Just a few thoughts from my vast (well, half-vast) SMP/E experience
Always receive HOLDDATA before doing anything - it may alert you to previously received fixes that are now marked PE (PROGRAM IN ERROR) Holddata can also inform you of previously-PE ptf that are now resolved The REPORT ERRSYSMODS COMMAQND IS YOUR FRIEND Accept the base (fmid) - never ACCEPT a ptf until/unless you are damned sure you will never need to remove it (that could mean NEVER ) After EVERY smp/e modification, backup (dfdss/favr/whatever) your entire smp/e environment - and keep many many generations - you can use these to do an end run around the need to RESTORE How far back do you need to go in a restore - until you are clean or pre-and co-requisite PTFs (could be many iterations) If all else fails, start over with a new CSI Chris Hoelscher Technology Architect, Database Infrastructure Services Technology Solution Services Humana Inc. 123 East Main Street Louisville, KY 40202 Humana.com (502) 476-2538 or 407-7266 -----Original Message----- From: IBM Mainframe Discussion List <IBM-MAIN@LISTSERV.UA.EDU> On Behalf Of Bob Bridges Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2019 11:47 AM To: IBM-MAIN@LISTSERV.UA.EDU Subject: Re: [IBM-MAIN] Newbie SMP/E questions Never heard of CA-MSM, but I'll look into it. (I've been in contact with Bob Boerum at CA, but he's never mentioned it.) We've been using the SMP/E panels, and, as you say, letting them construct the JCL. --- Bob Bridges, cell 336 382-7313 robhbrid...@gmail.com rbrid...@infosecinc.com /* In its state of nature [a dog] has a smell, and habits, which frustrate man's love; he washes it, house-trains it, teaches it not to steal, and is so enabled to love it completely. To the puppy, the whole proceeding would seem, if it were a theologian, to cast grave doubts on the "goodness" of man; but the full-grown and full-trained dog, larger, healthier and longer-lived than the wild dog, and admitted, as it were by Grace, to a whole world of affections, loyalties, interests and comforts entirely beyond its animal destiny, would have no such doubt. -C S Lewis, _The Problem of Pain_ */ -----Original Message----- From: IBM Mainframe Discussion List [mailto:IBM-MAIN@LISTSERV.UA.EDU] On Behalf Of Lizette Koehler Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2019 11:17 The other option is to see if the ISPF environment has the ISPF SMP/E panels available. That also can help reduce the stress of using SMP/E. REC/APP/REST/REJ/ACC are pretty easy to do. Try not to get lost in the details. The panels will wrap JCL around what you are going to do. I save that off to a dataset and then I have a sample of how to do each. > -----Original Message----- > From: > Lizette Koehler > Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2019 9:15 AM > > For supporting any CA Product, you should be using if possible, CA MSM. > This is a gui interface that makes CA SMP/E maintenance easier. It > pulls the fixes, and you just select what you want it does the rest. > Do you have CAMSM available to you? > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Bob Bridges > > Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2019 9:07 AM > > > > I'm the Top-Secret admin for a client whose system programmer > > retired a couple years ago. The client tapped another employee to > > take his place, and she's learning the job with frantic haste but > > insists with some justification that she's not a system programmer > > yet. Me, I came into security through the applications-development > > side so I'm not even close. > > > > Together she and I are trying to learn SMP/E. The immediate purpose > > is so we can apply some TSS-related PTFs, but really, it's become > > clear to me that we need no excuses to make it a priority; SMP/E is > > kind of important. > > > > I have embarked on a serious reading of the SMP/E User's Guide, but > > I still need help. I'll limit myself to a handful of questions to > > start > > with: > > > > Question #1) We started by applying a PTF - call it A for simplicity > > - and its prerequisite B. We did that last August and then the > > project languished for the sake of other priorities. Now we're > > working on it again and we want to restore those two PTFs and do the APPLY > > again. > > Why? Well, partly because it was 'way back in August and we're > > uncertain about exactly how we did it back then. We know more now. > > Partly because we know more now and we want to practice it better. > > I dunno, partly because we just want to. I think maybe we bypassed > > some HOLDs back then too. > > > > Anyway, we attempted the RESTORE, but we got lots and lots of error > > messages saying we need to include other PTFs in the RESTORE. Some > > of these have an indirect connection to A and B; B superceded at > > least three of them, for example, which I can see were applied some > > years ago. Others have no relation to our PTFs that I can discern. > > I haven't yet found the place in the User's Guide that explains > > these relationship and their relevance. Can someone give a helpful > > explanation? > > > > Question #2) So far as we can tell by issuing LIST XREF commands, > > whoever ran this thing in the past never did any ACCEPT, ever, > > except for the original function code. I see at least 11 PTFs that > > were applied (including our two), but the distribution library shows > > no PTFs for any module I've yet LISTed. If true, does that mean > > that to do a RESTORE of our two PTFs we'll have to RESTORE > > everything back to the plain-vanilla base? > > > > Question #3) My partner the not-sysprog has in mind that maybe we > > need to set aside this CSI (which is dedicated to Top Secret) and > > create another one starting with the base software and build up from there. > > I didn't realize this could be done, but she thinks she can do it. > > If it'll work, I like it; we'll know in that case what we have, > > which we do not at present. Anyone have any thoughts on this plan? > > > > Question #4) This is a less-important add-on: In both the online > > documentation and the User's Guide, I read if I'm doing a RESTORE > > and name PTFs A and B, including the GROUP operand causes SMP/E to > > add whatever other PTFs are required for various reasons. It > > doesn't seem to, though; it names them and complains about them, but > > doesn't add them to the list. Have I misunderstood something? I'm > > loathe to believe the documentation is flat wrong. > > > > If you're getting ready to send rushed messages saying "DON'T DO > > ANYTHING UNTIL YOU'VE CHECKED...", relax; we're planning to go slow. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to lists...@listserv.ua.edu with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN The information transmitted is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain CONFIDENTIAL material. If you receive this material/information in error, please contact the sender and delete or destroy the material/information. Humana Inc. and its subsidiaries comply with applicable Federal civil rights laws and do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or religion. 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