Overview of using control variables

Table 1 lists the control variables in related categories, and indicates what page they are on, whether they are modifiable, and whether they are retrievable by the variable access routine, IKJCT441. For more information about IKJCT441, refer to z/OS TSO/E Programming Services.

Table 2 briefly describes the modifiable control variables, and Table 3 briefly describes the control variables you cannot modify.

Table 1. Control variable by category
Category	Variable	Modifiable	Retrievable by IKJCT441	Reference
Current date and time	&SYSDATE &SYSJDATE &SYSSDATE &SYS4DATE &SYS4JDATE &SYS4SDATE &SYSTIME &SYSSTIME	No No No No No No No No	No No No No No No No No	&SYSDATE &SYJDATE &SYSSDATE &SYS4DATE &SYS4JDATE &SYS4SDATE &SYSTIME &SYSSTIME
Terminal-related	&SYSLTERM &SYSWTERM	No No	No No	&SYSLTERM &SYSWTERM
User-related	&SYSUID &SYSPREF &SYSPROC	No No No	No No No	&SYSUID &SYSPREF &SYSPROC
System-related	&SYSAPPCLU &SYSCLONE &SYSCPU &SYSDFP &SYSHSM &SYSISPF &SYSJES &SYSLRACF &SYSMVS &SYSNAME &SYSNODE &SYSOPSYS &SYSRACF &SYSPLEX &SYSSECLAB &SYSSMFID &SYSSMS &SYSSRV &SYSSYMDEF &SYSTERMID &SYSTSOE	No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No	No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No	&SYSAPPCLU &SYSCLONE &SYSCPU &SYSDFP &SYSHSM &SYSISPF &SYSJES &SYSLRACF &SYSMVS &SYSNAME &SYSNODE &SYSOPSYS &SYSRACF &SYSPLEX &SYSSECLAB &SYSSMFID &SYSSMS &SYSSRV &SYSSYMDEF &SYSTERMID &SYSTSOE
CLIST-related	&SYSSCAN &SYSENV &SYSICMD &SYSPCMD &SYSSCMD &SYSNEST	Yes No No No No No	Yes No No No No No	&SYSSCAN &SYSENV &SYSICMD &SYSPCMD &SYSSCMD &SYSNEST
CLIST-related ¹	&SYSPROMPT &SYSSYMLIST &SYSCONLIST &SYSLIST &SYSASIS &SYSMSG &SYSFLUSH	Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes	Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes	&SYSPROMPT &SYSSYMLIST &SYSCONLIST &SYSLIST &SYSASIS &SYSMSG &SYSFLUSH
Input-related	&SYSDLM &SYSDVAL	No Yes	Yes Yes	&SYSDLM &SYSDVAL
Output-related	&SYSOUTTRAP &SYSOUTLINE	Yes Yes	Yes Yes	&SYSOUTTRAP &SYSOUTLINE
Return codes	&LASTCC &MAXCC	Yes Yes	Yes Yes	&LASTCC &MAXCC
Return codes	&SYSABNCD &SYSABNRC &SYSCMDRC	Yes Yes Yes	Yes Yes Yes	Getting results of the TSOEXEC command

Table 2. Modifiable control variables (alphabetically)
Modifiable variable	Contents
&LASTCC	Contains the return code from the last operation (TSO/E command, subcommand, or CLIST statement).
&MAXCC	Contains the highest return code issued up to this point in the CLIST or the highest passed back from a nested CLIST.
&SYSABNCD	Contains the ABEND code returned by the command most recently invoked by the TSOEXEC command.
&SYSABNRC	Contains the ABEND reason code returned by the command most recently invoked by the TSOEXEC command.
&SYSASIS	ON specifies CONTROL NOCAPS/ASIS. OFF specifies CONTROL CAPS.
&SYSCMDRC	Contains the command return code returned by the command most recently invoked by the TSOEXEC command.
&SYSCONLIST	ON specifies CONTROL CONLIST. OFF specifies CONTROL NOCONLIST.
&SYSDVAL	(1) Contains the input line supplied by the user when the user returned control to the CLIST after a TERMIN or TERMING statement. (2) Contains the input line supplied by the user after a READ statement without operands. (3) Contains the value after the execution of a SET SYSDVAL=.
&SYSFLUSH	ON specifies CONTROL FLUSH. OFF specifies CONTROL NOFLUSH.
&SYSLIST	ON specifies CONTROL LIST. OFF specifies CONTROL NOLIST.
&SYSMSG	ON specifies CONTROL MSG. OFF specifies CONTROL NOMSG.
&SYSOUTLINE	Contains the number of lines of command output produced by a TSO/E command; points to the CLIST variables containing the output.
&SYSOUTTRAP	Contains the maximum number of lines of TSO/E command output to be saved.
&SYSPROMPT	ON specifies CONTROL PROMPT. OFF specifies CONTROL NOPROMPT.
&SYSSCAN	Contains the maximum number of times a CLIST can rescan a line to evaluate variables. The default is 16 times. The maximum value is +2,147,483,647. The minimum is 0.
&SYSSYMLIST	ON specifies CONTROL SYMLIST. OFF specifies CONTROL NOSYMLIST.

Table 3. Non-modifiable control variables (alphabetically)
Non-modifiable variable	Contents
&SYSAPPCLU	Contains the APPC/MVS logical unit (LU) name.
&SYS4DATE	Contains the current date in the form: month/day/year, where year is presented as four-digit number.
&SYS4JDATE	Contains the Julian date in the form: year.days, where year is presented as four-digit number.
&SYS4SDATE	Contains the date in the form: year/month/day, where year is presented as four-digit number.
&SYSCLONE	Contains the MVS™ system symbol representing its system name.
&SYSCPU	Contains the number seconds of CPU time used during the session in the form: seconds.hundredths_of_seconds
&SYSDATE	Contains the current date in the form: month/day/year
&SYSDFP	Contains the level of DFSMSdfp in the operating system.
&SYSDLM	Contains the input line supplied by the user to return control to the CLIST after a TERMIN or TERMING statement.
&SYSENV	Indicates whether the CLIST is executing in the foreground or background environment.
&SYSHSM	Indicates the level of the Data Facility Storage Management Subsystem Hierarchical Storage Manager (DFSMShsm).
&SYSICMD	Contains the name by which the invoker implicitly invoked this CLIST. (This value is null if the invoker explicitly invoked the CLIST.)
&SYSISPF	Indicates whether ISPF dialog management services are available to the CLIST.
&SYSJDATE	Contains the Julian date in the form: year.days
&SYSJES	Contains the name and the level of the JES installed.
&SYSLRACF	Indicates the level of RACF® available to the CLIST. (See &SYSRACF below)
&SYSLTERM	Contains the number of lines available for applications on your terminal screen.
&SYSMVS	Contains the level of the base control program (BCP) component of z/OS.
&SYSNAME	Contains the system's name your CLIST is running on, as specified on the SYSNAME statement in SYS1.PARMLIB member IEASYSxx.
&SYSNEST	Indicates whether the currently executing CLIST was invoked by another CLIST.
&SYSNODE	Contains the network node name of your installation's JES.
&SYSOPSYS	Contains the z/OS name, version, release, modification level, and FMID.
&SYSPCMD	Contains the name (or abbreviation of the name) of the most recently executed TSO/E command in this CLIST.
&SYSPLEX	Contains the MVS sysplex name as found in the COUPLExx or LOADxx member of SYS1.PARMLIB.
&SYSPREF	Contains the prefix that TSO/E uses to fully qualify data set names.
&SYSPROC	Contains the name of the logon procedure used when the TSO/E user logged on.
&SYSRACF	Indicates whether RACF is installed and available to the CLIST.
&SYSSCMD	Contains the name of the most recently executed subcommand.
&SYSSDATE	Contains the date in the form: year/month/day
&SYSSECLAB	Contains the security label (SECLABEL) name of the TSO/E session.
&SYSSMFID	Identifies the system on which System Management Facilities (SMF) is active.
&SYSSMS	Indicates whether DFSMS/MVS is available to your CLIST.
&SYSSRV	Contains the number of System Resource Manager (SRM) service units used during the session.
&SYSSYMDEF	Contains the symbolic name of the MVS system.
&SYSTERMID	Contains the terminal ID of the terminal where the CLIST has been started.
&SYSSTIME	Contains the time of day in the form: hours:minutes
&SYSTIME	Contains the time of day in the form: hours:minutes:seconds
&SYSTSOE	Indicates the level of TSO/E installed in the form: version release modification_number
&SYSUID	Contains the user ID under which the current session is logged.
&SYSWTERM	Contains the width of the screen.