Can Robot/ALERT send text messages to cell phones?
Yes. Use Robot/GUIDE to help you set up a TCP/IP vendor. It works just like sending e-mail to any e-mail address with Robot/ALERT.

I have a job that runs every day. On certain days when the job completes, I want a Robot/SCHEDULE job to react to its completion. Can I create a reactive job and specify which days I want it to run?
If you have a reactive job and days to run specified, Robot/SCHEDULE looks for both conditions before it runs the reactive job. Therefore, if the prerequisite job completes and it is a day the reactive job is scheduled to run, Robot/SCHEDULE runs it.

If the prerequisite job does not run, the reactive job will not run. If the reactive job has a day and time specified, and the prerequisite job has not run, you get a W (warning) status on the reactive job indicating that, “Not all prerequisites have been met.”

How do I make a script run when I open a SEQUEL dashboard?
There are two ways to make a script run in a SEQUEL dashboard: automatically, or by pressing a button. Either way, you must add an Action Button to your dashboard.

1. Create a new dashboard or open an existing dashboard in design mode.

2. Select Insert > Action Button from the menu.

3. In the Action Button dialog, press the SEQUEL Object button and navigate to your script.

4. To make the script run when the dashboard is opened, check the “Autorun” box. (If this box is not checked, you must press the Action Button to run the script.)

All my SEQUEL reports are printing duplex. How do I change that?
You can turn off duplex printing by changing the SEQUEL/SQLPRT1 printer file. Use the following Change Print File (CHGPRTF) command:

CHGPRTF FILE(SEQUEL/SQLPRT1) DUPLEX(*NO)

I want to use Robot/ALERT to send e-mail messages, but my System i is not configured as an e-mail server. Is there a way around this?
Your System i doesn’t have to be an e-mail server for Robot/ALERT to send e-mail messages. If you use Robot/GUIDE for Automated Vendor setup, you simply specify the domain name or IP address of your SMTP e-mail server in the Outbound TCP/IP Host field. If you are using a two-way e-mail connection, specify the domain name or IP address of your POP3 e-mail server in the Inbound TCP/IP Host field.

I use Robot/SCHEDULE. When I set up a reactive job, it runs as soon as it gets the completion code for its prerequisite job. I would like the reactive job to wait a little while before it runs. How would I set this up?
You can attach OPAL code to the reactive job to do this. The OPAL must be submitted before the reactive job runs. Here’s an example that would delay the job for one minute. This code checks that the reactive job is not in a delayed status and then adds one minute until it will be submitted.

In 2008, U.S. Daylight Saving Time begins on March 9 and ends on November 2. Whether you change the time manually or have the system change the time automatically, the most important thing to keep in mind is that Robot/SCHEDULE must be inactive when the time change is made.

Two ways to set up the time change
Basically, there are two ways to accomplish the time change in Robot/SCHEDULE.

1. Create a CL program to end Robot/SCHEDULE, change the time, and restart Robot/SCHEDULE. (You can set up a Robot/SCHEDULE job to call this program.) This approach is explained in the Help/FACTS “Using Robot/SCHEDULE to automate Daylight Saving Time change.”

Note: You can modify the program to restart additional products so they pick up the time change. Products that benefit from this include: Robot/ALERT, Robot/AUTOTUNE, Robot/CLIENT, Robot/CONSOLE, Robot/MONITOR, Robot/NETWORK, and Robot/REPORTS.

2. Use the QTIMZON system value to make the change. With this approach, you need to create two Robot/SCHEDULE jobs to make Robot/SCHEDULE inactive during the time change. Download the Help/FACTS “Using Robot/SCHEDULE with the QTIMZON System Value” to get the details.

Important note: If you use the QTIMZON system value, IBM has issued the following Program Temporary Fixes (PTFs) that add updated time zone descriptions. After you apply the appropriate PTFs for your OS level, you can change the QTIMZON system value to the new value for your region. Continue to check with IBM in the event that future PTFs become available.

* i5/OS V5R4M0: PTFs SI26040 and SI25990

* i5/OS V5R3M0: PTFs SI26039 and SI25991

There are no changes for the QTIMZON system value in V6R1M0.

If your system uses a Hardware Management Console (HMC), you might need to apply additional fixes.

Unless specifically mentioned above, other Robot products are not affected by the time change. In addition, SEQUEL, ABSTRACT, ESEND, and EASY VIEW are not affected by the time change.

Contributed by Jeanne Thiesfeld, Technical Consultant

We are interested in backing up report set definitions. If our primary server fails, we can reinstall Robot/REPORTS and restore the files we need to get started. What files in what libraries should we back up to restore in case of a disaster?
For disaster recovery purposes, back up the RBTREPLIB library. This library holds all of the setup information for Robot/REPORTS. If you are using disk for short-term archiving, you also should back up the REPSHTRMLB library. This library contains the short-term data. In a disaster recovery situation, you want to have this library so you can restore the reports that had gone to the short-term archive.

I want to move Robot/ALERT from one System i to another. Is there a way to save/export the current Robot/ALERT configuration, pager information, broadcast lists, and so on to the new system?
Yes, this is easy to do. End Robot/ALERT on the old system and save the RBTALRLIB library. Then, restore RBTALRLIB to the new system. You must delete and re-create the communication jobs on the new system.

In Robot/CONSOLE, what is the difference between running the command RBCCLNUP and running the history-purge program RBC596?
The RBC596 program cleans up Robot/CONSOLE history based on the age of a message and its severity level. It removes messages from monitored message queues.

The RBCCLNUP command cleans up dangling data queues left by users who do not run the RBCENDQ command.

How can I make sure Robot/SAVE regularly releases tapes to my scratch pool?
To release tapes to the scratch pool regularly, schedule the following command in Robot/SCHEDULE:
RBSPGMLIB/RBSRLSEXTP

How can I check to see if one or all my clients are running and ready to receive tasks from the System i?
You can poll each registered client using the Robot/CLIENT RCLPOLL command. The command determines if the Robot/CLIENT task processor is running and if the client is ready to receive tasks. The RCLPOLL command allows you to check the status of all attached clients at once or to enter up to 50 names of individual clients.

You can view the operational status of the clients on the Client Control Center panel.

To use the command interactively, enter it on a command line and press function key 4 to display the command prompt panel.

You also can schedule the command in Robot/SCHEDULE to poll each client on a regular schedule (such as hourly) or you can embed the command in a program.

How do I purge completed tasks in Robot/CLIENT?
The RCLCLEANUP command deletes completed tasks. You must specify the number of days of completed tasks you want to keep. The best way to keep completed tasks cleaned up is to set up a Robot/SCHEDULE job to run the RCLCLEANUP command to purge completed tasks on a regular basis.

Teach Robot/CONSOLE and Robot/ALERT how to handle messages

If you are a new user of Robot/CONSOLE and Robot/ALERT, you may be wondering how to get started. After you’ve installed the products, what’s next?

Typically, new users want to start by creating a Robot/CONSOLE message center to monitor the QSYSOPR message queue. To do this, we recommend you use Robot/GUIDE, the automated setup option. (Refer to the Robot/CONSOLE Getting Started manual for complete information on using Robot/GUIDE.)

Robot/GUIDE creates two operator message centers for the QSYSOPR message queue, creates message sets for messages to be suppressed or messages that can be answered with the same reply every time, and allows you to set up log and resource monitoring. You can have Robot/CONSOLE handling your messages and monitoring your system logs and resources in minutes.

Note: If you didn’t run the RBCCRTMFD command during installation, you must run it before starting Robot/GUIDE. This command creates the message file definitions Robot/CONSOLE needs to create message sets. Robot/GUIDE requires the same security authorities as those used to install Robot/CONSOLE.

For Robot/ALERT, the first thing you must decide is how you will be sending notifications from the System i—by modem or by using TCP/IP. If you plan to use a modem, you need specific information about setting up the modem from your cell phone or pager service provider. If you plan to use TCP/IP, you need to know the domain name and IP address of the e-mail server you will use to send messages to the e-mail address associated with your pager or cell phone. (Refer to the Robot/ALERT 5.0 User Guide’s TCP/IP Paging Services questionnaire for more information.)

After you set up Robot/ALERT and send and receive a test message, go back to the QSYSOPR message center and tell Robot/CONSOLE to notify you of response-required messages. Robot/CONSOLE can notify you via a pop-up window on a System i session (if you are logged on). Or, you can associate a Robot/ALERT device (pager, cell phone, or other e-mail address) with your message center and receive unanswered messages via Robot/ALERT. You can specify how long Robot/CONSOLE should wait to notify you. This allows you to track QSYSOPR messages without being tied to a monitor.

If you are using Robot/ALERT, it is a good idea to have it page you for all response-required messages initially. This allows you to note the message IDs you want to handle differently. Then, create message sets for those message IDs. In addition, if an unexpected critical message comes through, you won’t miss it!

Using the Most Common Messages report
Robot/CONSOLE also provides another useful tool, The Most Common Messages Report. Use this report to identify which messages occur most frequently on any message queue that you monitor. To analyze the report:

• Look for messages that can be answered the same way each time and create a message set to accomplish this.
• Look for messages that don’t require immediate attention. Create a message set to redirect these messages to a message center that doesn’t notify you, or send messages using Robot/ALERT.
• Look for messages that require a response, but aren’t urgent. Create a message table for these. Then, create a new message center. You could set up this message center to use Robot/ALERT to send messages to an e-mail address that is monitored periodically. Finally, create a message set, selecting Message Table for the message set type. Press function key 10 until the OPerator Assistance Language panel displays. Specify the operation REDIRECT and enter the new message center in the Operation Values field to complete the setup.

Populating message tables automatically
Robot/CONSOLE can help you populate your message tables.

1. Display the Message Table Elements panel and press function key 6 (Add Query).
2. Enter a search term.
3. Robot/CONSOLE will populate the table with all the message IDs that contain your search term.

Review this list and add or delete message IDs to tailor it for your environment. For example, use this approach to create a table of all printer messages.

If you don’t want to see certain messages, use Robot/CONSOLE to suppress them. If you ran Robot/GUIDE, you already have a message set and message table called MSTSUPPRES. This table contains message IDs for informational messages that users typically do not need to see. Once you are satisfied that this table contains the message IDs you want to suppress, activate the MSTSUPPRES message set.

Setting up two-way messaging
If your want to answer messages from your pager, cell phone, PDA, or another e-mail address that can send a reply to the e-mail from Robot/ALERT, set up Robot/ALERT for two-way messaging. You need a POP3 mail account on your e-mail server (or on another e-mail server, such as one at your ISP). You also need to know the POP3 server’s domain name and IP address, and information about the POP3 account: login ID, password, and e-mail address.

Go to the Robot/ALERT Directory menu and select Option 1 (Vendor Maintenance Menu). On the Vendor Maintenance Menu, select Option 1. Create your vendor using Robot/GUIDE. On the Robot/GUIDE Automated Vendor Setup panels, make sure you:

1. Give your vendor a unique name. (Don’t delete existing vendors or your devices will be deleted.)
2. Select TCP/IP (1) for Connection Type.
3. Select two-way (2) for Service Type.
4. Select SMTPPOP3.
5. Enter the information for the outbound e-mail server
6. Enter the information for the inbound server.
7. After the vendor is created, enter a 1 to create a device.

Verify that you can send a message and receive a response. Then, you can begin using this new device on your Robot/CONSOLE message centers. When you respond to a message, Robot/ALERT recognizes the reply in the POP3 account and gives it to Robot/CONSOLE. You’ve answered the message without having to dial in!

Contributed by Theresa Aleckson, Technical Consultant

I am using Robot/NETWORK to centralize the management of the partitions of a single partitioned system. Can I implement this configuration using a virtual LAN?
Yes, this configuration is ideally suited to using the virtual LAN. With a virtual LAN, you don’t need additional hardware and it’s faster.

If you plan to connect this system to other systems (multiple physical systems) using Robot/NETWORK, you must use Ethernet connections throughout. You can’t use a combination of virtual LAN and Ethernet.

When we did a restricted state backup over the weekend, we put Robot/ALERT on hold. When the system was restarted, Robot/ALERT moved from HELD to INACTIVE and stayed there. As a result, we missed a pager message. How can we prevent this from happening again?
When you execute a restricted state backup, we recommend that you end all the Robot products by executing the RSLSHUTDWN command. This command puts Robot/ALERT on hold, ends all active Robot products, and ends the RBTSLEEPER subsystem. After the restricted state ends, restart the RBTSLEEPER subsystem. Robot/ALERT releases itself and becomes ACTIVE automatically.

To be sure that Robot/ALERT has returned to ACTIVE status, incorporate the RBASNDMSG command in your start up program. This pager message will inform you that the restricted state backup has completed and Robot/ALERT is active.

I use the SEQUEL Web Interface (SWI). I want to format the HTML results so they look like my company’s Web site. How would I go about this?
Depending on your knowledge of HTML, you can format the output of the results pages almost any way you want. The SWI library contains two default source members, HEADER and FOOTER, that control the results page layout. The default HEADER member contains a company logo and other formatting, plus a number of cascading style sheet (CSS) entries that control the appearance of the results table section. You can modify the font size, style, colors, and other attributes used in the results to suit your preferences.

Newly centralized data processing relies on the Robot Products

For over 30 years, Tree of Life has provided retailers throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and now Canada, with the products, services and the marketing edge that adds to their bottom line. As the nation’s leading distributor of natural, organic, specialty, ethnic, and gourmet food products, Tree of Life has helped thousands of retailers, from the smallest independent stores to the largest supermarket chains, meet the constantly growing demand for products that help Americans to “live well.”

In the data center at company headquarters in St. Augustine, Florida, John Kinnaird, National Operating Center Manager, is responsible for supporting both hardware and software for their IBM System i. John notes that there’s been a great deal of change in how IT is set up and run at Tree of Life since he was hired. “When I started working for Tree Of Life about seven years ago, everything was decentralized. Each of our distribution centers had its own data center, ran their own AS/400, and ran their own copy of the software.

“Shortly thereafter, we started the Regional Operating Centers project that consolidated all of the processing into two regional centers in St. Augustine and Dallas. Now, we have consolidated all the processing onto a partitioned System i Model 570 in St. Augustine, where we run all of the warehousing, distribution, and financial applications for 12 distribution centers. The System i also hosts a production partition for our Canadian operations as well as a data warehouse partition and a development partition.

“Our core system is a warehousing and distribution system called NTS, the National Tree System that was written in-house. We have several other applications such as JD Edwards World for financials and E3 for purchasing.”

Getting started with operations automation
When the divisions were decentralized, some facilities were using the Robot products and some were not. Among the divisions that were using the products, there were various degrees of success. As Tree of Life began to consolidate the processing to one centralized system at their headquarters, the company soon realized that Robot/SCHEDULE, Robot/ALERT, and Robot/NETWORK would help make the company a true 24/7 operation.

John works with Jennifer Weatherly, Operation Analyst. Jennifer spoke about centralizing Robot/SCHEDULE jobs, “We had several different jobs set up on different partitions. We wanted to convert all jobs from all partitions to a master system [on the Robot/NETWORK Host], where we put the jobs in one location and then send them out to the appropriate partition. [Help/Systems] Tech Support was instrumental in teaching us how to send the existing jobs—including OPAL code, library lists, job environments, date objects, reserved command variables, and so on—up from the Nodes (partitions) to the Host to create the master. Now we set up new Robot/SCHEDULE jobs, and changes to existing jobs in the master, and then send the job or jobs back to the Nodes. This setup helps us work efficiently with jobs that we maintain on a regular basis. At one time, if we had a job that existed on more than one partition, we had to change the job on each partition. Now, we change the job once and send it down to the node or nodes. With 12 divisions running 8,000 jobs on a daily basis, this is a big help.”

The next step: automating report management
Tree of Life also implemented Robot/REPORTS to manage their reports. Jennifer explains, “Tree of Life had Robot/REPORTS, but the company was not utilizing the product when I started six years ago. I began by reading the manual and trying to set up reports. Whenever I ran into a roadblock, I’d just pick up the phone and call Help/Systems Technical Support. I was pleasantly surprised to find someone always available. I didn’t waste valuable time on hold. Even after normal support hours, you usually get a call back in a half hour or less.

“Because of the 12 divisions, we have a lot of reports. We are trying to eliminate printing so many reports. We have about 80% of our reports available for online viewing and we use Robot/ALERT to e-mail reports to users, customers, field sales support, and others.”

John adds, “We have had a tremendous reduction in printed reports since we started using Robot/REPORTS. Not only are we saving paper, but people have a lot better access to the reports now—especially people who are out in the field. We had no way of getting printed reports to a lot of our salespeople. Now they can view the reports online. That’s a big benefit for us.”

Jennifer explains another project they are completing, “We have to get monthly reports out to our customers. In the past, a group of employees would come in on a weekend, print cover statements, and break down a 700-page report by customer for mailing. Now we use Robot/SCHEDULE, Robot/ALERT, and Robot/REPORTS to accomplish the same task. We’re saving on printing, postage, and overtime.”

Jennifer and John prove that the Robot products help them live well in the data center, just as Tree of Life products help people live well at home.

By Barbara Davey