Re: Another PTF Question

On 18-Dec-2014 14:13 -0600, Buddy McClean wrote:

On 12/18/2014 12:12 PM CRPence wrote:

On 18-Dec-2014 10:37 -0600, Buddy McClean wrote:

<<SNIP>>

The documentation says that the PTFs need to be loaded from
*SERVICE. It also says that they can be download from fix central
and loaded via *SAVF. The option on loading a PTF has either
*SERVICE or *SAVF.

The Device (DEV) parameter of the Load PTF (LODPTF) does support
both special values. When *SAVF is specified, that is a request to
redirect to the information provided on the Save File (SAVF)
parameter. When the value *SERVICE is specified, the implication is
that the /Load/ request is to obtain the PTF images whence they
were placed by the "service support system"; as I recall, these
were always individual PTF save files [named Qptf_id in QGPL], but
possibly they could be stored elsewhere.?

When they say *SERVICE in the documentation, do they also mean
*SAVF if you downloaded it manually and is it a matter of just
creating a SAVF and using FTP to get the .BIN moved to the
Iseries.

A *FILE object with the SAVF attribute may have any various
content; e.g. a binary image as the effect of an operation such as
SAV, SAVOBJ, etc. If that content of the Save File just happens to
be a binary PTF image, that would not necessarily be known to the
PTF [PZ] feature of the OS; a PTF image that is _in_ *SERVICE is a
PTF [that is in a Save File] that previously has been /registered/
with the PTF feature of the OS. For example, if I issue the Create
Save File (CRTSAVF) command and then copy the binary records of the
save-file from another Save File with PTF content into my new\empty
save file that I had just created, e.g. copied via FTP PUT, then
that new Save File is unknown to the PTF feature; the new save file
was never /registered/ with the PTF feature of the OS.

Basically does *SAVF imply *SERVICE, just from a different source
( manual vs automatic download ).

Somewhat; only *if* the SAVF was created by a download feature
which implicitly /registered/ the PTF image [that happens to be
stored in the Save File] with the PTF [PZ] feature of the OS. AFaIK
the manual vs automatic is not germane; the /download/, however
performed, must have registered the PTF image [irrespective of
whether that is stored in a Save File or elsewhere; i.e. I am
unsure if a PTF might reside in *SERVICE, but in a form other than
a SAVF image] with the PTF feature of the OS. I recall that the
Send PTF Order (SNDPTFORD) would, for a specific set of PTFs
[optionally with requisites requested to be included] would create
save files into which the PTF images were deposited, and those PTF
Save Files would be implicitly registered with *SERVICE.

When I download the individual PTF, I get a .BIN file, the same
as when I download more than one. There are several PTFs that
need to be applied this way, can they all be combined into one
download and one .bin file to copy to one SAVF?

A PTF save file is, AFaIK still just _one_ PTF. I do not believe
the .BIN format is compatible with the SAVF format; i.e. I do not
expect the binary data records of a .BIN can be copied into a SAVF.
As I recall, the .BIN format is used for image catalogs.

See my reply further below for a correction with regard to "_one_" just above. The other commentary just above is probably an accurate reflection about the different delivery formats.

Or is it risky to apply a PTF if it was not really required, so
individual PTF downloads would be the way to go
<<SNIP>>

I am not sure I understand the question. If a PTF is available for
download and applicable to the installed product\release, then the
PTF should be available for loading and applying without much
concern.?

<<SNIP>>
The only way to use the *SERVICE option of the load ( which they say
I have to use ) is to use the SNDPTFORD system or SYSTEMS DIRECTOR to
take the downloaded .SAVF , register it, then put it up for apply.

I have never used SNDPTFORD and don't know if it even works, but
this might be the day.

Perhaps a link to the specific documentation would help. The alluded as a stated requirement, seems baffling; there would seem to be no valid reason that any instructions should limit the loading of PTFs from *SERVICE.? AFaIK the PTFs should be required to exist in *SERVICE only if\when that system will be used to distribute the PTFs; i.e. the system on which the PTFs are loaded into *SERVICE will be the "service support system" I had mentioned earlier.

Hmmm, looking at the LODPTF docs, I see that also if "the Save System Information (SAVSYSINF) command" needs to include those PTFs; apparently upon Update System Information (UPDSYSINF) processing. Perhaps those actions are part of the "preparing for 6.1 to 7.1 upgrade"; part of the original topic that I had /snipped/ because I had intended only to discuss *SERVICE and *SAVF, which as a topic is irrespective of release or upgrade activity.

FWiW, a PTF that is loaded to a system, can also be optionally loaded into *SERVICE. If a PTF that is being loaded can be copied into *SERVICE in the same action, I just can not make sense of an implication that a PTF may be loaded only using the DEV(*SERVICE). See the Copy PTF Save File (CPYSAVF) parameter of the Load PTF (LODPTF) command for how to specify "whether to copy PTF save files into *SERVICE when PTFs are loaded.":
<http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/ssw_ibm_i_71/cl/lodptf.htm>

P.S. My prior implication that a save file would have only one PTF is clearly incorrect, at least according to the Copy Program Temporary Fix (CPYPTF) documentation; an example invocation even shows copying all PTFs for a product into one save file. My recollection was surely clouded by my having mostly created PTFs, for which each was built as an image in a Save File.