Traditionally, CICS® programs have used communication areas (COMMAREAs)
to exchange data. In CICS Transaction Server for z/OS®, Version 3 Release 1, channels and containers provide
an improved method of transferring data between programs, in amounts that
far exceed the 32KB limit that applies to COMMAREAs.
- A container is a named block of data designed for passing
information between programs.
- Containers are grouped together in sets called channels.
A channel is a standard mechanism for exchanging data between CICS programs,
and is analogous to a parameter list. A channel can be used on the LINK, START,
XCTL, and RETURN commands, and with local and remote transactions. There is
no limit to the number of containers that can be added to a channel, and the
size of each container is limited only by the amount of storage available.