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Using PUI to Perfect XA Environments – Part 2

This is the second in a three-part series of articles about Infor XA’s PUI tool.  In the first article, we learned how to set up PUI on the iSeries.  In this article, we will look at the steps to take to perform a PUI Analysis.

    (To view in PDF format with screen shots & other visuals, click PUI Part 2.)

 

After you have finished loading PUI into your XA Environment, you are ready to perform a PUI Analysis.  In the previous article, we had discussed that it is best to have the PUI Database for the current and previous versions of XA loaded together such as seen in the screen shot below.

 

You will notice that PCMs come first in the list, which is convenient, since perfecting your XA Environment focuses on these PCMs.  Note that PUI was designed to analyze a specific PCM or PTF to ensure that all objects updated by that fix are at the correct PTF Level.  PUI will also report on any missing pre-requisites associated with that PCM or PTF.

 

XA is constructed like a layer cake.  You start by putting on a Base, and then you stack PCMs on top of that Base until your XA Environment is at the desired PCM Level.  More recently, Infor has begun releasing large PTF Bundles for higher levels of XA.  As of this writing, the PCMs and PTFs in the following table make up the structure of an XA Environment.  The Base level is not included in the table, as it is not available for PUI Analysis.

 

Release               PCM Level               PCM/PTF

9.0.0.1                      1592                             SH15727.690

9.0.0.2                     2110                         SH15796.690

9.1.0.0                      2390                       SH15822.690

9.1.0.1                   3037                       SH15904.690

9.1.1.0                   3704                       SH15955.690

9.1.2.0                      4237                       SH15993.690

9.2.0.0                    20079                     SH16055.692

9.2.1.0                  21312                       SH16132.692 and SH16133.692

9.2.1.1                   22032                     SH16159.692

9.2.1.2                  22450                    SH16166.692

 

In order to perfect an XA Environment, you will need to do a PUI Analysis on each of these PCMs or PTFs.  (If you will look back at the prior screen shot of the PUI object, you will see that the PCMs up to 20079 are right at the top of the list).

 

As I mentioned earlier, PUI looks at pre-requisite PTFs for each PCM and PTF to make sure they have all been applied.  For this reason, we cannot just analyze the PCMs and PTFs shown in the table above.  We must analyze all PCMs and PTFs for 9.1 (690) and 9.2 (692).

 

We will start by analyzing everything for 9.1 (690) first.  I commonly refer to this process as ‘Analyze All’.  To do this, start out by subsetting the list in PUI to only include PCMs and PTFs that end with 690.  Position your cursor on the title of the ‘Updates’ column and right click.  The menu [shown below] will pop up.  Click ‘Customize’, and then ‘Subset Criteria’.

 

A window will pop up that will allow you to specify the subset criteria.  Start out by clicking on ‘Containment’ on the left, which will display the window as shown below.  Click on ‘Ends With’ on the left, and then type in ‘690’ in the ‘Value’ box on the right.  Click the ‘Apply’ button.

 

Now only PCMs and PTFs ending with 690 will be displayed in the list.

 

To start the PUI Analysis, click on ‘File’ and ‘Host Jobs’ at the top left of the screen.

 

The following window will pop up.  Type in a description of the job in the ‘Description’ field, and then click the ‘Submit’ button.

 

A Confirmation Window will appear.  Click ‘Yes’ to complete the job submission.

 

The Host Job will run on the iSeries in QBATCH.  Depending on your system, the job may take quite a while to run.  Plan on 45 minutes as an average, but this may be different based on your particular machine.  Before running the job, consider if your QBATCH subsystem is single-threaded, as the PUI job could block other jobs from running.  Also, be aware that the PUI job will typically reflect a high CPU % while it is running.  This is normal and should not be a cause for alarm.

 

You may monitor the job in WRKACTJOB (Work with Active Jobs), as shown above, or you may monitor it in Powerlink via ‘File’, ‘Status’ on the menu.

 

When the ‘Status’ field changes to *COMPLETE, the PUI Analysis has finished.  Now, repeat the entire process for all PCMs and PTFs for 9.2 (692).

 

After you have finished running both PUI Analysis jobs, either close and then re-open the ‘All Updates’ object or redisplay ‘All Records’ using the subset box at the top of the screen.  Press F5 to refresh the screen.  You should now see that the icons and ‘Status’ field on the left side of the screen have been updated.

 

You have now completed the second step in perfecting your XA Environment!

 

In the third article in this series, you will learn how to review and correct the errors identified by PUI.

 

 

Sharon Foster

Senior Programmer/Analyst with Information Systems Engineering, Inc.

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