Installing, enabling, and making available applications

To provide an application to users of a platform, you install an application definition, enable the application, then make the application available.

Before you begin

Export the application to the platform home directory in zFS, and create an application definition (APPLDEF) for the application. See Deploying a CICS Application project.

About this task

Use this procedure for the first installation of a particular application on a platform, when there are no other versions of the application installed on the platform. When you replace an existing version of an application with a new version, follow the complete procedure in Updating applications. If your application uses resources that are not supported for multi-versioning, you must disable and discard the existing version of the application following that procedure before you install a new version.

Procedure

Open the CICS Cloud perspective.
In the Cloud Explorer view, right-click the application definition (APPLDEF) for the application that you want to install in the target platform. Click Install, then OK to install the application in the platform. The CICS bundles that are deployed as part of the application version are created in the CICS regions in the platform. Refresh the Cloud Explorer view, and the application name and version number are displayed.
Check the status of the application, which is displayed in the Cloud Explorer view. An application is installed in a disabled state. Checking the status of an application lists the other possible states. If you see an unexpected state, such as FAILED, follow the troubleshooting procedure in Diagnosing application errors.
In the Cloud Explorer view, right-click the application name and click Enable, then OK to enable the application. Alternatively, open the application in the online application editor and click the Enable button on the Overview tab. When you enable an application, the CICS bundles that were installed for the application are enabled in all the CICS regions, but the application is not yet available to callers through its application entry points.
Check the status of the application again in the Cloud Explorer view. Some resources for an application require more time to enable than others. The status of the application is reported as SOMEDISABLED until all the resources are enabled. If the application does not display ENABLED status when the Cloud Explorer view is refreshed for the first time following the Enable action, refresh the view again after a short time and check again. If the status does not change to ENABLED, follow the troubleshooting procedure in Diagnosing application errors.
When you are ready to make the application available to users of the platform, in the Cloud Explorer view, right-click the application name and click Make Available, then OK to make the application available. Alternatively, open the application in the online application editor and click the Make Available button on the Overview tab. The application is now available to callers through its application entry points.

Results

When you install the application definition, CICSPlex SM creates an APPLCTN resource to represent the application in the CICSplex. CICSPlex SM also creates a record for the application in the data repository, which is used in recovery processing for the bundles for applications.

If the target platform is active, CICSPlex SM uses the information in the application bundle and the application binding to install the CICS bundles across the regions in the platform. Each BUNDLE resource is dynamically created and is given a unique name. The resources that are defined inside each CICS bundle are dynamically created in the CICS regions during the BUNDLE resource installation.

The relationship between the application and each installed CICS bundle is saved in a management part. The management part is a MGMTPART record that is created automatically for each CICS bundle during the application install process. It records the CICS regions where the bundle is installed, and tracks the status of the bundle in the CICS regions.

When you install an application in an active platform, CICSPlex SM installs the CICS bundles immediately in all the CICS regions that are defined as part of the platform, and running at the time when you install the application definition. CICSPlex SM also installs the CICS bundles in CICS regions in the platform if you start or restart the regions after the time when you install the application definition. If you add further CICS regions to the platform after the time when you install the application definition, CICSPlex SM installs the CICS bundles in those regions as well.

An application is initially installed in a disabled state. When you enable an application, CICSPlex SM enables the CICS bundles that were installed for that application in all the CICS regions. If you start or restart a CICS region in the platform after the time when you enable the application, CICSPlex SM installs the bundles in that region in an enabled state.

When you make an application available, CICS allows callers to access the application through its application entry points, which can be PROGRAM or URIMAP resources. Callers can either access the highest available application version, or use the EXEC CICS INVOKE APPLICATION command to specify any available application version. The availability status of an application is not restored if you start or restart a CICS region in the platform after the time when you make the application available. When you have verified that the application has been installed and enabled correctly in the started or restarted CICS region, select the appropriate version and make it available in the CICS region.