HCL Workload Automation, Version 9.4

Method options file

For extended, agents, and IBM Workload Scheduler for z/OS Agent you can use a method options file to specify login information and other options.

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:

Extended agents

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.

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. The value for XANAME must be written in uppercase alphanumeric characters. Double-byte character set (DBCS), Single-byte character set (SBCS), and Bidirectional text are not supported.
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.

For example, if the installation of the access method includes two extended agent workstations, CPU1 and CPU2, the names of the local options files are respectively CPU1_accessmethod.opts and CPU2_accessmethod.opts.

HCL Workload Automation reads the options file, if it exists, before running an access method. For extended agents, if the options file is modified after HCL Workload Automation is started, the changes take effect only when it is stopped and restarted.

IBM Workload Scheduler for z/OS Agents and agents

Global options file

A common configuration file created by default for each access method installed, whose settings apply to all the 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 run 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, where access method is the name of the method you are creating.

Local options file

A configuration file that is specific to each access method. The name of this file is optionsfile_accessmethod.opts,

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 specified in the New > Job definition > ERP > Access Method XA Task tab.
If you are defining the access method by using composer it is the options file you specified 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 specified in the New > ERP > Access Method XA Task tab.
If you are defining 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 options_file_accessmethod.opts file the product uses the value specified for that option in the global option file. If you do not specify them neither in the options_file_accessmethod.opts file nor in the global option file the product issues an error message.

The options file must have the same path name as its access method, with an .opts file extension. For example, the Windows path name of an options file for a method named netmeth is

TWS_home\methods\netmeth.opts

HCL Workload Automation reads the options file, if it exists, before running an access method.

The options recognized by HCL Workload Automation are as follows:

LJuser=username: Specifies the login to use for the LJ and MJ tasks. The default is the login from the job definition. See Launch job task (LJ) and Manage job task (MJ).
CFuser=username: Extended agents only. Specifies the login to use for the CF task. The default for UNIX is root, and for Windows is the user name of the account in which the product was installed. See Check file task (CF) extended agents only.
GSuser=username: Specifies the login to use for the GS tasks. The default for UNIX is root, and for Windows is the user name of the account with which HCL Workload Automation was installed. See Get status task (GS) extended agents only.
GStimeout=seconds: Specifies the amount of time, in seconds, HCL Workload Automation waits for a response before killing the access method. The default is 300 seconds.
nodename=node_name: Specifies the host name or IP address if required by the method you are defining. For the unixssh access method, the host name or IP address to connect to the remote engine.
PortNumber=port_number: Specifies the port number if required by the method you are defining. For the unixssh access method, the port to connect to the remote engine.

For IBM Workload Scheduler for z/OS Agents and agents, you can specify the node name and port number also in the JobManager.ini file.

If you do not specify them in the options_file_accessmethod.opts file the product uses the value specified in the global option file. If you do not specify them neither in the options_file_accessmethod.opts file nor in the global option file the product uses the value specified in the option_file stanza of the JobManager.ini file.

Note: If the extended agent host is a Windows computer, these users must be defined as HCL Workload Automation user objects.