Scheduling jobs on IBM i systems

When scheduling a job on IBM i systems, the job launches a native command that can be either a system or a user command. The native command consists of SBMJOB system command, which launches a batch job. The native command starts one or more batch jobs. The batch jobs can be monitored only if they are started by the native command. The IBM i Agent Monitor can monitor a maximum of 130 batch jobs.

You can specify the name of the queue where the monitoring agent component runs by using the MonitorQueueName property in the native job launcher section of the JobManager.ini file. If you do not specify this property, the default queue (QBATCH) is used.

For more information, see Configuring properties of the native job launcher [NativeJobLauncher].

You can use the Dynamic Workload Console and conman showjobs command line to check whether an IBM i job is waiting for a reply to a message. An IBM i job that is waiting for a message reply is in the SUSP (suspended) status. This status indicates that the job is running while waiting for input. When the input is received, the job status changes to EXEC (executing).

For more information about job statuses, see Status description and mapping for distributed jobs.

If an IBM i job is waiting for a reply, you can view the message text and the related reply. This information is written into the correspondent IBM Workload Scheduler job log so that the IBM Workload Scheduler operator knows the exact message the IBM i job is waiting for.

When an IBM i job is waiting for a reply to a message, you can reply to the message directly from the Monitor Workload of the Dynamic Workload Console. The job in SUSP (suspended) status requires your attention on additional information to be displayed. A pop-up window shows the message that is waiting for your reply. Reply to the message in the pop-up window, then select one of the following actions:

Forward action

To forward your reply. A message in the pop-up window confirms that your reply was sent successfully.

Cancel action

To cancel your reply. The pop-up window is closed.

Note: For a correct display of the pop-up window that shows the message waiting for your reply, your dynamic domain manager must be at version 9.3.0.2.

You can even define standard rules to automate the reply to the waiting messages. When defining an IBM i job, by using the Dynamic Workload Console or the composer command line, specify the list of messages for which you want to set up an automated reply. For each message, specify:

Message Id

The message identifier.

Message Text

The message text.

Message Reply

The automated reply that you want to define.

In the output job log you can see the messages queued by IBM i system and the replies sent automatically by the job.

For more information about how to define IBM i jobs, see: IBM i jobs.