6. DATA SOURCES › 6.3 CA MICS SMF Requirements and Considerations › 6.3.4 SYSOUT Considerations

6.3.4 SYSOUT Considerations

Batch jobs, TSO sessions, started tasks, and APPC/MVS
Transaction Programs (TPs) are all capable of producing
SYSOUT data sets.  The following discussions and examples
refer simply to "jobs," but unless specifically stated, apply
equally to any of the above types of z/OS address spaces.

One of the most difficult tasks for an SMF post processor
such as the CA MICS Batch and Operations Analyzer is
accounting for SYSOUT.  Each output data set printed from a
JES2 or JES3 spool results in writing an SMF type 6
output writer record.  CA MICS, in turn, creates a BATSPL
observation for each SMF type 6 record it encounters.  These
SMF type 6 records contain information about printing
the data set such as the output device name, lines
printed, pages printed, and other related items.  This
information is easily transferred to the individual BATSPL
observations.

Accountability, however, means that the printer resources
consumed can be attributed to the user responsible for
creating the SYSOUT.  In addition, if the creating job or
session executed in a z/OS environment, the SYSOUT should be
associated with that execution activity.  The basic problem
with SYSOUT accountability exists because SMF type 6 output
writer records do not contain the information that most sites
use to identify the person or group responsible for the
creation of the output.  For example, the account fields
specified in the job card are only found in the SMF type 30
execution records.

Each CA MICS unit merges its SMF input files so that all SMF
record types for a given job are processed together.
Accountability is achieved when CA MICS is able to associate
the execution records for a job with the SMF type 6 output
writer records from any of its generated SYSOUT.

This association is not always possible.  Output remaining on
the JES spool for long periods of time before printing, NJE
SYSOUT transmitted to z/OS from non-MVS nodes, report
distribution products that create their own nonstandard SMF
type 6 output writer records, and the impracticality of
feeding a single CA MICS unit with all SMF data from every
z/OS node in an NJE network are some of the challenges that
make SYSOUT accountability difficult.

CA MICS employs a number of strategies to maximize SYSOUT
accountability.  Three OPTIONS statements in
prefix.MICS.PARMS(SMFOPS) allow unit level customization to
further improve SYSOUT accountability.  These OPTIONS
statements, fully explained in Chapter 7, are:

  o SUSPENDNJE/NOSUSPENDNJE option - Section 7.3.1.2
  o SPLLIMIT option                - Section 7.3.1.3
  o SFHLIMIT option                - Section 7.3.1.4

In order to choose the correct CA MICS option values that
will maximize SYSOUT accountability at your site, you need to
understand the various SYSOUT scenarios encountered by
CA MICS.  These scenarios are discussed in the following
sections.

    1 - Local and Remote SYSOUT
    2 - NJE SYSOUT
    3 - "Late" SYSOUT
    4 - "Lone" Writer Records
    5 - Report Distribution Products