| Using Workgrouping | Accessing Mainframe Files | |
Use the MFA (Mainframe Access) Drag & Drop feature to transfer files between your PC and a mainframe.
You need to have read the chapter Start Here for the Tutorials and worked through the first session, Using Mainframe Express, before you do this session.
MFA Drag & Drop requires a separate Micro Focus Mainframe Access Server product running on the mainframe. Before running this session, check that your site is intending to use this product rather than some other method of uploading and downloading files. More information is supplied with the Mainframe Access product.
MFA Drag & Drop shows you two tree views alongside one another. One shows files and their locations on your PC, and the other shows data sets and their members on the mainframe. To copy a file from one machine to the other, you simply click the file's name in the one tree view and drag it across into the other tree view.
In this session you use MFA Drag & Drop to view files on your PC and on the mainframe, and to transfer files between the two. In this session you transfer a COBOL source file and a data file to the mainframe. You also transfer the same COBOL source file back to your PC.
In MFA Drag & Drop filenames generally appear in upper case on both the mainframe and your PC. In this chapter filenames on the PC are shown in lower case and filenames on the mainframe are shown in upper case. Filenames are not case-sensitive.
You may be asked for the following information when you run the sample session. If in doubt, ask your system administrator.
Also check with your system administrator that the Communications module that Mainframe Express uses to communicate with the mainframe is installed, and that you have whatever access permissions you may need to allocate a PDS on your mainframe.
If you have closed Mainframe Express, open it as before. For this session, it does not matter whether any project is open. The session uses files in the folder \mfuser\projects\gsdemo\idedemo, which you used in the chapter Using Mainframe Express.
In this session you:
To contact the mainframe:
The MFA Drag & Drop window appears, and in front of it the Mainframe Access configuration dialog box. If you move the dialog box to one side, you'll see that the left hand pane of the window shows a list of the drives on your PC. The right-hand side is blank at the moment; it will show the mainframe data sets when the mainframe is contacted.
Next, you need to enter in the Catalog Search Criteria field the criteria that you would use with TSO/ISPF 3.4 to enable you to see your own data sets. As with TSO/ISPF 3.4, you can use asterisks as wild cards. In the following steps, we use my-datasets to refer to the part of the data set names that is common to all your data sets.
So, for example, if all your data sets begin with MFI01.MTS you enter: MFI01.MTS*
The dialog box closes and Mainframe Access establishes communication with the mainframe. Whenever you access the mainframe, there may be a short delay. Mainframe Access displays the message "Accessing mainframe, wait...".
When communication is established, the right-hand pane lists data sets on the mainframe. Because you gave your usual search criteria, you should see your own data sets.
In future, when you start Mainframe Access, you will find your user ID already set here, but will have to re-enter your password. The choice of TCP/IP or APPC, and the name of the Standard Mainframe Access Server, will remain set.
You can change the catalog search criteria as necessary. Generally, you should specify the same criteria as you would when using TSO/ISPF 3.4.
You can use Mainframe Access to look at your files on your PC:
This expands the tree view to show all folders on that drive.
You can now see all the files and folders within the folder \mfuser\projects\gsdemo\idedemo\source. You can view a file by double-clicking it.
A window appears displaying the source of vsamdemo.cbl. You can drag its borders to make it wider.
You can use Mainframe Access to create a data set on the mainframe. To create a partitioned data set:
A dialog box appears for you to define the data set you want to create.
| Dataset name | my-datasets.DEMO.COBOL |
|---|---|
| Quantity | 1 |
| Directory blocks | 1 |
| Logical record length | 80 |
| Block size | 6160 |
There is a short delay and then the right-hand pane is updated to show the new data set.
To create a sequential data set:
A dialog box appears for you to define the data set you want to create.
| Dataset name | my-datasets.VSAMDEMO.INQUIRY.DATA |
|---|---|
| Quantity | 1 |
| Type | VB |
| Logical record length | 534 |
| Block size |
There is a short delay and then the right-hand pane is updated to show the new data set.
To upload a file means to copy it from your PC to the mainframe. You use MFA Drag & Drop to do this.
To upload vsamdemo.cbl:
The mouse pointer changes to a document icon as you drag, and the data set name is highlighted when you have positioned the mouse pointer on it.
Messages appear showing that vsamdemo.cbl is being copied to the mainframe
To upload salesinq.dat:
The mouse pointer changes to a document icon as you drag, and the data set name is highlighted when you have positioned the mouse pointer on it.
Messages appear showing that salesinq.dat is being copied to the mainframe.
If you have a JCL file on your PC that you want to execute on the mainframe, drag and drop it to <JES>My jobs.
You can look at data sets on the mainframe in the same way as you did the files on your PC:
The tree view expands, and you can see VSAMDEMO is a member of the data set. The extension .cbl has been dropped as extensions are not used on the mainframe.
A window appears displaying the source of vsamdemo.cbl. You can drag its borders to make it wider.
To download a file means to copy it from the mainframe to your PC. You use MFA Drag & Drop to do this.
We will start by renaming the vsamdemo.cbl on the PC, to save it.
We are now ready to download vsamdemo from the mainframe. First we need to arrange to add .cbl, the usual extension for a COBOL source file on the PC in Mainframe Express.
A dialog box appears for you to specify the session options.
A dialog box appears for you to specify the extension to be added.
Messages appear showing that VSAMDEMO is being copied to your PC. When the messages disappear, the transfer is complete, and if you scroll down the left-hand pane you will see vsamdemo.cbl is again in the list of files in the folder \mfuser\projects\gsdemo\idedemo\source.
You can make a copy of a file in the same folder, provided you give the copies different names (these files are used in the next section):
Nothing visible happens, but a reference to the file is stored by Drag & Drop internally ready to copy the file.
The file's name changes in the left-hand pane.
vsamdemo.bak is added as a file within the folder source.
You can use asterisks as wildcards to display selected files in a folder. You can then transfer them together. For example, you could transfer a set of copy files from a PC folder to a mainframe copyfile PDS.
To select and transfer all files in source with the extension .bak:
Now, of the files in that folder, only the two .bak files are displayed.
To avoid overwriting the vsamdemo that you transferred to my-datasets.demo.cobol earlier, we'll rename vsamdemo.bak.
Close MFA Drag&Drop by either clicking Exit on its File
menu or clicking its 
button.
The mainframe data set my-datasets.DEMO.COBOL and its member vsamdemo, and the mainframe data set my-datasets.VSAMDEMO.INQUIRY.DATA, are used in a subsequent session, Accessing Mainframe Files.
If you want to take a break before going on to the next session, you can close Mainframe Express.
Return to the Tutorials Map in the chapter Start Here for the Tutorials and choose which session to go on to next, depending on your interests.
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| Using Workgrouping | Accessing Mainframe Files | |