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MVS/QuickRef Batch Commands

by Robert Norris

[Editor's Note:] Like all good commercial ISPF software, MVS/QuickRef can also be run in batch. And not in the TSO-in-batch mode where PGM=IKJEFT01 (or one of its entry points) is needed. No, you use PGM=QWIKREF1. Consider this informative article by one of the developers of MVS/QuickRef to see if you can use this feature of MVS/QuickRef.

When MVS/QuickRef is executed as a batch job, you can specify that any of the following MVS/QuickRef "ISPF commands" be executed as "batch commands":

Below is an example of the JCL used to execute MVS/QuickRef in batch along
with one or more batch commands:

//JS10 EXEC PGM=QWIKREF1,
// REGION=0K,
// PARM='fast-path-string' <-- optional fast-path string
//STEPLIB DD DSN=quickref.linklib.dsn, <-- MVS/QuickRef linklib
// DISP=SHR
//QWPRINT DD SYSOUT=*, <-- optional printed output file
// DCB=(RECFM=VBA,LRECL=133,BLKSIZE=6000)
//QWREFDD DD DSN=quickref.database.dsn, <-- MVS/QuickRef main data base
// DISP=SHR
//QWREFDDU DD DSN=quickref.user.database.dsn, <-- optional user database
// DISP=SHR
//QWPARMS DD DSN=quickref.override.parmdsn, <-- optional overrides data set
// DISP=SHR
//SYSHELP DD DSN=SYS1.HELP, <-- optional TSO SYSHELP data set
// DISP=SHR
//QWCMDSDD DD * <-- batch commands DD statement
batch command 1
batch command 2
.
.

When a single command is specified, the information returned is the information relating to that specific command. When multiple commands are specified, the information returned is the information relating to the last specified command. The only exception to this rule is the QPRINT command; it causes immediate printing of the "currently available" information.

As an example of using batch commands, suppose you want to retrieve DASD free space information for all online DASD volumes and you want three different listings of the information sorted three different ways as indicated by the following three SORT commands:

· SORT 4 D (sorted by free DASD extent count, descending)
· SORT 4 A (sorted by free DASD extent count, ascending)
· SORT 5 A (sorted by free track count, ascending)

Here is an example of the JCL required to accomplish this:

//JS10 EXEC PGM=QWIKREF1,
// REGION=0K,
// PARM='S=*' <-- fast-path string requesting all DASD volumes
//STEPLIB DD DSN=quickref.linklib.dsn, <-- MVS/QuickRef linklib
// DISP=SHR
//QWPRINT DD SYSOUT=*, <-- printed output file
// DCB=(RECFM=VBA,LRECL=133,BLKSIZE=6000)
//QWREFDD DD DSN=quickref.database.dsn, <-- MVS/QuickRef main data base
// DISP=SHR
//QWCMDSDD DD *
SORT 4 D
QPRINT
SORT 4 A
QPRINT
SORT 5 A	

For more information on batch commands, see the section on "Batch Commands" in Chapter Three of the MVS/QuickRef User's Guide.

Robert Norris is one of the developers of MVS/QuickRef and has over 25 years of programming and system design experience.

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