Working with services
Service objects are a means by which additional processes can be managed as part of a queue manager. With services, you can define programs that are started and stopped when the queue manager starts and ends. IBM® MQ services are always started under the user ID of the user who started the queue manager.
To define a new IBM MQ service definition, use the MQSC command DEFINE SERVICE.
Service objects can be either of the following types:
- Server
- A server is a service object that has the parameter SERVTYPE specified as SERVER. A server service object is the definition of a program that is executed when a specified queue manager is started. Server service objects define programs that typically run for a long time. For example, a server service object can be used to execute a trigger monitor process, such as runmqtrm .
Only one instance of a server service object can run concurrently. The status of running server service objects can be monitored using the MQSC command, DISPLAY SVSTATUS.
- Command
- A command is a service object that has the parameter SERVTYPE specified as COMMAND. Command service objects are similar to server service objects, however multiple instances of a command service object can run concurrently, and their status cannot be monitored using the MQSC command DISPLAY SVSTATUS.
If the MQSC command, STOP SERVICE, is executed no check is made to determine whether the program started by the MQSC command, START SERVICE, is still active before executing the stop program.