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Status Delivered
Workspace COBOL Compilers
Created by Guest
Created on Aug 5, 2015

Cobol V5 - Program malfunctions if compiled with OPTIMIZE

With Cobol V4, we met dysfunctions with a program compiled with option OPTIMIZE(STD). This problem persists in Cobol V5 under certain conditions.

The program is badly written but the use case was real.

The problem:
? a main program described a communication area for a sub program.
? the variables in this communication area in Working are initialized with VALUE clauses.
? the main program calls the subroutine by communicating the 1st variable of ??the structure describing the communication area, not the level 01 of the structure itself.
? the sub program alter a variable that is not in the scope of the variable used for the call to the routine (but part of the level 01 communication area)
? the main program move this varible in another variable.
? in this case and in other conditions which vary according to the compiler version, the MOVE is not performed, the target area is directly feed with the VALUE declared on the source area in Working.

For our point of view, once an area belongs to a structure that is potentially exposed outside the scope of its owning program (communication area , or EXTERNAL clause) , then it should be implicitly considered as VOLATILE - ie . that its content may evolve beyond the control of the program. Thus, the MOVE would be actually executed .

Idea priority Medium
  • Guest
    Reply
    |
    Sep 14, 2015

    Due to processing by IBM, this request was reassigned to have the following updated attributes:
    Brand - Servers and Systems Software
    Product family - Programming Languages
    Product - COBOL Compilers

    For recording keeping, the previous attributes were:
    Brand - Rational
    Product family - Design & development
    Product - COBOL Compilers

  • Guest
    Reply
    |
    Sep 3, 2015

    Problem was detected during TRIAL period of Enterprise Cobol V5.
    This TRIAL period is finished, and we can't recompile / test the sample program.

    What is the reference of the PTF concerned by this problem ?

  • Guest
    Reply
    |
    Sep 2, 2015

    Please test using the latest PTFs for V5.1/V5.2. This should be resolved via the PTFs.

    Latest PTFs are listed here:
    http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg27041164

  • Guest
    Reply
    |
    Aug 5, 2015

    Attachment (Use case): Sample program