Week 4 Types of AS/400 Objects

1. Week 4Types of AS/400 Objects All AS/400 objects are categorized by object type. An object’s type defines the object’s purpose and how it can be used on the system. OS/400 provides more than 40 object types that encompass all applications and system resources, including programs, data, and hardware. Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

2. Week 4 Types of AS/400 Objects (Continued) Object type Object description Attribute (subtype) *CMD Command -- *FILE File PF-SRC (Source File) PF-DTA (Physical file) LF (Logical file) DSPF (Display file) PRTF (Printer file) *JOBD Job description -- *LIB Library -- *OUTQ Output queue -- *PGM Program (executable) Source language (e.g., CBL, CLP, RPG) *QRYDFN Query definition -- *USRPRF User profile -- Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

3. Week 4 Types of AS/400 Objects (Continued) When you create an object and give it a name, the system assigns the object type, as determined by the command you used. Examples: Command CRTUSRPRF (Create User Profile) generates the object type *USRPRF Command CRTLIB (Create Library) generates the object type *LIB Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

4. Week 4 Types of AS/400 Objects (Continued) Some CL commands work with any type of object, but there are object types that have certain CL commands that can be used only for that type. Examples: DSPOBJD (Display Object Description) command works for objects of any type DSPUSRPRF (Display User Profile) command works only for *USRPRF objects Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

5. Week 4 Types of AS/400 Objects (Continued) When you create an object, it “goes into” a (User) library (unless the object created is, in fact, a library). This is not a physical collection of objects but a single-level directory to a group of related objects. Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

6. Week 4 Types of AS/400 Objects (Continued) A library also provides a logical reference to objects by using address pointers. The type and authorization level of each object is associated with the library entry for that object. (Present whiteboard illustration now) Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

7. Week 4Requesting an Object • When you request an object (by selecting a menu option or by entering a command), it usually is not necessary to specify the library name in which the object resides. • You specify an object name (up to10-characters without a library reference), and the system searches the job’s current library list to locate an object matching the specified name and type appropriate for the request. Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

8. Week 4Requesting an Object (Continued) Example: You want to use the CALL command to execute a program. The CALL command’s only required parameter is the name of the program; so if you want to run a program named ACTCUS (to list all active accounts in a customer file), you would enter the command CALL ACTCUS Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

9. Week 4 Requesting an Object (Continued) The only valid object type for a CALL command is *PGM, so if you include the object type in the library entry, the system can determine whether it’s type is appropriate for the requested operation without having to locate and load the actual object. Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

10. Week 4 Qualified/Unqualified Names To run, for example, program ACTCUS in library TSTLIB1, proceed in two ways: • Change the library list, or • Use a qualified name for the object (the most direct because it includes a reference to a library + the 10-character object name), which would take the form – CALL libref/objname Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

11. Week 4Qualified/Unqualified Names (Continued) In the form libref/objname, libref is an explicit library-object name; therefore, to execute program ATCUS in library TSTLIB1, specify the following CALL command: CALL TSTLIB1/ACTCUS Here, the system searches only library TSTLIB1 for program ACTCUS. Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

12. Week 4Qualified/Unqualified Names (Continued) The library specified in an explicit qualified name does not need to be in your library list, but you (the requester) must be authorized not only to use that library but also to use the object within the library. The first thing the system does is determine whether you have proper authority to the library you named. When you use a simple unqualified name, the search for an object is limited to your library list. The system determined that were authorized to use the library-list libraries when your job began. (Attempting to add to your library list a library to which you are not authorized will cause an error.) Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

13. Week 4 Qualified/Unqualified Names (Continued) If you are authorized to the library specified in an explicit qualified name but the system cannot find a matching object name of the appropriate type, or if you are not authorized to use the object, the system does not search beyond the specified library. Instead, the system returns a message such as “Object OBJNAME in library LIBNAME not found” or “Not authorized to object OBJNAME in library LIBNAME.” Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral

14. Week 4 Qualified/Unqualified Names (Continued) It might be necessary to use a qualified name if: • Objects with the same name and type exist in more than one library in your library list • You need an object that is not in any library in your library list To use a qualified name, you need authority adequate for the intended use, both to the object and library. Mastering the AS/400, Third Edition, author Jerry Fottral