10g (9.0.4)
Part Number B10301-01
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| Oracle® Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS Installation and User's Guide 10g (9.0.4) Part Number B10301-01 |
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This chapter introduces the Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS. The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS is a plug-in component of Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect, enabling Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect to access programs running under CICS on IBM OS/390 or z/OS series operating systems.
This chapter contains the following sections:
When business applications need to communicate with each other, the output from one application is not always understandable by the other application. Application adapters enable different applications to interoperate.
Adapters for application integration address a mismatch between the integrating interface of a source or target application and the integration infrastructure, such as Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect. Simple adapters only exchange data using an API, but complex adapters can also do transformations, as well as deal with exception conditions. Therefore, adapters are a combination of modeling tools and runtime software that act as "glue" to link applications, considered as sources or targets (or both), to the integration infrastructure that transports, translates, transforms, and routes data between systems. On the one hand, an adapter deals with a group of touchpoints (one or more entry/exit points, collectively an interface) for a source or target; on the other hand, an adapter links to the integration infrastructure. This means that adapters generally have two interfaces - one that is native to the source or target application and the other that is native to the integrating infrastructure. Adapters perform a variety of key tasks, including recognizing events, collecting and transforming data, and exchanging data with the integration infrastructure. They also handle exception conditions, and can often dynamically (or with minor reconfiguration changes) accommodate new revisions of back-end applications.
Each task performed by the adapter is defined as an interaction. Interactions that are initiated by the source or target application are referred to as inbound interactions. Interactions that are initiated by the integrating infrastructure are referred to as outbound interactions.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS is a plug-in component of Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS models programs running under Customer Information Control System (CICS). The adapter is native to the OS/390, providing direct access that results in improved performance.
CICS is a family of application servers that provides industrial-strength, online transaction management and connectivity for mission-critical applications on IBM mainframe systems.
The application components in CICS are executable programs called transactions. These programs are typically written in COBOL but may possibly be written in other languages, such as PL/I, C and even Java. Each Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS outbound interaction is mapped to a specific program.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS uses COMMAREA transactions to communicate with clients, using a communication buffer described in the transaction program (such as a COBOL copybook). There is an input structure and an output structure (each with a limit of 32Kb). In many cases, transactions are written so that the input structure prefixes the output structure.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS uses EXCI (EXternal Call Interface) to invoke CICS transactions from tasks running within the OS/390 system. EXCI is efficient since it uses cross-memory mechanisms.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS captures and maintains a metadata schema for CICS by importing COBOL copybooks and transforming them into mapping definitions for Oracle Connect for CICS on the OS/390 machine and by associating the data structures with specific physical files.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS uses an enterprise application integration (EAI) model. Users of a requesting application can model the interactions that they want implemented, specifying what each interaction does, when it occurs and the inputs and outputs expected for each interaction. Moreover, the Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS maps data structures, facilitating access to CICS transactions from within Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS includes the following components:
The components of the Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS interact with each other, as shown in Figure 1-1.
The CICS adapter enables communication with Oracle Connect for CICS on the OS/390 platform.
Oracle Connect for CICS is comprised of two main components:
"Troubleshooting the Daemon" and Appendix C, "Daemon Configuration Settings" for details about the daemon
See Also:
Oracle Studio is used to model the adapter interactions and manage the back-end component.
CICS does not have a built-in model for inbound transactions. Applications that run under CICS can interact with Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect by sending it a native event. The native event is sent to a queue running on the mainframe and the adapter subscribes to that queue for inbound event handling. Typically, each application associated with Oracle Connect for CICS will subscribe to a dedicated queue.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS provides the following ways for an CICS transaction to send an inbound interaction:
Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS is fully integrated with Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect, both during the modeling and runtime phases.
The Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS is integrated with Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect as follows:
At runtime, the interactions specified in the Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect application are executed.
For outbound interactions, the interactions for the Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS are handled by Oracle Connect for CICS on the OS/390 machine. The CICS transaction specified in the interaction is executed and any output are returned to Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect.
For inbound interactions, the interactions are initiated on the OS/390 machine and sent to Oracle Application Server ProcessConnect.
Oracle Studio is used to model and manage the Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS.
Oracle Studio uses perspectives enabling you to focus specific information necessary to model the Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS.
The following perspectives are available:
Use the Configuration perspective to define access to CICS programs on an IBM OS/390 machine.
Use the Metadata perspective to model the Oracle Application Server Integration Adapter for CICS interactions and the expected inputs and output.
Use the Metadata Import perspective to import information in COBOL programs and copybooks for use by Oracle Connect for CICS to create outbound interactions.
Use the Runtime Manager perspective to troubleshoot Oracle Connect for CICS by monitoring daemon activity on the OS/390 machine.
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