PROCESSTYPE resources

A PROCESSTYPE resource defines a BTS process-type. It names the CICS® file which relates to the physical VSAM data set (repository) on which details of all processes of this type (and their activity instances) are to be stored.

Using the CICS business transaction services (BTS) API, you can define and execute complex business applications called processes. A process is represented in memory as a block of storage containing information relevant to its execution. It also has associated with it at least one additional block of information called an activity instance. When not executing under the control of the CICS business transaction services domain, a process and its activity instances are written to a data set called a repository.

You can categorize your BTS processes by assigning them to different process-types. This is useful, for example, for browsing purposes. The activities that constitute a process are of the same process-type as the process itself.

Note: Records for multiple process-types can be written to the same repository data set.
Figure 1 shows the relationship between PROCESSTYPE definitions, FILE definitions, and BTS repository data sets:
  • More than one PROCESSTYPE resources can refer to the same FILE.
  • More than one FILE can refer to the same BTS repository data set.
Figure 1. PROCESSTYPE definitions, FILE definitions, and BTS repository data sets
This figure shows the relationships between PROCESSTYPE definitions, FILE definitions, and BTS data sets.

You may want to record the progress of BTS processes and activities for audit purposes, and to help diagnose errors in BTS applications. If so, you can name the CICS journal to which audit records are to be written, and the level of auditing that is required, for processes of the specified type.