Defining host details externally

As an alternative to defining connection details manually, you can enter this data from a file.

What to do next

You can define information about the z/OS® host, DB2® database, and schema for the interdependency data in the Connection preferences page. These details are saved in the file system, so that, when the CICS® IA plug-in is stopped and restarted, the details do not have to be reentered each time.

Instead of manually defining the details on the Connection preferences page, you can enter the connection information to the CICS IA plug-in from a file. Use of the file might be useful, for example, if you want to create a version of the CICS IA plug-in that you can distribute to users with all the details about your host connectivity already entered, or if you might want to easily switch between different databases.

To define the connection details externally you must create an .ini file that contains information about host and DB2 connectivity parameters, and change the configuration to read this file when the CICS IA plug-in is started.

  1. Create the .ini file in the /eclipse directory of the CICS IA plug-in. The screen capture below shows the file system_abc.ini that has been created in the folder C:\Interdependency Analyzer\eclipse. Note that the folder name Interdependency_Analyzer might be different in your particular installation of the CICS IA plug-in, and the workspace directory will be present only if the CICS IA plug-in has been started at least once. The choice of the file name system_abc.ini is an example; you can use any name you want, provided that it matches the entry in the config.ini file described below.
    Screen shot of the Eclipse directory in the CICS IA plug-in
  2. Add a line to the file /configuration/config.ini that points to the filename.ini file with a key of eclipse.pluginCustomization and a value of the file name, for example: eclipse.pluginCustomization=filename.ini
  3. Add lines to the filename.ini file to define the defaults that the CICS IA plug-in will use. The following table contains a list of all of the valid .ini file entries, together with a description of each:
.ini file entries Description
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/SERVER_NAME = MYABCSERVER.MYCORP.COM IP address of the z/OS host system where the DB2 database with the interdependency files used by the Collector resides.
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/DATABASE_NAME = DSN7102E Name of DB2 database containing the dependency files.
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/USER_ID = FRED User ID that has RACF® authory to access the DB2 database.
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/PASSWORD = FOO123BAR The password to be used. Before recording passwords inside the .ini file, ensure there is no security risk. If passwords are not recorded in the .ini file, the CICS IA plug-in will prompt for the password each time it is started.
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/SAVE_PASSWORD = true If set to true, the Save Password check box on the Connection Preferences page is set.
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/PORT_NUMBER=448 The port number that DB2 is listening on for connections from the CICS IA plug-in.
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/SCHEMA_NAME=FOOBAR The name of the DB2 schema containing the interdependency files used by the Collector.
com.ibm.cics.ia.runtime/WSAA_SERVER_NAME = wsaa.mycorp.com If WebSphere® Studio Asset Analyzer is installed, the location of the server address.