Using External Action Blocks › Why this Step is Necessary › Compiling, Binding, and Storing an External Action Block

Compiling, Binding, and Storing an External Action Block

There are four steps to follow in creating an external action block:

• Precompile the external action block (depending on the DBMS).
• Compile the external action block.
• Bind the external action block (depending on the DBMS).
• Add the external action block to the External Library.

In addition, there are usually subroutines called by the external action block. These four steps also apply to these subroutines.

The following figure illustrates these steps. Note that all of these activities, with the exception of generating the external action block interface routine, are performed outside of CA Gen. After these steps are completed, you can return to CA Gen and install the load module that uses the external action block.