Generated COBOL Will Not Compile (177011)

SYMPTOMS

When you use the Component Builder (CB) to create a component library (.tlb) file manually (this is, without using the Import COBOL Wizard), you can define a method with parameters in an order that prevents COBOL generated by the CB COBOL Export facility from compiling properly.

If there are two or more parameters that are arrays whose actual counts depend on the value of other parameters, those actual count parameters must appear before the first array.

RESOLUTION

The solution to this problem is to use CB to arrange the parameters in the following order

COUNT1
COUNT2
ARRAY1
ARRAY2

and then regenerate the COBOL using the COBOL Export facility.

MORE INFORMATION

Example

You generate a component library with the following four parameters:

Count1 (integer)
Array1 (anything)
Count2 (integer)
Array2 (anything)

The generated COBOL would be similar to this:

   01  DFHCOMMAREA.
       05  COUNT1                       PIC S9(4) COMP.         INOUT
       05  ARRAY1 OCCURS 10 TIMES                               INOUT
                      DEPENDING ON COUNT1 OF DFHCOMMAREA
                                            PIC S9(9) COMP.
       05  COUNT2                       PIC S9(4) COMP.         INOUT
       05  ARRAY2 OCCURS 10 TIMES                               INOUT
                      DEPENDING ON COUNT2 OF DFHCOMMAREA
                                            PIC S9(9) COMP.

This COBOL produces the following error message when compiled on MVS:

   115  IGYGR1137-S   "OCCURS DEPENDING ON" object "COUNT2" was defined in
   a variably located area. Execution results will be unpredictable.