Re: RPG Service Program vs Include Source for Shared Subprocedures and SQL Calls

May I humbly suggest the use of "slot numbers" <may> provide added flexibility when issuing urgent "fixes" for a particular procedure - to support specific *PGM/*SRVPGMs - without the need to rebuild ALL of the *PGM/*SRVPGMs that use that procedure, (especially if the parameter list has changed.) In other words, an updated *SRVPGM may be applied containing both new and old versions of the same procedure to support affected and unaffected *PGM/SRVPGMs.

This "buys time" until the next Release/Version, whereupon all of the code base using this procedure can be updated to use the fixed procedure.

Regards,
Brian.

On 21/03/2026 11:38, Daniel Gross wrote:

Yeah - the "late binding" that ILE implements with service programs is strange.

Dynamically resolved service programs, but "statically" resolved procedures with "slot-numbers" instead of procedure signatures grew me some grey hair.

I will never understand, why this decision was made - maybe someone with deeper insight in the development of ILE can clarify this.

Regards,
Daniel

Am 21.03.2026 um 12:29 schrieb Niels Liisberg <nli@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:

.. but service program signatures quickly becomes a nightmare for version
control.. yes you can … but.. first you had one problem with control the
version .. now for each signature you have yet an issue..

Been there - done that.. never again…

lør. 21. mar. 2026 kl. 18.21 skrev Brian Parkins <goodprophet.bp@xxxxxxxxx>:

Even under these circumstances a *SRVPGM <may> provide a solution.

Multiple versions of the same procedure can co-exist in a single
*SRVPGM, (provided the names are unique). The flexibility of Signatures
and the Export Symbol Table.

100% agree that *SRVPGMs are the better option; /COPY and /INCLUDE
should - in the main - be used only for Prototype inclusion, (with /IF,
/DEFINE, etc. as required).

Brian.

On 21/03/2026 05:22, Niels Liisberg wrote:
The is some exceptions: versioning - where different clients need

different

versions at a certain point in time.

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