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TechTalk: QTSTRQS Bug

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QTSTRQS (Test Request) is an IBM-supplied user profile that is used for device testing and recovery. When performing a self-test on a device (usually initiated by pressing Alt-Test or Cmd-Backspace) the system automatically starts an interactive job signing on user QTSTRQS. Apparently during certain device failures, the system uses an interactive job started by QTSTRQS for device recovery.

Our daily backups are run automatically during early morning hours. Before the interactive subsystems are ended, the program sends out some messages to all active users by specifying TOUSR(*ALLACT) in the SNDMSG command. Recently, this program ended abnormally on two occasions.

The joblog indicated that the program failed while trying to send a message to QTSTRQS. QTSTRQS does not have a message queue. At first, we thought that someone had been using the IBM-supplied password to obtain unauthorized access to our system. After looking into it further, we discovered that QTSTRQS is one of the IBM profiles that cannot have a password. Apparently, one of our users had turned off his PC (which was connected to the AS/400 via PC Support) without signing off. An interactive job for user QTSTRQS was started and had not completed when our program ran.

Of course we realized that we should have had a MONMSG statement in our program, but we still thought this situation could present a problem if we wanted to use the SNDMSG command to all active users interactively.

We contacted IBM to see if QTSTRQS should have a message queue and if not, why this system job is considered an active user. They indicated that it should not have a message queue since it is not intended for use by any actual users. However, they stated that when this recovery job runs, QTSTRQS is an active user.

So, this remains something to be aware of.

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