IBM i QuickTip: Keep a Recent WRKACTJOB Printout in Your Desk

        Before I IPL my IBM i machine or run a High Availability switch test, I always make sure to take a copy of all the active jobs on my system by printing a Work with Active Jobs screen (WRKACTJOB). This can easily be done by running the following WRKACTJOB command.

WRKACTJOB OUTPUT(*PRINT)

       Then after the machine IPLs and the system startup job completes, I can compare the jobs that were running before the IPL with the jobs that ran after the IPL. This helps me figure out if some key process didn’t start.

       Since my IBM i partitions don’t IPL all that often, I sometimes find that programmers forget to tell me which new software startup commands to add to the startup program. This printout helps me identify which jobs that shouldn’t have started didn’t start.

       Now obviously, some frequently changing subsystems on my restarted system such as QINTER, QBATCH, etc, don’t need to match the printout. But I find it invaluable for identifying missing jobs from the IPL in some of these subsystems:

• QHTTPSVR – For Web serving jobs
• QSPL – To identify printer jobs that aren’t set to restart at IPL
• Special subsystems that have been set up to run for specific piece of third-party software (such as HelpSystems RBTSLEEPER subsystem for its Robot/SCHEDULE product)
• Other custom subsystems we set up for different functions
• Missing jobs in critical subsystems

       A recent WRKACTJOB printout comes in handy in these situations. I keep one with my High Availability runbooks. It’s also a good idea to keep a PDF of the most recent printout on your network.

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