Starting an MFT agent on z/OS

On z/OS®, in addition to running the fteStartAgent command from a UNIX System Services session, you can start an agent as a started task from JCL without the need for an interactive session.

A started task is used because it runs under a specific user ID and is not affected by users logging off.

Note: Started tasks are typically run under an administrative user that might not have log-on privileges and so it is not possible to log on to the z/OS system as the user that the agent is running under. The fteStartAgent, fteStopAgent, and fteSetAgentTraceLevel commands, and the fteShowAgentDetails command with the -d parameter specified, cannot be issued for that agent.

From IBM® MQ 9.0.2 and IBM MQ 9.0.0 Fix Pack 1, the agent property adminGroup is available for use with Managed File Transfer agents on z/OS. You can define a security manager group, for example MFTADMIN and then add the started task userid and administrator TSO ids to this group. Edit the agent properties file and set the adminGroup property to be the name of this security manager group.

adminGroup=MFTADMIN

Members of this group can then issue the fteStartAgent, fteStopAgent, and fteSetAgentTraceLevel commands, and the fteShowAgentDetails command with the -d parameter specified, for the agent that is running as a started task.

For more information, see the adminGroup property in The MFT agent.properties file.

As a Java application, an agent is a UNIX System Services application that you can run from JCL by using the BFGAGSTP member, from a generated Managed File Transfer command PDSE library data set for an agent. For more information about how to create an MFT command PDSE library data set, and customize it for the required agent, see Creating an MFT Agent or Logger command data set.

Enable agent remote connections with IBM MQ Advanced for z/OS, Value Unit Edition only

An MFT agent on z/OS, running under the product identifier (PID) of IBM MQ Advanced for z/OS VUE, can connect to a queue manager on z/OS using a client connection.

When an agent starts up, it writes a BFGPR0137I message to its event log (output0.log) showing the PID that it is running under. An example of this message is:

BFGPR0137I: Product usage data recording started for product 'MQ z/OS MFT', product id '5655-MF9'.

For details of IBM MQ products, their associated PID values, and export classifications, see IBM MQ product identifiers and export information.

An MFT agent on z/OS, running under any other PID, can connect to a local queue manager using bindings connection only.

An MFT agent on z/OS can connect only to a queue manager, also running on z/OS, regardless of the MFT PID.

If an IBM MQ Advanced for z/OS VUE agent attempts to connect to a queue manager that is not running on z/OS, the following BFGMQ1044E message is issued, and agent start-up is ended:

BFGMQ1044E: Agent client connection on z/OS must be to a queue manager on z/OS