Using resource editors

The resource editors display all the attributes and their values for a selected resource. You can edit attributes and save your changes.

When you create a new resource definition, you can select the Open editor check box to open the appropriate resource editor after the resource is created. For resources that you have already defined, you can open the appropriate resource editor from a resource definition view or from a project view. Either double-click the resource name, or right-click the resource name, then click Open.

If you open a resource in a running CICS® region, the changes you can make are limited. However, if you open a resource definition, you can change all editable attributes, just as you can with CEDA.

In the editor area, the editor name tab displays the resource type and resource name. A resource editor has one or more pages, depending on the resource being edited, and how many fields can be updated for that resource. Each page contains a collection of similar or related attributes. For example, the Pipeline Definition editor has two pages, Overview and Attributes.

Resource editors for resources that are defined in bundle projects, such as the Program Definition Resource editor, have only an Attributes page.

The breadcrumb trail

For resources that you can perform actions against directly, the resource editor displays a breadcrumb trail that shows the CICSplex and the resource name.

Breadcrumb trail for a pipeline resource named PIPELIN1

You can use the resource name in the breadcrumb trail to perform an action against the resource without closing the editor. Click the resource name in the breadcrumb trail and select the action from the menu.

Resource editors for resources that are defined in bundle projects, such as the Program Definition Resource editor, do not show a breadcrumb trail because you do not perform actions against these resources directly. The resources are dynamically generated and modified in CICS regions when you perform actions against the bundles in which the resources are defined.

The Attributes page

The Attributes page displays a list of all the attribute for the resource. The columns show the attribute name as it appears in CICS Explorer views, the CICS name for the attribute, and the attribute value. The attributes are grouped in a similar way as they appear in CEDA or the CICSPlex® SM WUI.

The following example shows the attributes page for a Pipeline Definition named PIPELIN1.

Pipeline resource definition editor with the Attributes tab selected.

For a resource that is defined in a CICS bundle project, only the attributes that you can edit are displayed.

For other resources, attribute values that you can edit are shown in normal text and values that you cannot edit are disabled. You can hide or show the non-editable attributes by clicking the Show/hide non-editable attributes icon The Show/hide non-editable attributes icon.

You can hide or show the CICS names by clicking the Show/hide CICS name attributes icon Show/hide CICS name attribute icon. You can type one or more characters in the filter field to filter on the Name or CICS Name columns.

When you click a value field, a short description of the attribute, and the attribute name, is displayed in the status field in the workbench.
  • If the attribute cannot be updated, the entire line is highlighted.
  • If the attribute can be updated, the Value field is highlighted and you can edit it as follows:
    • If the attribute has a predetermined list of values, click the button next to the Value field, and select the required value from the list. The new value is entered in the Value field.
    • If the attribute value is free-form text, you can type the new value in the field.
    • If you are editing resource definitions in a CICS bundle project, you can use variables as values. In the Value field, press Ctrl+Space and use content assist to display a list of available variables and their values. For an overview of using variables, see Working with variables in a resource editor.
    You can select or specify an empty string for the value of an attribute. The results depend on whether the resource is defined in a CICSplex, or defined in a bundle project:
    • For a resource that is defined in a CICSplex, the default value is applied for the attribute when you save your changes, if the value is a valid choice.
    • For a resource that is defined in a bundle project, the attribute is removed from the definition in the bundle project when you save your changes.

    When you change an attribute in an editor, a right-arrow (>) next to the attribute name indicates that the attribute value has changed. The resource is not changed until you save your changes.

  • Field-level help is available by selecting an attribute and pressing F1 (Ctrl+F1 in Linux).

Other pages

Some resource definition editors have additional pages, which present the attributes in a modified structure with radio buttons, combination boxes, and other advanced controls to simplify creation or editing of complex CICS resources.

When you select a tab other than Attributes, the pages that are displayed contain the basic resource definition details such as name, created, and changed times. In addition, the attributes that you can update are displayed, with more detail to assist you when you are updating the values. The following example shows the Overview page for the Pipeline editor.

An image of the editor opened in Overview for a Pipeline resource definition with the Details tab selected.

In the example, the page is divided into logical sections that contain one or more attributes:
  • The Basic section includes the Name, Description, Created, Changed, Version, and Status attributes.
  • The Response Wait section includes only the Respwait attribute.
  • The HFS Details section includes the Configuration File, Shelf, and WSDBind attributes.
More text is included for the attributes to help simplify the update process. When you click an edit field, the name of the CICS attribute that is edited is displayed in the status field in the workbench.

The content of the pages varies depending on the resource that is being edited. Descriptions of each page are provided in the help for the individual editor.

Field validation

When you update a value, your entry is validated against the criteria for the attribute. At the same time, other attributes that have an interdependency on the changed attribute are also checked. If the input is not valid, or the change caused an interdependent attribute to become not valid, you see one of the following notifications:
  • The Error icon The error icon is displayed alongside the attribute that is not valid.
  • The Error icon is displayed alongside the tab name to identify the page that contains the error.
  • An error message is displayed in the status field in the workbench, providing further details about the error.
You cannot save the update until the error is corrected.

Undoing your changes

If you changed one or more attributes in the editor, and want to reverse one or more of the changes before you save them, you can use the Undo function.

Click Edit > Undo on the main menu for the workbench, or press Ctrl+Z (cmd+Z for OS X). Each undo action reverses the previous edit change until there are no more changes to undo.

Saving your changes

When you make a change in the editor, an asterisk (*) is displayed in front of the resource name in the editor name tab A screen capture of the resource name in the editor name tab, showing an * in front of the name. At the same time, the Save icon The save icon is enabled, so that you can save the changes.

If you have unsaved changes and you attempt to close the editor or you try to change connections, a dialog is displayed asking you how to proceed. You can either save or discard the changes, or cancel and close the connection change request.

When your updates are complete, click Save or press Ctrl+S (cmd+S for OS X) to apply the changes to the definition. You can then close the editor. If you do not save the changes, when you attempt to close the editor, a dialog is displayed so that you can choose whether to save your changes.

Changes to a resource defined in a CICSplex are applied in the CICSplex, and changes to a resource defined in a bundle project are saved in the bundle project.

Navigating to files and folders via hyperlinks

Some attributes of some resource editors refer to locations on the zFS UNIX file system, and are shown as hyperlinks. Click on a hyperlink to open files in a text editor and folders in the z/OS UNIX Files view.

this shows an example of an attribute opened in the editor, and showing some hyperlinks in the value column.

Note: You must have a z/OS connection to view files and folders. If a z/OS connection is not defined and connected, you are prompted to create or connect to a z/OS connection when you click a hyperlink
/this image prompts the user to choose or create a z/OS connection

When a connection is made, the hyperlink is opened.