Ed Finnell wrote:
Seems like this is what HOLD ERRORs were designed for?
As Jim said, the PTFs for OA24573 have been marked PE. That means that an ERROR
HOLD will be generated.
A PTF normally goes into the field without any so-called "early testing"
by ISVs. Unless the APAR is marked HIPER, it will take a while for the
PTF to make its way into the field. (Many customers install only
"recommended" service that has gone through IBM's CST.) Eventually, a
customer running the affected ISV product will install the PTF and
encounter the incompatibility. Then, while the ISV (and possibly IBM)
are analyzing the dump(s), trying to understand what happened, dozens of
other customers begin coming up on the new code. Then, it's like an
avalanche!
There is a fairly new process being tried where participating ISVs
"register" for the interfaces -- even undocumented ones -- upon which
they depend. In theory, this lets IBM's developers know that there is a
dependency on a particular field, module, or intercept point, and they
can contact the ISV when changes are being contemplated. I have no idea
if this system works or if it's even being used by folks that fix APARs
for a living. But, it sounds promising.
--
Edward E Jaffe
Phoenix Software International, Inc
5200 W Century Blvd, Suite 800
Los Angeles, CA 90045
310-338-0400 x318
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.phoenixsoftware.com/
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