crtmqm (create queue manager)

Create a queue manager.

Purpose

Use the crtmqm command to create a queue manager and define the default and system objects. The objects created by the crtmqm command are listed in System and default objects. When you have created a queue manager, use the strmqm command to start it.

The queue manager is automatically associated with the installation from which the crtmqm command was issued. To change the associated installation, use the setmqm command.

Note that the Windows installer does not automatically add the user that performs the installation to the mqm group. For more details, see Authority to administer IBM MQ on UNIX, Linux and Windows systems.

Usage notes

From IBM MQ Version 9.2.0, we can use the environment variable MQLICENSE to accept or view the license.

Syntax

• ¹ Windows only
• ² Specify one only of lc, ll, lla, or lln
• ³ UNIX and Linux only

Required parameters

QMgrName

The name of the queue manager that we want to create. The name can contain up to 48 characters. This parameter must be the last item in the command. Note: The QMgrName is used by IBM MQ applications, other IBM MQ queue managers, and IBM MQ control commands to identify this queue manager.

No other queue manager with the same name can exist on this machine. Where this queue manager is going to connect to other queue managers we must ensure that queue manager names are unique within that group of queue managers.

The QMgrName is also used to name the directories created on disk for the queue manager. Due to filesystem limitations the name of the directories created might not be identical to the QMgrName supplied on the crtmqm command.

In these cases the directories created will be based upon the supplied QMgrName, but might be modified, or have a suffix such as .000 or .001, and so on, added to the queue manager name.

Optional parameters

-a[r] access_group

Use the access group parameter to specify a Windows security group, members of which will be granted full access to all queue manager data files. The group can either be a local or global group, depending on the syntax used. Valid syntax for the group name is as follows:

• LocalGroup
• Domain name\GlobalGroup name
• GlobalGroup name @ Domain name

We must define the additional access group before running the crtmqm command with the -a [r] option.

If you specify the group using -ar instead of -a, the local mqm group is not granted access to the queue manager data files. Use this option if the file system hosting the queue manager data files does not support access control entries for locally defined groups.

The group is typically a global security group, which is used to provide multi-instance queue managers with access to a shared queue manager data and logs folder. Use the additional security access group to set read and write permissions on the folder or to share containing queue manager data and log files.

The additional security access group is an alternative to using the local group named mqm to set permissions on the folder containing queue manager data and logs. Unlike the local group mqm, we can make the additional security access group a local or a global group. It must be a global group to set permissions on the shared folders that contain the data and log files used by multi-instance queue managers.

The Windows operating system checks the access permissions to read and write queue manager data and log files. It checks the permissions of the user ID that is running queue manager processes. The user ID that is checked depends on whether you started the queue manager as a service or you started it interactively. If you started the queue manager as a service, the user ID checked by the Windows system is the user ID you configured with the Prepare IBM MQ wizard. If you started the queue manager interactively, the user ID checked by the Windows system is the user ID that ran the strmqm command.

The user ID must be a member of the local mqm group to start the queue manager. If the user ID is a member of the additional security access group, the queue manager can read and write files that are given permissions by using the group.

Restriction: We can specify an additional security access group only on Windows operating system. If you specify an additional security access group on other operating systems, the crtmqm command returns an error.

-c Text

Descriptive text for this queue manager. We can use up to 64 characters; the default is all blanks.

If we include special characters, enclose the description in single quotation marks. The maximum number of characters is reduced if the system is using a double-byte character set (DBCS).

-d DefaultTransmissionQueue

The name of the local transmission queue where remote messages are put if a transmission queue is not explicitly defined for their destination. There is no default.

-g ApplicationGroup

On UNIX and Linux, the name of the group that contains members that are allowed to perform the following actions:

• Run MQI applications
• Update all IPCC resources
• Change the contents of some queue manager directories

The default value is -g all, which allows unrestricted access.

The -g ApplicationGroup value is recorded in the queue manager configuration file, qm.ini.

The mqm user ID and the user running the command must belong to the specified Application Group. For further details of the operation of restricted mode, see Restricted mode.

-h MaximumHandleLimit

The maximum number of handles that an application can open at the same time.

Specify a value in the range 1 - 999999999. The default value is 256.

The next set of parameter descriptions relate to logging, which is described in Use the log for recovery.

If you specify the logging attributes in the mqs.ini file, those attributes override the default values of the logging command line parameters to crtmqm.

-ic FilePath

Automatic configuration of MQSC attributes.

Specify the location containing MQSC commands to be automatically applied to the queue manager on every queue manager restart. This can be a filename, or a directory where each file *.mqsc is automatically processed. See automatic configuration from an MQSC script at startup for more details.

-ii FilePath

Automatic configuration of qm.ini file attributes.

Specify a configuration to be automatically applied to the qm.ini file on every queue manager restart. This can be a filename containing INI format information, or a directory where *.ini is automatically processed. See automatic configuration from an INI script at startup for more details.

-iv VARIABLE=VALUE[;VARIABLE=VALUE]

Configuration variable for use with automatic uniform clusters.

Specify a name and associated value for use as an insert during MQSC definitions. This parameter is only used for CONNAME fields in defining cluster receivers for automatic uniform clusters. For example:

-iv CONNAME=QMA.host.name(1414)

-lc

Use circular logging. This method is the default logging method.

-ld LogPath

The directory used to store log files. The default directory to store log paths is defined when you install IBM MQ. If the volume containing the log file directory supports file security, the log file directory must have access permissions. The permissions allow the user IDs, under whose authority the queue manager runs, read and write access to the directory and its subdirectories. When you install IBM MQ, you grant permissions to the user IDs and to the mqm group on the default log directory. If you set the LogPath parameter to write the log file to a different directory, we must grant the user IDs permission to read and write to the directory. The user ID and permissions for UNIX and Linux are different from those for the Windows system:

UNIX and Linux

The directory and its subdirectories must be owned by the user mqm in the group mqm.

If the log file is shared between different instances of the queue manager, the security identifiers (sid) that are used must be the same for the different instances. We must have set the user mqm to the same sid on the different servers running instances of the queue manager. Likewise for the group mqm.

Windows

If the directory is accessed by only one instance of the queue manager, we must give read and write access permission to the directory for the following groups and users:

• The local group mqm
• The local group Administrators
• The SYSTEM user ID

To give different instances of a queue manager access to the shared log directory, the queue manager must access the log directory using a global user. Give the global group, which contains the global user, read and write access permission to the log directory. The global group is the additional security access group specified in the -a parameter.

In IBM MQ for Windows systems, the default directory is C:\ProgramData\IBM\MQ\log (assuming that C: is your data drive). If the volume supports file security, the SYSTEM ID, Administrators, and mqm group must be granted read/write access to the directory.

In IBM MQ for UNIX and Linux systems, the default directory is /var/mqm/log. User ID mqm and group mqm must have full authorities to the log files.

If we change the locations of these files, we must give these authorities yourself. If these authorities are set automatically, then the log files are in their default locations.

-lf LogFilePages

The log data is held in a series of files called log files. The log file size is specified in units of 4 KB pages.

In IBM MQ for UNIX and Linux systems, the default number of log file pages is 4096, giving a log file size of 16 MB. The minimum number of log file pages is 64 and the maximum is 65535.

In IBM MQ for Windows systems, the default number of log file pages is 4096, giving a log file size of 16 MB. The minimum number of log file pages is 32 and the maximum is 65535.

Note: The size of the log files for a queue manager specified during creation of that queue manager cannot be changed.

-ll LinearLogging

Use linear logging.

On Multiplatforms, if you create a queue manager using the existing -ll option, we need to carry out manual management of log extents as previously (LogManagement=Manual).

-lla

Use linear logging with automatic management of log extents (LogManagement=Automatic).

-lln

Use linear logging with archive management of log extents (LogManagement=Archive).

-lp LogPrimaryFiles

The log files allocated when the queue manager is created. On a Windows system:

• The minimum number of primary log files that we can have is 2 and the maximum is 254.
• The total number of primary and secondary log files must not exceed 255 and must not be less than 3.

On UNIX and Linux systems:

• The minimum number of primary log files we can have is 2 and the maximum is 510. The default is 3.
• The total number of primary and secondary log files must not exceed 511 and must not be less than 3.

Operate system limits can reduce the maximum log size.

The value is examined when the queue manager is created or started. We can change it after the queue manager has been created. However, a change in the value is not effective until the queue manager is restarted, and the effect might not be immediate.

For more information about primary log files, see What logs look like.

To calculate the size of the primary log files, see Calculating the size of the log.

-ls LogSecondaryFiles

The log files allocated when the primary files are exhausted. On a Windows system:

• The minimum number of secondary log files that we can have is 1 and the maximum is 253.
• The total number of primary and secondary log files must not exceed 255 and must not be less than 3.

On UNIX and Linux systems:

• The minimum number of secondary log files that we can have is 2 and the maximum is 509. The default is 2.
• The total number of primary and secondary log files must not exceed 511 and must not be less than 3.

Operate system limits can reduce the maximum log size.

The value is examined when the queue manager is started. We can change this value, but changes do not become effective until the queue manager is restarted, and even then the effect might not be immediate.

For more information about the use of secondary log files, see What logs look like.

To calculate the size of the secondary log files, see Calculating the size of the log.

-md DataPath

The directory used to hold the data files for a queue manager.

In IBM MQ for Windows systems, the default is C:\ProgramData\IBM\MQ\qmgrs (assuming that C: is your data drive). If the volume supports file security, the SYSTEM ID, Administrators, and mqm group must be granted read/write access to the directory.

In IBM MQ for UNIX and Linux systems, the default is /var/mqm/qmgrs. User ID mqm and group mqm must have full authorities to the log files.

For RDQM on Linux systems, the default is /var/mqm/vols/qmgrname/qmgr/.

The DataPath parameter is provided to assist in the configuration of multi-instance queue managers. For example, on UNIX and Linux systems: if the /var/mqm directory is located on a local file system, use the DataPath parameter and the LogPath parameter to point to the shared file systems accessible to multiple queue managers.

Note: A queue manager created using DataPath parameter runs on versions of the product earlier than IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.0.1, but the queue manager must be reconfigured to remove the DataPath parameter. We have two options to restore the queue manager to a pre-Version 7.0.1 configuration and run without the DataPath parameter: If we are confident about editing queue manager configurations, we can manually configure the queue manager using the Prefix queue manager configuration parameter. Alternatively, complete the following steps to edit the queue manager:

1. Stop the queue manager.
2. Save the queue manager data and log directories.
3. Delete the queue manager.
4. Backout IBM WebSphere MQ to the pre-Version 7.0.1 fix level.
5. Create the queue manager with the same name.
6. Replace the new queue manager data and log directories with the ones you saved.

-oa group|user

On UNIX and Linux systems, you can specify whether group or user authorization is to be used. If we do not set this parameter, group authorization is used. We can change the authorization model later by setting the SecurityPolicy parameter in the Service stanza of the qm.ini file (see Service stanza format ).

For further information, see Object authority manager (OAM).

-p PortNumber

Create a managed TCP listener on the specified port.

Specify a valid port value in the range 1-65535, to create a TCP listener object that uses the specified port. The new listener is called SYSTEM.LISTENER.TCP.1. This listener is under queue manager control, and is started and stopped along with the queue manager.

-q

Makes this queue manager the default queue manager. The new queue manager replaces any existing default queue manager.

If you accidentally use this flag and we want to revert to an existing queue manager as the default queue manager, change the default queue manager as described in Making an existing queue manager the default.

-rr InstanceType

Create a disaster recovery replicated data queue manager (DR RDQM). Specify -rr p to create the primary instance of the queue manager or specify -rr s to create the secondary instance. We must be root or a user in the mqm group with sudo privileges to use this command.

Use -rr with the -sx or the -sxs parameter to create a DR/HA RDQM.

-rt ReplicationType

Optionally specify whether your DR RDQM configuration uses synchronous or asynchronous replication. Specify -rt s for synchronous and -rt a for asynchronous. Asynchronous is the default.

-rl LocalIP

Specify the local IP address used for replication of data between primary and secondary instances of a DR RDQM.

Use -rl LocalIP, LocalIP, LocalIP with the -sx or the -sxs parameter to create a DR/HA RDQM and specify the three IP addresses used for DR replication on the local HA group.

-ri RemoteIP

Specify the remote IP address used for replication of data between primary and secondary instances of a DR RDQM.

Use -ri RemoteIP, RemoteIP, RemoteIP with the -sx or the -sxs parameter to create a DR/HA RDQM and specify the three IP addresses used for DR replication on the remote HA group. We must specify either the -ri or the -rn parameter when creating a DR/HA RDQM.

-rn RemoteName

Specifies the name of the system that is hosting the other instance of the queue manager. The name is the-+ value that is returned if you run uname -n on that server.

Use -rn GroupName with the -sx or the -sxs parameter to create a DR/HA RDQM and specify name of the remote HA group. The GroupName refers to the group defined in the DRGroup stanza in the rdqm.ini file. We must specify either the -rn or the -ri parameter when creating a DR/HA RDQM.

-rp DRPort

Specifies the port to use for DR replication.

-sa

Automatic queue manager startup. For Windows systems only.

The queue manager is configured to start automatically when the IBM MQ Service starts.

This is the default option if you create a queue manager from IBM MQ Explorer.

Queue managers created in IBM WebSphere MQ releases earlier than Version 7 retain their existing startup type.

-sax

Automatic queue manager startup, permitting multiple instances. For Windows systems only.

The queue manager is configured to start automatically when the IBM MQ Service starts.

If an instance of the queue manager is not already running the queue manager starts, the instance becomes active, and standby instances are permitted elsewhere. If a queue manager instance that permits standbys is already active on a different server, the new instance becomes a standby instance.

Only one instance of a queue manager can run on a server.

Queue managers created in versions of the product earlier than IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.0.1 retain their existing startup type.

-si

Interactive (manual) queue manager startup.

The queue manager is configured to start only when you manually request startup by using the strmqm command. The queue manager runs under the (interactive) user when that user is logged-on. Queue managers configured with interactive startup end when the user who started them logs off.

-ss

Service (manual) queue manager startup.

A queue manager configured to start only when manually requested by using the strmqm command. The queue manager then runs as a child process of the service when the IBM MQ Service starts. Queue managers configured with service startup continue to run even after the interactive user has logged off.

This is the default option if you create a queue manager from the command line.

-sx [DR parameters][-fs FilesystemSize]

Create a high availability replicated data queue manager (HA RDQM) on the primary node for that queue manager (do not specify DR parameters). RDQM is a high availability solution that is available on Linux only. See Create an HA RDQM for more details about creating an RDQM. We must be root or a user in the mqm group with sudo privileges to use this command. The default size for file system size is 3 GB. We can specify a different file system size using the -fs option. The default unit is GB (so -fs 8 creates an 8 GB file system size). We can specify a different unit, for example, specify -fs 1024M to create a 1024 MB file system size. The queue manager is started automatically.

Specify DR parameters to create a DR/HA RDQM on the primary node for that queue manager. See Create DR/HA RDQMs for details. The DR parameters are -rr, -ri, -rl, -rn, -rp.

-sxs [DR parameters][-fs FilesystemSize]

Create a replicated data queue manager (RDQM) on a secondary node (do not specify DR parameters). RDQM is a high availability solution that is available on Linux only. See Create an HA RDQM for more details about creating an RDQM. We must be the root user to use this command. The default size for file system size is 3 GB. The default size for file system size is 3 GB. We can specify a different file system size using the -fs option. The default unit is GB (so -fs 8 creates an 8 GB file system size). We can specify a different unit, for example, specify -fs 1024M to create a 1024 MB file system size.

Specify DR parameters to create a DR/HA RDQM on a secondary node. See Create DR/HA RDQMs for details. The DR parameters are -rr, -ri, -rl, -rn, -rp.

-t IntervalValue

The trigger time interval in milliseconds for all queues controlled by this queue manager. This value specifies the length of time triggering is suspended, after the queue manager receives a trigger-generating message. That is, if the arrival of a message on a queue causes a trigger message to be put on the initiation queue, any message arriving on the same queue within the specified interval does not generate another trigger message.

We can use the trigger time interval to ensure that the application is allowed sufficient time to deal with a trigger condition before it is alerted to deal with another trigger condition on the same queue. We might choose to see all trigger events that happen; if so, set a low or zero value in this field.

Specify a value in the range 0 - 999999999. The default is 999999999 milliseconds; a time of more than 11 days. Allowing the default to be used effectively means that triggering is disabled after the first trigger message. However, an application can enable triggering again by servicing the queue using a command to alter the queue to reset the trigger attribute.

-u DeadLetterQueue

The name of the local queue that is to be used as the dead-letter (undelivered-message) queue. Messages are put on this queue if they cannot be routed to their correct destination.

The default is no dead-letter queue.

-x MaximumUncommittedMessages

The maximum number of uncommitted messages under any one sync point. The uncommitted messages are the sum of:

• The number of messages that can be retrieved from queues
• The number of messages that can be put on queues
• Any trigger messages generated within this unit of work

This limit does not apply to messages that are retrieved or put outside a sync point.

Specify a value in the range 1 - 999999999. The default value is 10000 uncommitted messages.

-z

Suppresses error messages.

This flag is used within IBM MQ to suppress unwanted error messages. Do not use this flag when using a command line. Using this flag can result in a loss of information.

Return codes

Examples

• The following command creates a default queue manager called Paint.queue.manager, with a description of Paint shop, and creates the system and default objects. It also specifies that linear logging is to be used:

  crtmqm -c "Paint shop" -ll -q Paint.queue.manager
  

• The following command creates a default queue manager called Paint.queue.manager, creates the system and default objects, and requests two primary and three secondary log files:

  crtmqm -c "Paint shop" -ll -lp 2 -ls 3 -q Paint.queue.manager
  

• The following command creates a queue manager called travel, creates the system and default objects, sets the trigger interval to 5000 milliseconds (5 seconds), and specifies SYSTEM.DEAD.LETTER.QUEUE as its dead-letter queue.

  crtmqm -t 5000 -u SYSTEM.DEAD.LETTER.QUEUE travel
  

• The following command creates a queue manager called QM1 on UNIX and Linux systems, which has log and queue manager data folders in a common parent directory. The parent directory is to be shared on highly available networked storage to create a multi-instance queue manager. Before issuing the command, create other parameters /MQHA, /MQHA/logs and /MQHA/qmgrs owned by the user and group mqm, and with permissions rwxrwxr-x.

  crtmqm -ld /MQHA/logs -md /MQHA/qmgrs QM1
  

Related reference

• strmqm (start queue manager)
• endmqm (end queue manager)
• dltmqm (delete queue manager)
• setmqm (set the associated installation of a queue manager)

Related information

• Work with dead-letter queues