How does the iSeries find a space to insert a new record over a deleted record when REUSEDLT(*YES) is specified for a file? An associate says that the file is scanned sequentially for a deleted record when writing a new record to the file and as a result there is a significant performance penalty.

–Millard

I sent your question to Kent Milligan of IBM. According to him, “A table scan is not performed. A bitmap-like structure is used to identify available deleted rows within the table.”

So, Millard, there are no performance-related reasons not to reuse deleted records. This topic

I’m trying to use C# .Net to inspect the file create date and file modified date on member files in a custom library under QSys.Lib. Do you have any idea how to do this or can you suggest a place to start? Unfortunately, I code in C# and do not know RPG or CL commands.

–GS

We can tackle this problem without any server side logic. Fortunately, this job is pretty easy, thanks to IBM providing us with integration into the Windows world.

The first thing you need to learn about is a special program called NetServer, which can be

At some point, all System i and iSeries administrators will need to add new functionality to their system startup program (QSTRUP). While it’s easy to change and recompile QSTRUP, there are a few pitfalls to avoid so that the new code executes properly and so that it doesn’t hang the system in error. To help you understand QSTRUP modification, here’s my primer on locating, changing, and compiling your startup program.

Changing the QSTRUP startup program consists of the following six simple steps.

1. Finding your startup program object
2. Finding the startup program’s source code
3. Archiving your old startup program object and

This is the second in a series of articles on Zend’s PHP for i5/OS. This article presents a discussion of the syntax and features of the PHP language and sets the framework for the third article in the series, which will discuss the API toolkit. I hope you’ll look forward to the third installment, which will delve into the API toolkit that provides the ability for PHP applications to work with i5/OS features and objects. (To read the first installment in this series, go to this link.)

Variables

Variables in the PHP language are signified with a leading dollar

I’m trying to get up to speed with WDSc. It’s getting better, but I’m not out of the woods yet. One SEU feature that I really miss is the ability to press F15 and browse another member. Using the Remote Systems Explorer and LPEX editor, I find myself following the navigation tree in order to open a member. Please make my day by telling me that LPEX has a function equivalent to SEU’s F15 key.

–Rick

OK, Rick, I’m going to make your day. LPEX has such a function.

While you are editing, hold down the control and shift keys,

Admin Alert: Magical & Mysterious iSeries Access CWB Programs

IBM‘s iSeries Access for Windows package includes a little advertised set of CWB batch utility programs that extend iSeries Access functions beyond the core package. These DOS-based programs perform many valuable functions including backing up and restoring an iSeries Access installation and caching passwords for automatic system i logons. This week, I’ll examine these two CWB functions and discuss how they can provide additional capability to Windows machines.

What Are iSeries Access CWB Programs?

The CWB batch utility programs have a long history with iSeries Access for Windows, where some