Re: huge error messages; 5,000+ pages

Booth Martin wrote:
> 
> On V3R1:
> 
> After working without hitch for  several years, we are suddenly
> getting 5,000+ page error reports from one department.
> 
> The machines involved are PCs, two with Win 3.1 and one with Win95.
> The errors all seem to occur the same way: The PC locks up for no
> apparent reason and requires a hard boot to restart.  The
> AS/400 session just continues on until the next IPL or until the
> session is ended with a WRKACTJOB command.  Inspection of
> the error logs all point to the same kind of error;
> 
> ----------------------
>   Message . . . . :   Permanent    I/O error occurred (C G S D F).
>       Cause . . . . .   :   The RPG program
> TRNA2M in  library INQ2 at statement 126200  detected a permanent
> (not  recoverable) file, session, or   device error.  The   session,
>  device and/or program has been  stopped.
>  ------------------------
> 
> The statement number (126200 in this example) always points to an
> EXFMT or WRITE of a screen format.
> 
> The only thing that we've done recently that affects all of these
> machines the same is that the AS/400 library itself was totally
> redone to be Y2K compliant.  My first feeling was that I really
> messed up on a program, but it's not one program, and in fact some of
> the programs involved are Pro-Gen programs.
> 
> Anyone have any ideas?

Booth,

We had a similar problem that may help shed some light.  In our
situation we had RPG programs that wrote to a display file with an error
indicator.  After the WRITE or EXFMT the program did not check the
indicator.  The program tried to process the display and then since F3
or F12 had not been pressed it looped back to the WRITE or EXFMT which
failed again, and again, and the loop continues.  The looping continues
until it is canceled or the joblog fills up.  We ran into this problem
with a few certain programs and usually happened when a user powered off
their PC while in these programs that had this bug.

If you have this situation you should be able to watch the program stack
for the job and see the looping.

Hope this helps.

-- 
Gordon Searles
Senior Systems Programmer
Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI)
Quality Outdoor Gear and Clothing Since 1938
http://www.rei.com
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