IBM Software Technical Document

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Document Information

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Document Title

Forcing a Main Storage Dump-RISC

Document Description

Following are step-by-step instructions on how to force a Main Storage Dump (MSD):

Caution: Due to system integrity risks, do not attempt to copy a Main Storage Dump directly to media from the Work with Current Main Storage Dump screen. This risk does not apply after a copy of the Main Storage Dump to ASP has completed successfully. For further information, contact a senior member of the iSeries Internals team or the iSeries Screen Team. This risk applies to all systems at V5R2M0 and V5R1M0 that do not have R520 MF30570 (C3161) nor R510 MF30571 (C3343) permanently applied.

1 Place the system in Manual mode.

2 Select function 22 on the front panel.

3 Press the Enter button on the front panel.

4 If the control panel contains A1XX3022 (srcA1XX3022), select Function 22 a second time on the control panel and press Enter. An X indicates that we are not concerned with that digit in the reference code.

5 The system proceeds to dump a predetermined amount of main memory to disk. When it has completed, it IPLs through a limited series of steps to display a screen on the console titled Main Storage Dump Manager or Main Storage Dump Occurred (depending on system release). At the same time, the control panel will display C6004260 (SRC C6004260) or A6004404 (SRC A6004404). This screen displays basic details about the dump including the register data. Write down functions 1 through 9 (11 through 19 for older releases) and the Type/ModelFeature information. Press the Enter key.

6 Select Option 1, Work with current main storage dump, and press the Enter key.

7 Main Storage Dumps may be copied to tape (media) or to DASD (system ASP). As a standard rule, IBM® recommends that you use the Copy to system ASP unless otherwise directed. These instructions assume that you will use Copy to system ASP. Select Option 3, and press the Enter key.

8 Give your MSD a name. We recommend the IBM problem number and date/time. Press the Enter key.

9 The Copy Main Storage Dump to System ASP Status screen is shown. If Directory Recovery has not completed, the IPL in progress message is shown. The copy begins when a condition known as full paging is reached. IBM does not recommend that you use either of the options to cancel or return and continue copy without direction from IBM Support.

10 If the IPL in progress message is shown, the system control panel shows the reference code C6004260.

11 Once full paging is reached, the Main Storage Dump completion status is shown.

12 While the Main Storage Dump is copied, the System Reference Code C6XX4404 is shown on the control panel. The third and forth digits represent the percentage of completion of the copy.

13 When the copy is complete, you are shown the message Copy completed normally at the bottom of the screen.

14 If you would like to do an unattended IPL, switch the system to normal mode at this time.

15 Press F3 twice to exit the Main Storage Dump Manager and begin the IPL.

16 If the IPL was not changed to "N" in step 14, the following Manual IPL screen options will be displayed during the remainder of the IPL.

o IPL or Install the Operating System - Select Option 1.

o Signon Screen - Sign on.

o Select Products - press F3 or F12 key.

o IPL Options - press Enter.

You might get one more screen called Access Path Rebuild. The idea of this screen is to give you some control over when this rebuild takes place. The normal default is *OPN, which means they do not rebuild until they are accessed after the system is fully IPLed. This can affect overall system performance as these are very high priority jobs. If they are rebuilt during the IPL, then the system is dedicated to the task and it will be faster. This is accomplished by changing the *OPN field to any number less than 50 for an access path you wish rebuilt at this time. When the decision has been made whether to rebuild some, all, or none at this time, press the Enter key to continue.

Caution: There is an estimated rebuild time for each access path. The estimated time is not real time but CPU time and will, therefore, have no bearing on the time taken for the access path to rebuild during normal operation.

You might receive various messages on the console with regard to status of devices, and so on. Make a general note of what they say but bypass them. The next main screen displayed is the Main Menu or a command line. At that time, put the system back in to the Normal state from the front panel using the reverse of the procedure used to put it into Manual in the first place. The system should now be ready for use on the whole, apart from any access paths that still need to be rebuilt. Copy the Main Storage Dump and another set of data called VLOGs to tape using the separate set of instructions for your type of system.

Caution: If the dump is not copied to disk nor tape from the Main Storage Dump Manager and F3 is pressed to exit, only the initial portion of the dump is saved (96-220MB depending on release). The remainder is lost and makes problem determination/problem resolution improbable.