory, you create the following options files:
  • SAP1_AGENT1_r3batch.opts
  • SAP2_AGENT1_r3batch.opts
Each file contains the options specific to each external SAP system, for example, the connection information.
For pools and dynamic pools containing n agents, you must create an options file for the dynamic pool and copy it in the TWA_DIR/TWS/methods of each agent of the pool so that all members of the pool have a local options file with the same name. Then you must create another options file for the specific agent in the same directory. For example, if the SAP R/3 access method is installed for AGENT1 and AGENT2 which belong to the dynamic pool DYN_POOL, create in the <TWA_DIR>/TWS/methods directory of each agent the following options files:
AGENT1
  • FILEOPTS_AGENT1_r3batch.opts
  • FILEOPTS_DYN_POOL_r3batch.opts
AGENT2
  • FILEOPTS_AGENT2_r3batch.opts
  • FILEOPTS_DYN_POOL_r3batch.opts
Extended agents
All access methods use two types of options file:
Global options file
A common configuration file created by default for each access method installed, whose settings apply to all the extended agent workstations defined for that method. When the global options file is created, it contains only the LJuser option, which represents the operating system user ID used to launch the access method. You can customize the global options file by adding the options appropriate to the access method.
The name of the global options file is accessmethod.opts, which, depending on your operating system, corresponds to:
For PeopleSoft
psagent.opts
For SAP R/3
r3batch.opts
For z/OS
mvsjes.opts, mvsopc.opts
For custom access methods
netmth.opts
Local options file
A configuration file that is specific to each extended agent workstation within a particular installation of an access method. The name of this file is XANAME_accessmethod.opts, where:
XANAME
Is the name of the extended agent workstation.
accessmethod
Is the name of the access method.

If you do not create a local options file, the global options file is used. Every extended agent workstation, except for z/OS, must have a local options file with its own configuration options.

The options files must be located in the <TWA_DIR>/TWS/methods directory. They are read when the supported agent is started. Options are specific to each access method. For details about how to configure each access method, see the following sections: