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The CICS online test facility can be used to test user-written CICS programs in an online environment. CICS programmers can sign on to a version of CICS, separate from production, allowing them to test any number of transactions and programs. All CICS facilities available in production CICS are present in the test version. Additional transactions such as CEDF, CEBR, CECS (IBM) and ITST, NWIT, TEST, FILE, LIST, CORE (INTERTEST) are available to aid in debugging.

• What To Do If Your Program Has Been Recompiled
• What To Do If Your Program ABENDs

We maintain several distinct CICS test regions. For the most part, you do not need to be concerned about which one you should use. 

What To Do If Your Program Has Been Recompiled

If your program does not perform as desired, it may be necessary to recompile the program and/or one of its maps.

CICS will not automatically use the newest version of a program/map if it has been recompiled since CICS last used it.

CICS must be told (the technique is called "newcopy") to search the test library for the latest copy of a program/map. The technique is fully described in the INTERTEST User Guide

A short description of the procedure follows.

• INTERTEST can be told to "newcopy" the program/mapset by entering
• TEST,NEW,PROG=nnnnnnnn
  • where nnnnnnnn is the name of those programs or mapset being newcopied
• If you don't wish INTERTEST to monitor your testing, enter TEST,OFF,PROG=nnnnnnnn (which will remove your program from INTERTEST's control).

What To Do If Your Program ABENDs

SYMDUMP is the first line of defense.

• Type SYMD and hit Enter.
• Type 1 and hit Enter twice.
• Select your particular ABEND by putting an "s" in the appropriate column on the left of the screen, and hit Enter.
• What went wrong should be clear from the data SYMDUMP collected.

If the cause of your ABEND is not obvious, you may use INTERTEST to pinpoint the problem.

• First INTERTEST must be told to "monitor" your program: type:
• TEST,ON,PROG=nnnnnnnn
  • where nnnnnnnn is the name of the program you believe to be getting the ABEND.
• You may then enter the sequence of transactions, and data that you expect to get an ABEND.
• INTERTEST will display a screen describing the ABEND encountered, and you can review the current content of working storage, the commarea and the DB2 control blocks.