IC97224: EMAIL ALERTS FAIL WHEN BLANK WHITESPACE CHARACTERS EXIST IN THE ALERT DISPOSITION MAIL SERVER HOSTNAME/IP ADDRESS.

Fixes are available

APAR status

Closed as program error.

Error description

Alerting conditions fail to send emails as expected when alerts
are generated in TPC.  The problem occurs when the SMTP server
is entered into the Alert Disposition GUI panel which contain
whitespace characters after the hostname/IP, likely the result
of copy/pasting that information instead of manually typing it.
When alerts are generated in TPC they show up in the alert log
but no corresponding email message is ever sent by TPC.  To
diagnose this problem, examine the latest server_0000x.log file
under <tpc_install_dir>/data/log.
Evidence of a failure to resolve the SMTP server's hostname/IP
present as follows:
GEN0113E: Unable to connect to SMTP server <hostname_or_IP>
Unknown host <hostname_or_IP>
Corresponding messaging in ServerTrace log files:
YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS.xxx-xxx EXCEPTION
  java.net.UnknownHostException: <hostname_or_IP>
 at java.net.PlainSocketImpl.connect(PlainSocketImpl.java:214)
 at java.net.SocksSocketImpl.connect(SocksSocketImpl.java:366)
 at java.net.Socket.connect(Socket.java:528)
 at java.net.Socket.connect(Socket.java:477)
 at java.net.Socket.<init>(Socket.java:374)
 at java.net.Socket.<init>(Socket.java:188)
 at
com.tivoli.itsrm.smtp.SmtpTransmitter.<init>(SmtpTransmitter.jav
a:107)
 at com.tivoli.itsrm.server.Alerter.sendEmail(Alerter.java:864)
 at com.tivoli.itsrm.server.Alerter.run(Alerter.java:341)
com.tivoli.itsrm.smtp.SmtpTransmitter SmtpTransmitter Alerter
If email alerts are not being sent, confirm whether or not
whitespace characters exist after the host name or IP address in
the "mail server" text box on the alert disposition screen; if
they do then remove them and save the configuration screen, this
will allow the email alerts to be sent.  With whitespace
characters present, TPC sends them to the java utility that
creates the socket connection to the SMTP server and the result
is an unknown host exception.
The same errors can also happen if TPC is unable to resolve the
SMTP server for other reasons - firewall/DNS issues for example,
so eliminating network and firewall issues is also needed prior
to ruling this TPC problem as the cause.  This APAR serves to
allow TPC to ignore the blank characters that may exist in the
Mail Server text box.
RECREATE STEPS:
Configure alert disposition with mail server hostname/IP that
contains blank white spaces after the text, observe failures to
send email.
________________________________________________________________
DB2 Version used for Server:    N/A
The defect is against component:   5608TPC00
Server/Manager build/release (TPC):   5.1.1
Agent build/release (TPC):    N/A
Server/Manager (OS):     N/A
Agent (OS):       N/A
________________________________________________________________
Problem as described by customer:   TPC/TPC-R Not getting alerts
via email
Initial customer impact (low/med/high): med

Local fix

Remove blank spaces after SMTP server hostname entry.

Problem summary

****************************************************************
* USERS AFFECTED:                                              *
* TPC 4.x, 5.1.x and 5.2.0 users configuring email alerts      *
****************************************************************
* PROBLEM DESCRIPTION:                                         *
* See ERROR DESCRIPTION.                                       *
****************************************************************
* RECOMMENDATION:                                              *
* Upgrade to fix pack maintenance when available.  Delete any  *
* leading or trailing whitespace for the email address in the  *
* meantime.                                                    *
****************************************************************

Problem conclusion

A fix was made to tolerate and trim any leading or trailing
whitespace.  The fix for this APAR is targeted for the following
maintenance packages:

| fix pack | 5.1.1-TIV-TPC-FP0005 - target July 2014
| refresh pack | 5.2-TIV-TPC-RP0001 - target March 2014

http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?&uid=swg21320822

The target dates for future refresh packs or fix packs do not
represent a formal commitment by IBM. The dates are subject to
change without notice.

Temporary fix

Comments

APAR Information

APAR number
IC97224
Reported component name
TPC
Reported component ID
5608TPC00
Reported release
510
Status
CLOSED PER
PE
NoPE
HIPER
NoHIPER
Special Attention
NoSpecatt
Submitted date
2013-10-25
Closed date
2013-12-26
Last modified date
2014-07-29

APAR is sysrouted FROM one or more of the following:
APAR is sysrouted TO one or more of the following:

Modules/Macros

```
ALERT
```

Fix information

Fixed component name
TPC
Fixed component ID
5608TPC00

Applicable component levels

R510 PSY
UP
R511 PSY
UP
R520 PSY
UP

[{"Business Unit":{"code":"BU058","label":"IBM Infrastructure w\/TPS"},"Product":{"code":"SS5R93","label":"IBM Spectrum Control"},"Platform":[{"code":"PF025","label":"Platform Independent"}],"Version":"510","Line of Business":{"code":"LOB26","label":"Storage"}}]

Document Information

Modified date:
23 March 2022

Tips

IC97224: EMAIL ALERTS FAIL WHEN BLANK WHITESPACE CHARACTERS EXIST IN THE ALERT DISPOSITION MAIL SERVER HOSTNAME/IP ADDRESS.

Fixes are available

Subscribe

APAR status

Closed as program error.

Error description

Local fix

Problem summary

Problem conclusion

Temporary fix

Comments

APAR Information

APAR number

Reported component name

Reported component ID

Reported release

Status

PE

HIPER

Special Attention

Submitted date

Closed date

Last modified date

APAR is sysrouted FROM one or more of the following:

APAR is sysrouted TO one or more of the following:

Modules/Macros

Fix information

Fixed component name

Fixed component ID

Applicable component levels

R510 PSY

R511 PSY

R520 PSY

Document Information

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