CICS® Web support in CICS Transaction Server for z/OS®, Version 3 Release 1 has many enhancements
to provide automatic and administrator control of functions that were previously
handled by user-replaceable programs. In particular, you are recommended to
investigate migration possibilities for the following elements of your CICS Web support architecture:
- You should usually be able to replace the request processing functions
of your analyzer program with URIMAP resource definitions, which can be changed
and controlled using CICS system programming commands. URIMAP definitions can
be used to match the URLs of requests and map them to application programs,
and specify a converter program, alias transaction and user ID. If your analyzer
program provides additional functions, you can continue to use it instead
of a URIMAP definition, or you can combine it with a URIMAP definition. While
migrating to the use of URIMAPs:
- You can introduce URIMAP resource definitions progressively for a small
number of requests at a time. Depending on the type of processing carried
out by your analyzer program, and the type of application that handles the
request, you can choose whether or not to continue using the analyzer program
in the processing path for each request.
- You might prefer to select and publish new URLs for requests handled by
URIMAP resource definitions, rather than retaining your existing URLs. When
you are ready to discontinue the use of the old processing path for a request,
you can set up a URIMAP definition to permanently redirect requests from the
old URL to the new URL.
- Ensure that your analyzer program still contains basic handling procedures
for unrecognized requests, even if it is no longer involved in the processing
path for any requests. The analyzer program is still required on the TCPIPSERVICE
definition, and receives requests in situations such as the end user mis-typing
a URL.
- For application programs that do not use the EXEC CICS WEB API commands
but produce an HTTP response in a COMMAREA, CICS Web support is not able to assist with
assembling the message structure correctly, or to carry out its full range
of checks on the response. To take advantage of all the available CICS Web support
facilities, it is recommended that you plan to convert these applications
to Web-aware application programs that use the WEB API commands.
- URIMAP resource definitions can be used to deliver the contents of a CICS document or HFS file as a static response, or to deliver a redirection
response, without involving a user-written application program. You could
consider using this mechanism, instead of an application program, for simple
responses that do not involve dynamic processing.
- Check that code page conversion is operating in the most efficient way.
With minor changes to your application, you can take advantage of new CICS Web support facilities to:
- Avoid setting up and using a code page conversion table (DFHCNV) for CICS Web support.
- Allow CICS to identify and use the Web client's character set for code page
conversion, rather than specifying this yourself.
- Use the local system default (LOCALCCSID system initialization parameter)
to identify the application program's code page, rather than specifying this
yourself.
- Convert to and from the UTF-8 and UTF-16 character sets.
In some cases, making these changes could enable you to discontinue
the use of an analyzer program.
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