Users print data sets using either the ALLOCATE or PRINTDS commands or by invoking an application that uses the printer support service. You can customize how users print data sets in several ways.

TSO/E provides two exits for the PRINTDS command, an initialization exit and a termination exit. You can use the initialization exit to change, delete, or add operands to a PRINTDS command, to change the PRINTDS operands that have fixed default values, or to prohibit specific users from using the command. You use the termination exit to perform any clean-up that is required because of an action taken by the initialization exit. When users issue the ALLOCATE command to allocate a system output (SYSOUT) data set or issue the PRINTDS command, they can specify the OUTDES operand and the name of an output descriptor. The output descriptor defines printer-related information and simplifies the use of the commands. Without an output descriptor, users must provide printer-specific operands. You can define output descriptors by including OUTPUT JCL statements in the user's logon procedure. If you have JES2 installed, you and your installation's users can also define output descriptors using the TSO/E OUTDES command.

To use the printer support service to print a data set, a user simply invokes an installation-written application, and selects a printer and print options from a display panel. There is no need for the user to code JCL statements or issue the ALLOCATE or PRINTDS commands. To make printer support available, the Information Center Facility must be available. You must define your printers using Information Center Facility panels and provide the necessary application programs that invoke printer support CLISTs.

With RACF® installed, your installation can use security labels. If your installation is using security labels, the security label is printed on each page of output. Printing of the security label can be overridden with the correct RACF access authority.