Progress0 of 0 lessons

CICS CONVERSE (MRO) - Multiregion Operation Communication

CICS CONVERSE (MRO) provides multiregion operation communication capabilities for programs and transactions. It enables programs to conduct conversations across CICS regions, manage MRO communication, and handle multiregion conversations in CICS environments.

What is CICS CONVERSE (MRO)?

CICS CONVERSE (MRO) is a command that allows programs to conduct conversations across multiple CICS regions. It provides multiregion operation communication capabilities, MRO conversation management, and cross-region communication for CICS applications.

Command Syntax

cobol
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
EXEC CICS CONVERSE
    CONVID(conversation-id)
    [FROM(data-area)]
    [FROMLENGTH(data-length)]
    [INTO(data-area)]
    [SET(pointer-variable)]
    [LENGTH(data-length)]
    [RESP(response-code)]
END-EXEC

Parameters

Required Parameters

  • CONVID(conversation-id) - MRO conversation identifier

Optional Parameters

  • FROM(data-area) - Data to send across regions
  • FROMLENGTH(data-length) - Length of data to send
  • INTO(data-area) - Data area to receive
  • SET(pointer-variable) - Pointer to data
  • LENGTH(data-length) - Length of data received
  • RESP(response-code) - Response code variable

MRO Communication Types

Inter-Region Communication

Communication between CICS regions

  • • REGION-TO-REGION - Direct region communication
  • • CROSS-REGION - Cross-region data exchange
  • • INTER-REGION - Inter-region messaging
  • • MULTI-REGION - Multi-region coordination

Transaction Routing

Transaction routing across regions

  • • TRANSACTION-ROUTING - Route transactions
  • • LOAD-BALANCING - Balance transaction load
  • • FAILOVER - Failover between regions
  • • HIGH-AVAILABILITY - High availability routing

Data Synchronization

Data synchronization across regions

  • • DATA-SYNC - Synchronize data
  • • STATE-SYNC - Synchronize state
  • • CONFIG-SYNC - Synchronize configuration
  • • METADATA-SYNC - Synchronize metadata

Resource Sharing

Resource sharing across regions

  • • RESOURCE-SHARING - Share resources
  • • POOL-SHARING - Share resource pools
  • • CACHE-SHARING - Share caches
  • • CONNECTION-SHARING - Share connections

Programming Examples

Basic MRO Conversation

cobol
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
       IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
       PROGRAM-ID. CONVERSEMRO01.
       DATA DIVISION.
       WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
       01  CONVERSATION-ID PIC X(8) VALUE 'MROCONV1'.
       01  SEND-DATA PIC X(80) VALUE 'Hello from region A'.
       01  SEND-LENGTH PIC S9(4) COMP VALUE 20.
       01  RECEIVE-DATA PIC X(80).
       01  RECEIVE-LENGTH PIC S9(4) COMP.
       01  RESPONSE-CODE PIC S9(8) COMP.
       
       PROCEDURE DIVISION.
           DISPLAY 'Starting MRO conversation'
           
           EXEC CICS CONVERSE
               CONVID(CONVERSATION-ID)
               FROM(SEND-DATA)
               FROMLENGTH(SEND-LENGTH)
               INTO(RECEIVE-DATA)
               LENGTH(RECEIVE-LENGTH)
               RESP(RESPONSE-CODE)
           END-EXEC
           
           IF RESPONSE-CODE = DFHRESP(NORMAL)
               DISPLAY 'MRO conversation successful'
               DISPLAY 'Received: ' RECEIVE-DATA(1:RECEIVE-LENGTH)
           ELSE
               DISPLAY 'MRO conversation failed'
           END-IF
           
           EXEC CICS RETURN END-EXEC.

Advanced MRO Communication

cobol
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
       IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
       PROGRAM-ID. CONVERSEMRO02.
       DATA DIVISION.
       WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
       01  CONVERSATION-ID PIC X(8).
       01  SEND-DATA PIC X(80).
       01  SEND-LENGTH PIC S9(4) COMP.
       01  RECEIVE-DATA PIC X(80).
       01  RECEIVE-LENGTH PIC S9(4) COMP.
       01  RESPONSE-CODE PIC S9(8) COMP.
       01  CONVERSATION-COUNT PIC S9(2) COMP VALUE 0.
       01  MAX-CONVERSATIONS PIC S9(2) COMP VALUE 3.
       01  REGION-LIST.
           05  REGION-ITEM OCCURS 3 TIMES.
               10  REGION-ID PIC X(8).
               10  REGION-MESSAGE PIC X(80).
               10  REGION-LENGTH PIC S9(4) COMP.
       
       PROCEDURE DIVISION.
           PERFORM INITIALIZE-REGIONS
           PERFORM CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATIONS
           
           EXEC CICS RETURN END-EXEC.
       
       INITIALIZE-REGIONS.
           MOVE 'REGION01' TO REGION-ID(1)
           MOVE 'Request data from region 1' TO REGION-MESSAGE(1)
           MOVE 26 TO REGION-LENGTH(1)
           
           MOVE 'REGION02' TO REGION-ID(2)
           MOVE 'Request data from region 2' TO REGION-MESSAGE(2)
           MOVE 26 TO REGION-LENGTH(2)
           
           MOVE 'REGION03' TO REGION-ID(3)
           MOVE 'Request data from region 3' TO REGION-MESSAGE(3)
           MOVE 26 TO REGION-LENGTH(3).
       
       CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATIONS.
           PERFORM VARYING CONVERSATION-COUNT FROM 1 BY 1
               UNTIL CONVERSATION-COUNT > MAX-CONVERSATIONS
               
               MOVE REGION-ID(CONVERSATION-COUNT) TO CONVERSATION-ID
               MOVE REGION-MESSAGE(CONVERSATION-COUNT) TO SEND-DATA
               MOVE REGION-LENGTH(CONVERSATION-COUNT) TO SEND-LENGTH
               
               PERFORM CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATION
               
               IF RESPONSE-CODE = DFHRESP(NORMAL)
                   DISPLAY 'MRO conversation ' CONVERSATION-COUNT ' successful'
                   DISPLAY 'Response: ' RECEIVE-DATA(1:RECEIVE-LENGTH)
               ELSE
                   DISPLAY 'MRO conversation ' CONVERSATION-COUNT ' failed'
               END-IF
           END-PERFORM.
       
       CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATION.
           EXEC CICS CONVERSE
               CONVID(CONVERSATION-ID)
               FROM(SEND-DATA)
               FROMLENGTH(SEND-LENGTH)
               INTO(RECEIVE-DATA)
               LENGTH(RECEIVE-LENGTH)
               RESP(RESPONSE-CODE)
           END-EXEC.

Error Handling with MRO Conversations

cobol
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
       IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
       PROGRAM-ID. CONVERSEMRO03.
       DATA DIVISION.
       WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
       01  CONVERSATION-ID PIC X(8) VALUE 'MROCONV1'.
       01  SEND-DATA PIC X(80) VALUE 'Test MRO message'.
       01  SEND-LENGTH PIC S9(4) COMP VALUE 17.
       01  RECEIVE-DATA PIC X(80).
       01  RECEIVE-LENGTH PIC S9(4) COMP.
       01  RESPONSE-CODE PIC S9(8) COMP.
       01  RETRY-COUNT PIC S9(2) COMP VALUE 0.
       01  MAX-RETRIES PIC S9(2) COMP VALUE 3.
       01  MRO-CONVERSATION-SUCCESSFUL PIC X(1) VALUE 'N'.
       
       PROCEDURE DIVISION.
           PERFORM CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATION-WITH-RETRY
           
           EXEC CICS RETURN END-EXEC.
       
       CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATION-WITH-RETRY.
           PERFORM CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATION
           
           IF RESPONSE-CODE NOT = DFHRESP(NORMAL)
               AND RETRY-COUNT < MAX-RETRIES
               ADD 1 TO RETRY-COUNT
               DISPLAY 'Retry ' RETRY-COUNT ' MRO conversation'
               PERFORM CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATION-WITH-RETRY
           END-IF.
       
       CONDUCT-MRO-CONVERSATION.
           EXEC CICS CONVERSE
               CONVID(CONVERSATION-ID)
               FROM(SEND-DATA)
               FROMLENGTH(SEND-LENGTH)
               INTO(RECEIVE-DATA)
               LENGTH(RECEIVE-LENGTH)
               RESP(RESPONSE-CODE)
           END-EXEC
           
           EVALUATE RESPONSE-CODE
               WHEN DFHRESP(NORMAL)
                   MOVE 'Y' TO MRO-CONVERSATION-SUCCESSFUL
                   DISPLAY 'MRO conversation successful'
               WHEN DFHRESP(NOTAUTH)
                   DISPLAY 'Not authorized for MRO conversation'
               WHEN DFHRESP(INVREQ)
                   DISPLAY 'Invalid MRO conversation request'
               WHEN DFHRESP(CONVIDERR)
                   DISPLAY 'Invalid MRO conversation ID'
               WHEN DFHRESP(CONVFAILED)
                   DISPLAY 'MRO conversation failed'
               WHEN DFHRESP(CONVTIMEOUT)
                   DISPLAY 'MRO conversation timeout'
               WHEN DFHRESP(MROERR)
                   DISPLAY 'MRO communication error'
               WHEN DFHRESP(REGIONERR)
                   DISPLAY 'Region communication error'
               WHEN OTHER
                   DISPLAY 'Unexpected MRO conversation error'
           END-EVALUATE.

MRO Management

Region Coordination

  • • Region Discovery - Discover available regions
  • • Region Selection - Select target regions
  • • Region Monitoring - Monitor region status
  • • Region Management - Manage region operations

Communication Control

  • • Communication Initiation - Start MRO communication
  • • Communication Management - Manage MRO communication
  • • Communication Termination - End MRO communication
  • • Communication Monitoring - Monitor MRO communication

Error Recovery

  • • Error Detection - Detect MRO errors
  • • Error Recovery - Recover from MRO errors
  • • Retry Mechanisms - Implement retry logic
  • • Fallback Procedures - Use fallback procedures

Performance Optimization

  • • Load Balancing - Balance MRO load
  • • Connection Pooling - Use connection pooling
  • • Timeout Management - Manage MRO timeouts
  • • Resource Management - Manage MRO resources

Error Handling

Common Response Codes

  • DFHRESP(NORMAL) - MRO conversation successful
  • DFHRESP(NOTAUTH) - Not authorized for MRO conversation
  • DFHRESP(INVREQ) - Invalid MRO conversation request
  • DFHRESP(CONVIDERR) - Invalid MRO conversation ID
  • DFHRESP(CONVFAILED) - MRO conversation failed
  • DFHRESP(CONVTIMEOUT) - MRO conversation timeout
  • DFHRESP(MROERR) - MRO communication error
  • DFHRESP(REGIONERR) - Region communication error

Performance Considerations

MRO Efficiency

  • • Optimize MRO operations - Use efficient MRO handling
  • • Minimize MRO overhead - Reduce MRO processing overhead
  • • Use MRO pooling - Implement MRO pooling
  • • Monitor MRO frequency - Track MRO conversation patterns

System Impact

  • • Monitor system impact - Track how MRO affects the system
  • • Optimize MRO handling - Ensure efficient MRO processing
  • • Manage MRO usage - Monitor MRO consumption
  • • Track performance metrics - Monitor MRO handling performance

Best Practices

MRO Communication Best Practices

  • • Use appropriate MRO communication patterns
  • • Implement proper error handling for MRO operations
  • • Validate MRO conversation data before processing
  • • Use appropriate MRO management techniques
  • • Monitor MRO activities and performance
  • • Maintain MRO audit trails
  • • Handle MRO errors gracefully

Explain It Like I'm 5 Years Old

Think of CICS CONVERSE (MRO) like talking to friends in different rooms:

  • • Different Rooms: "Your friends are in different rooms" - Different CICS regions
  • • Call Them: "Call your friends in other rooms" - Start MRO conversation
  • • Talk Together: "Talk to all your friends" - Communicate across regions
  • • Share Things: "Share things with all friends" - Share data across regions
  • • Work Together: "Work together on projects" - Coordinate across regions

Exercises

Exercise 1: Basic MRO Conversation

Create a program that conducts a simple MRO conversation.

Exercise 2: Advanced MRO Communication

Write a program that manages multiple MRO conversation operations.

Exercise 3: Error Handling

Implement comprehensive error handling for MRO conversation failures.

Related Concepts

Multiregion Operation

Operating across multiple regions

MRO Communication

MRO communication protocols

Region Management

Managing CICS regions

Cross-Region Communication

Communicating across regions

Error Handling

Managing MRO errors