Save-while-active restrictions

The following restrictions apply to all of the commands which provide the save-while-active function.

The save-while-active function is only available on the commands listed in the Save-while-active function.
You cannot use the save-while-active function in the following situations:
- When all subsystems have ended. If you have ended all subsystems, the save operation is the only user job that is active. It must finish before you can restart your subsystems and applications. The following save operations require that you end all subsystems. Therefore, you cannot use the save-while-active function with these operations:
  - Saving the system library
  - Saving all libraries
  - Saving the entire system
- When freeing or deleting storage during a save operation. If specifying STG(*FREE) or STG(*DELETE) on a save command, or CHKFORMRK(*YES) on the SAVDLO command, you cannot use the save-while-active function.
You should not use the save-while-active function when the system is very busy or when there is very little disk storage available. Before you save large amounts of data (such as all user libraries), you should initially use the save-while-active function on a limited amount of data. Using the save-while-active feature on a limited amount of data will help you determine its impact on your system's performance and storage.
You should not load, apply, or remove program temporary fixes (PTF)s when running a save-while-active operation.
You must issue separate save commands to use the save-while-active function for objects in libraries, document library objects, and objects in directories. If you need to synchronize objects you are saving with different commands, first end your applications until all of the objects have reached a checkpoint.
- If you have only one media device, each command must finish before the next can start. If you use the save-while-active function to reduce your save-outage time, save folders and directories first. Save libraries last. Saving the objects in this order will probably provide the greatest reduction in the save-outage time.
- If you have multiple media devices, and you use the save-while-active function to reduce your save-outage time, save libraries, folders, and directories concurrently. This will probably provide the greatest reduction in you save-outage time.
You cannot save objects that you create after the save operation begins.
You cannot save objects that other jobs are using during checkpoint processing.
Do not use System Service Tools (SST) functions for objects you are currently saving by a save-while-active operation.

Library restrictions

Full synchronization is not available when you use save all IBM® libraries using SAVLIB LIB(*IBM).
If you have specified *NOCMTBDY for the SAVACTWAIT parameter, you cannot save any *IBM library or any library that begins with Q (except for QGPL).

Integrated file system restrictions

Consider the following when using the save-while-active function with the SAV or SAVRST commands with integrated file systems:

The wait time option is not available.
When you are saving objects in libraries or document library objects, the considerations stated for those objects also apply.

Document library restrictions

Consider the following considerations when you use the save-while-active function to save document library objects.

Full synchronization is not available. Only system-defined synchronization is available.
Checkpoint notification is not available. This means that you cannot determine when it might be safe to restart your applications that use document library objects. When saving document library objects, the benefit of the save-while-active function is that objects are allocated for a shorter time than with normal save operations.
You might cannot save documents during save-while-active processing if a reclaim operation (RCLDLO command) is running.
Folders might not be saved during save-while-active processing if a reorganize operation (RGZDLO command) or a reclaim operation (RCLDLO command) is running.
Some applications use application programming interfaces (APIs) or shared folders to work with a document like a personal computer. When they update document data, they save the updates to a temporary file. The application does not permanently write changes to the document until the application session ends. Therefore these applications can update a document while a save-while-active operation is running.
Other applications update documents directly as the application receives data. For example, some spreadsheet applications and image applications work this way. If this type of application updates a document while a save-while-active operation is running, the application does not save document. The job log receives Diagnostic messages CPF8A80:Document in use and CPF90AC:Document not saved to indicate that the application did not save the object because the object was in use.