Failed-persistent connections result when a connection with a disposition of KEEP fails as the result of a task, address space, or system failure, or when IXLDISC REASON=FAILURE is issued. Failure of the connection is reported to the event exit of all connected users. When all connectors acknowledge the event, the failing connection with a disposition of KEEP becomes failed-persistent. Users develop protocols on how to handle failed-persistent connections. If the failed-persistent connection cannot reconnect to the structure, you can delete the failed-persistent connection.

The following steps summarize the process by which an active connection uses the event exit or IXLEERSP to eliminate the failing connection:

1. All active connections are informed of the failing connection through their event exits.
2. If one or more active connections can perform recovery for the failing connection, they do so.
3. The active connection indicates to MVS™ that recovery for the failing connection has completed by doing one of the following:
   • Setting return code = X'01' in IXLYEEPL event exit parameter list before returning from the event exit
   • Setting a return code = X'08' in IXLYEEPL before returning from the event exit. When the recovery processing is complete, the active connector issues the IXLEERSP macro with EVENT=DISCFAILCONN,RELEASECONN=YES.
4. Active connections must respond to the Disconnected or Failed Connection event through their event exits. The failing connection remains in the failing state until all acknowledgments are received.

See Responding to Connection Events and Using IXLEERSP.

Figure 1 illustrates what happens when an active connection to structure B performs recovery for failed-persistent connection C and sets return code 1 in IXLYEEPL to release the connection:

Figure 1. Deleting a Failed-Persistent Connection using IXLYEEPL

On systems with OW33615 installed or which are at OS/390® Release 9 or higher, the system will automatically FORCE all failed-persistent connections and the associated structure when the IXLCONN macro is invoked to connect to the inaccessible structure, there are no active connectors, and there is no connectivity to the coupling facility containing the inaccessible structure.