OTMA destination descriptors

Use OTMA destination descriptors to define destinations for messages that are routed through OTMA.

OTMA destination descriptors provide a simpler method for describing destinations than using the OTMA Destination Resolution user exit (OTMAYPRX) and the OTMA User Data Formatting exit routine (DFSYDRU0).

OTMA destination types include:

TYPE=IMSCON
IMS Connect destinations
TYPE=IMSTRAN
Other IMS application programs via synchronous program switch
TYPE=MQSERIES
IBM® MQ
TYPE=NONOTMA
Non-OTMA destinations

When OTMA destination descriptors are used to describe a destination, IMS does not call the OTMAYPRX user exit and DFSYDRU0 exit routine. You can override this behavior for descriptors with TYPE=IMSCON, TYPE=NONOTMA, or TYPE=MQSERIES by specifying EXIT=YES. In that case, the exits are called to process the message and determine whether the descriptor routing information must be modified.

IMS Connect descriptors

OTMA destination descriptors support the routing of callout requests from IMS application programs to external data or service providers through IMS Connect. IMS Connect routes callout requests through one of the following IMS Connect clients:

  • IMS TM Resource Adapter
  • IMS Enterprise Suite SOAP Gateway
  • User-written IMS Connect clients

For any of the following types of messages, define your destination type as IMS Connect (TYPE=IMSCON):

  • Output for IMS Connect clients
  • Callout requests from IMS application programs
  • Transaction messages routed to another IMS system for processing through IMS-to-IMS TCP/IP communications

If you are routing your messages to a destination such as an SNA terminal or a printer, define your destination type as non-OTMA (TYPE=NONOTMA).

The destination attributes that you can specify in the descriptor differ depending on the type of destination.

For IMS Connect destinations, you can specify the following destination attributes:
  • An OTMA tmember name
  • An OTMA super member name
  • A tpipe name
  • For transaction messages destined for a remote IMS system via an IMS-to-IMS TCP/IP connection:
    • The name of a connection to a remote IMS Connect instance that is defined in an RMTIMSCON configuration statement of the local IMS Connect instance
    • The IMS ID of a remote IMS system, as defined in a DATASTORE configuration statement of a remote IMS Connect instance
    • Optionally, the transaction code that the remote IMS system schedules to process the ALTPCB message
    • Optionally, the user ID that the remote IMS system uses to perform transaction authorization for the ALTPCB message
  • For IMS Connect XML conversion support for SOAP Gateway, an XML adapter name and an XML converter name.
  • A timeout interval for synchronous callout requests that are made by IMS application programs that issue the DL/I ICAL call. If a response is not received in the specified amount of time, the request times out and the IMS dependent region is freed. If the timeout value specified on the OTMA destination descriptor differs from the timeout value specified by the IMS application on DL/I ICAL call, OTMA uses the smaller of the two values.

For IMS Connect destinations, the OTMA destination descriptor provides a layer of abstraction between the application program and the tpipes. This layer of abstraction provides flexibility in the routing of IMS Connect output. For example, the destination name specified in the descriptor can be explicit or generalized using a mask character. Also, the tpipe name specified in the descriptor can be an individual tpipe name, a super member name, or left blank, in which case the specified destination name is used as the tpipe name.

IBM MQ descriptors

OTMA can route asynchronous callout requests to IBM MQ with a TYPE=MQSERIES descriptor and the following information:

  • An OTMA tmember name
  • An OTMA super member name
  • A tpipe name
  • The MQMD_REPLYTOQ and MQMD_REPLYTOQMGR values for your IBM MQ application
  • Optionally, an override to call the OTMA routing exits (DFSYPRX0 and DFSYDRU0)
  • Optionally, other IBM MQ values for the MQ message descriptor structure

IMS synchronous program switch descriptors

You can route a message directly to another IMS application program by creating a descriptor with TYPE=IMSTRAN. You can optionally specify other attributes for the descriptor:

  • An OTMA tmember and tpipe that late response messages from switched applications are routed to
  • An override to call the IMS user exit (DFSCMUX0) for late response messages
  • A check that IMS can perform to determine if the target application replies to the IOPCB