CA Global SubSystem › REXX Language in CA-GSS › Global Variables

Global Variables

Global variables are REXX variables that begin with an ampersand (&). One copy of each global variable is maintained in an ISERVE address space, and all IMODs executing in this address space have access to it. In this way, information can be shared by multiple IMODs and multiple executions of the same IMOD. Global variables are initialized using the GLOBVAL initialization parameter.

Note: An uninitialized global variable has a null value, rather than being equal to the variable name.

Global variables have the following restrictions:

• Your global variable names may not begin with the character sequence &$ (ampersand dollar sign). These characters are used by IMODs supplied by CA.
• The DROP instruction does not release the storage of a global variable. The storage is re‑used if the same global variable is re‑assigned.
• Global variables can contain up to 80 characters of data. If you require more characters, you must pre‑allocate it by using the GLOBVAL initialization parameter or the $GLOBAL() function.

  Note: For information about the GLOBVAL initialization parameter and the $GLOBAL() function, see the Reference Guide.