Re: Failed GO SAVE 21

On 31-Aug-2015 15:29 -0600, John McKee wrote:

I am rusty as an old door hinge. I can't recall how to determine Cum PTF
level. The named PTF MF53911 is NOT installed. Place always ran on the
concept of "if it ain't broke". Potentially, it may be broke. Just my bad
luck to stumble on to it.

Issuing the Display PTF (DSPPTF) CL command with defaults should present the LIC PTFs first, then Enter presents the OS PTFs. On the first panel showing LIC PTFs, there should be some TAxxxxx, TLxxxxx, or TCxxxxx and on the second panel showing OS PTFs something similar; as I recall those reveal the PTF Cumulative [and HIPer] levels [and status such as loaded or applied].

I was just told that we have had two-tape backup in the past. No idea
if those overflowed on SAV or an earlier command.

The origin for the issue may not be directly per the transition to a new tape, but might be exacerbated. The description for the APAR MA39266, and that multiple LIC Tape tasks operate concurrently [much like threads] to process multiple /descriptors/ as well as tape management is in-line with the idea that the transition might increase the chance, but simply could be the effective /layout/ of the parallel descriptor processing that has on two prior occasions resulted in one /stomping/ on the other... and [perhaps] luckily with a failure vs a hang that might have required more onerous recovery than just the device reset.

Despite the fact that IBM has long ago sunsetted v5r4, the decision
maker on applying PTFs is reluctant to proceed. Nutty.

Quite. Hard to conceive how "High-Impact and Pervasive" fixes would be ignored willfully, even if just ignoring the /cumulative/ might be rationalized.