COBCH0015S Procedure division too large

When compiling a large program within a JVM COBOL project, the following compiler error message might occur:

COBCH0015S Procedure division too large

JVM COBOL compiles a COBOL program to Java byte code. The byte code is organized into methods, which have a maximum size of 65,535 (216 - 1) bytes. This error occurs because the COBOL compiler is unable to keep methods below the maximum size limit due to the size and complexity of the program. The program must be changed to avoid the methods reaching the size limit.

Reaching the size limit can result from overlapping perform ranges. Compile your program with the ILSHOWPERFORMOVERLAP compiler directive and examine the error messages to see why perform ranges overlap. Resolving the overlap problems can resolve this issue.

Note: If the program is compiled with "PERFORM-TYPE(OSVS) STICKY-PERFORM" directives, then the only solution might be to split the program into smaller sub-programs.