DEFINE CHANNEL

Use the MQSC command DEFINE CHANNEL to define a new channel, and set its parameters.

Use MQSC commands

For information on how we use MQSC commands, see Performing local administration tasks using MQSC commands.

We can issue this command from sources 2CR. For an explanation of the source symbols, see Sources from which we can issue MQSC commands on z/OS .

Synonym: DEF CHL

Usage notes
Parameter descriptions for DEFINE CHANNEL

Usage notes

For CLUSSDR channels, we can specify the REPLACE option only for manually created channels.
Successful completion of the command does not mean that the action completed. To check for true completion, see the DEFINE CHANNEL step in Check that async commands for distributed networks have finished.

Parameter descriptions for DEFINE CHANNEL

The following table shows the parameters that are relevant for each type of channel:

SDR: Sender channel
SVR: Server channel
RCVR: Receiver channel
RQSTR: Requester channel
CLNTCONN: Client-connection channel
SVRCONN: Server-connection channel
CLUSSDR: Cluster-sender channel
CLUSRCVR: Cluster-receiver channel
AMQP: AMQP channel

There is a description of each parameter after the table. Parameters are optional unless the description states that they are required.

Parameter	SDR	SVR	RCVR	RQSTR	CLNTCONN	SVRCONN	CLUSSDR	CLUSRCVR	AMQP
AFFINITY
AMQPKA
BACKLOG
BATCHHB
BATCHINT
BATCHLIM
BATCHSZ
CERTLABL
channel-name
CHLTYPE
CLNTWGHT
CLUSNL
CLUSTER
CLWLPRTY
CLWLRANK
CLWLWGHT
CMDSCOPE
COMPHDR
COMPMSG
CONNAME
CONVERT
DEFCDISP
DEFRECON
DESCR
DISCINT
HBINT
JAASCFG
KAINT
LIKE
LOCLADDR
LONGRTY
LONGTMR
MAXINST
MAXINSTC
MAXMSGL
MCANAME
MCATYPE
MCAUSER
MODENAME
MONCHL
MRDATA
MREXIT
MRRTY
MRTMR
MSGDATA
MSGEXIT
NETPRTY
NPMSPEED
PASSWORD
PORT
PROPCTL
PUTAUT
QMNAME
QSGDISP
RCVDATA
RCVEXIT
REPLACE
SCYDATA
SCYEXIT
SENDDATA
SENDEXIT
SEQWRAP
SHARECNV
SHORTRTY
SHORTTMR
SPLPROT
SSLCAUTH
SSLCIPH
SSLKEYP
SSLPEER
STATCHL
TPNAME
TPROOT
TRPTYPE
USECLTID
USEDLQ
USERID
XMITQ

AFFINITY

Use the channel affinity attribute when client applications connect multiple times using the same queue manager name. With the attribute, we can choose whether the client uses the same client channel definition for each connection. This attribute is intended to be used when multiple applicable channel definitions are available.

PREFERRED: The first connection in a process reading a client channel definition table (CCDT) creates a list of applicable definitions. The list is based on the weightings, with any applicable CLNTWGHT(0) definitions first and in alphabetic order. Each connection in the process attempts to connect using the first definition in the list. If a connection is unsuccessful the next definition is used. Unsuccessful non- CLNTWGHT(0) definitions are moved to the end of the list. CLNTWGHT(0) definitions remain at the start of the list and are selected first for each connection. For C, C++ and .NET (including fully managed .NET) clients the list is updated if the CCDT was modified since the list was created. Each client process with the same host name creates the same list.
NONE: The first connection in a process reading a CCDT creates a list of applicable definitions. All connections in a process select an applicable definition based on the weighting with any applicable CLNTWGHT(0) definitions selected first in alphabetic order. For C, C++ and .NET (including fully managed .NET) clients the list is updated if the CCDT was modified since the list was created.

For example, suppose that we had the following definitions in the CCDT:

CHLNAME(A) QMNAME (QM1) CLNTWGHT(3)
CHLNAME(B) QMNAME (QM1) CLNTWGHT(4)
CHLNAME(C) QMNAME (QM1) CLNTWGHT(4)

The first connection in a process creates its own ordered list based on the weightings. So it might, for example, create the ordered list CHLNAME(B), CHLNAME(A), CHLNAME(C).

For AFFINITY(PREFFERED), each connection in the process attempts to connect using CHLNAME(B). If a connection is unsuccessful the definition is moved to the end of the list which now becomes CHLNAME(A), CHLNAME(C), CHLNAME(B). Each connection in the process then attempts to connect using CHLNAME(A).

For AFFINITY(NONE), each connection in the process attempts to connect using one of the three definitions selected at random based on the weightings.

If sharing conversations is enabled with a non-zero channel weighting and AFFINITY(NONE), multiple connections do not have to share an existing channel instance. They can connect to the same queue manager name using different applicable definitions rather than sharing an existing channel instance.

AMQPKA(integer)

The keep alive time for an AMQP channel in milliseconds. If the AMQP client has not sent any frames within the keep alive interval, then the connection is closed with an amqp:resource-limit-exceeded AMQP error condition.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of AMQP

BATCHHB(integer)

Specifies whether batch heartbeats are to be used. The value is the length of the heartbeat in milliseconds.

Batch heartbeats allow a sending channel to verify that the receiving channel is still active just before committing a batch of messages. If the receiving channel is not active, the batch can be backed out rather than becoming in-doubt, as would otherwise be the case. By backing out the batch, the messages remain available for processing so they could, for example, be redirected to another channel.

If the sending channel received a communication from the receiving channel within the batch heartbeat interval, the receiving channel is assumed to be still active. If not, a 'heartbeat' is sent to the receiving channel to check.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999. A value of zero indicates that batch heart beats are not used.

This parameter is valid for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of only SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, and CLUSRCVR.

BATCHINT(integer)

The minimum amount of time, in milliseconds, that a channel keeps a batch open. The batch is terminated when one of the following conditions is met:

BATCHSZ messages are sent.
BATCHLIM kilobytes are sent.
The transmission queue is empty and BATCHINT is exceeded.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999999. Zero means that the batch is terminated as soon as the transmission queue becomes empty, or the BATCHSZ limit is reached.

This parameter is valid for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of only SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, and CLUSRCVR.

BATCHLIM(integer)

The limit, in kilobytes, of the amount of data that can be sent through a channel before taking a sync point. A sync point is taken after the message that caused the limit to be reached flows across the channel. A value of zero in this attribute means that no data limit is applied to batches over this channel.

The batch is terminated when one of the following conditions is met:

BATCHSZ messages are sent.
BATCHLIM kilobytes are sent.
The transmission queue is empty and BATCHINT is exceeded.

This parameter is valid for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of only SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, and CLUSRCVR.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999. The default value is 5000.

This parameter is supported on all platforms.

BATCHSZ(integer)

The maximum number of messages that can be sent through a channel before taking a sync point. The maximum batch size used is the lowest of the following values:

The BATCHSZ of the sending channel.
The BATCHSZ of the receiving channel.
On z/OS, three less than the maximum number of uncommitted messages allowed at the sending queue manager (or one if this value is zero or less).
On Multiplatforms, the maximum number of uncommitted messages allowed at the sending queue manager (or one if this value is zero or less).
On z/OS, three less than the maximum number of uncommitted messages allowed at the receiving queue manager (or one if this value is zero or less).
On Multiplatforms, the maximum number of uncommitted messages allowed at the receiving queue manager (or one if this value is zero or less).

While non-persistent messages sent over an NPMSPEED(FAST) channel are delivered to a queue immediately (without waiting for a complete batch), the messages still contribute to the batch size for a channel and, therefore, cause confirm flows to occur when BATCHSZ messages have flowed.

If the batch flows are causing a performance impact when moving only non-persistent messages, and NPMSPEED is set to FAST, we should consider setting the BATCHSZ to the maximum permissible value of 9999, and BATCHLIM to zero.

Additionally, setting BATCHINT to a high value, for example, 999999999 keeps each batch "open" for longer, even if there are no new messages waiting on the transmission queue.

The above settings minimize the frequency of confirm flows, but be aware that if any persistent messages are moved over a channel with these settings, there will be significant delays in the delivery of those persistent messages only.

The maximum number of uncommitted messages is specified by the MAXUMSGS parameter of the ALTER QMGR command.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, RCVR, RQSTR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

The value must be in the range 1 - 9999.

CERTLABL

Certificate label for this channel to use.

The label identifies which personal certificate in the key repository is sent to the remote peer. If this attribute is blank, the certificate is determined by the queue manager CERTLABL parameter.

Note that inbound channels (including receiver, requester, cluster-receiver, unqualified server, and server-connection channels) only send the configured certificate if the IBM MQ version of the remote peer fully supports certificate label configuration, and the channel is using a TLS CipherSpec. See Interoperability of Elliptic Curve and RSA CipherSpecs for further information.

An unqualified server channel is one that does not have the CONNAME field set.

In all other cases, the queue manager CERTLABL parameter determines the certificate sent. In particular, the following only ever receive the certificate configured by the CERTLABL parameter of the queue manager, regardless of the channel-specific label setting:

All current Java and JMS clients.
Versions of IBM MQ prior to Version 8.0.

You do not need to run the REFRESH SECURITY TYPE(SSL) command if you make any changes to CERTLABL on a channel. However, we must run a REFRESH SECURITY TYPE(SSL) command if you make any changes to CERTLABL on the queue manager.

Note: It is an error to inquire, or set, this attribute for cluster-sender channels. If you attempt to do so, you receive the error MQRCCF_WRONG_CHANNEL_TYPE. However, the attribute is present in cluster-sender channel objects (including MQCD structures) and a channel auto-definition (CHAD) exit might set it programmatically if required.

(channel-name)

The name of the new channel definition.

This parameter is required on all types of channel.

On CLUSSDR channels, this parameter can take a different form to the other channel types. If your convention for naming CLUSSDR channels includes the name of the queue manager, we can define a CLUSSDR channel using the +QMNAME+ construction. After connection to the matching CLUSRCVR channel, IBM MQ substitutes the correct repository queue manager name in place of +QMNAME+ in the CLUSSDR channel definition. See Components of a cluster.

The name must not be the same as any existing channel defined on this queue manager, unless REPLACE or ALTER is specified.

On z/OS, CLNTCONN channel names can duplicate others.

The maximum length of the string is 20 characters, and the string must contain only valid characters; see Rules for naming IBM MQ objects.

On CLUSRCVR channels when using automatic cluster setup, this parameter can use some additional inserts:

+AUTOCL+ resolves to the automatic cluster name
+QMNAME+ resolves to the local queue manager name.

When using these inserts, both the unexpanded string and the string with the replaced values must fit inside the maximum size of the field. If there are configured automatic cluster full repositories in the AutoCluster configuration, the channel name must also fit in the maximum channel name length when +QMNAME+ is replaced with each of the configured full repository names.

CHLTYPE

Channel type. This parameter is required.

On Multiplatforms, it must follow immediately after the (channel-name) parameter.

SDR: Sender channel
SVR: Server channel
RCVR: Receiver channel
RQSTR: Requester channel
CLNTCONN: Client-connection channel
SVRCONN: Server-connection channel
CLUSSDR: CLUSSDR channel.
CLUSRCVR: Cluster-receiver channel.
AMQP: AMQP channel

Note: If we are using the REPLACE option, we cannot change the channel type.

CLNTWGHT

Set the client channel weighting attribute to select a client channel definition at random based on its weighting when more than one suitable definition is available. Specify a value in the range 0 - 99.

The special value 0 indicates that no random load balancing is performed and applicable definitions are selected in alphabetic order. To enable random load balancing the value can be in the range 1 - 99, where 1 is the lowest weighting and 99 is the highest.

If a client application issues MQCONN with a queue manager name of *name a client channel definition can be selected at random. The chosen definition is randomly selected based on the weighting. Any applicable CLNTWGHT(0) definitions selected are selected first in alphabetic order. Randomness in the selection of client connection definitions is not guaranteed.

For example, suppose that we had the following two definitions in the CCDT:

CHLNAME(TO.QM1) CHLTYPE(CLNTCONN) QMNAME(GRP1) CONNAME(address1) CLNTWGHT(2)
CHLNAME(TO.QM2) CHLTYPE(CLNTCONN) QMNAME(GRP1) CONNAME(address2) CLNTWGHT(4)

A client MQCONN with queue manager name *GRP1 would choose one of the two definitions based on the weighting of the channel definition. (A random integer 1 - 6 would be generated. If the integer was in the range 1 through 2, address1 would be used otherwise address2 would be used). If this connection was unsuccessful the client would then use the other definition.

The CCDT might contain applicable definitions with both zero and non-zero weighting. In this situation, the definitions with zero weighting are chosen first and in alphabetic order. If these connections are unsuccessful the definitions with non-zero weighting are chosen based on their weighting.

For example, suppose that we had the following four definitions in the CCDT:

CHLNAME(TO.QM1) CHLTYPE(CLNTCONN) QMNAME(GRP1) CONNAME(address1) CLNTWGHT(1)
CHLNAME(TO.QM2) CHLTYPE(CLNTCONN) QMNAME(GRP1) CONNAME(address2) CLNTWGHT(2)
CHLNAME(TO.QM3) CHLTYPE(CLNTCONN) QMNAME(GRP1) CONNAME(address3) CLNTWGHT(0)
CHLNAME(TO.QM4) CHLTYPE(CLNTCONN) QMNAME(GRP1) CONNAME(address4) CLNTWGHT(0)

A client MQCONN with queue manager name *GRP1 would first choose definition TO.QM3. If this connection was unsuccessful the client would then choose definition TO.QM4. If this connection was also unsuccessful the client would then randomly choose one of the remaining two definitions based on their weighting.

CLNTWGHT is supported for all transport protocols.

CLUSNL(nlname)

The name of the namelist that specifies a list of clusters to which the channel belongs.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLUSSDR and CLUSRCVR channels. Only one of the resultant values of CLUSTER or CLUSNL can be nonblank, the other must be blank.

CLUSTER(clustername)

The name of the cluster to which the channel belongs. The maximum length is 48 characters conforming to the rules for naming IBM MQ objects.

On CLUSRCVR channels, when using automatic cluster setup, this parameter can use the value +AUTOCL+, which is automatically expanded to the name of the automatic cluster.

CLWLPRTY(integer)

Specifies the priority of the channel for the purposes of cluster workload distribution. The value must be in the range 0 - 9 where 0 is the lowest priority and 9 is the highest.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLUSSDR and CLUSRCVR channels.

For more information about this attribute, see CLWLPRTY channel attribute.

CLWLRANK(integer)

Specifies the rank of the channel for the purposes of cluster workload distribution. The value must be in the range 0 - 9 where 0 is the lowest rank and 9 is the highest.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLUSSDR and CLUSRCVR channels.

For more information about this attribute, see CLWLRANK channel attribute.

CLWLWGHT(integer)

Specifies the weighting to be applied to a channel so that the proportion of messages sent down the channel can be controlled by workload management. The value must be in the range 1 - 99 where 1 is the lowest rank and 99 is the highest.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLUSSDR and CLUSRCVR channels.

For more information about this attribute, see CLWLWGHT channel attribute.

CMDSCOPE

This parameter applies to z/OS only and specifies how the command runs when the queue manager is a member of a queue sharing group. CMDSCOPE must either be left blank, or if QSGDISP is set to GROUP, the local queue manager name.

' ': The command runs on the queue manager on which it was entered.
QmgrName: The command runs on the queue manager you specify, providing the queue manager is active within the queue sharing group.
We can specify a queue manager name other than the queue manager on which the command was entered. To do so, we must be using a shared queue environment, and the command server must be enabled.
*: The command runs on the local queue manager and is also passed to every active queue manager in the queue sharing group. The effect of * is the same as entering the command on every queue manager in the queue sharing group.

COMPHDR

The list of header data compression techniques supported by the channel.

For SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, CLUSRCVR, and CLNTCONN channels, the values must be specified in order of preference. The first compression technique in the list that is supported by the remote end of the channel is used.

The mutually supported compression techniques of the channel are passed to the message exit of the sending channel. The message exit can alter the compression technique on a per message basis. Compression alters the data passed to send and receive exits.

NONE: No header data compression is performed.
SYSTEM: Header data compression is performed.

COMPMSG

The list of message data compression techniques supported by the channel.

NONE: No message data compression is performed.
RLE: Message data compression is performed using run-length encoding.
ZLIBFAST: Message data compression is performed using ZLIB encoding with speed prioritized.
On z/OS systems with zEDC Express facility enabled, compression can be offloaded to zEDC Express.
ZLIBHIGH: Message data compression is performed using ZLIB encoding with compression prioritized.
ANY: Any compression technique supported by the queue manager can be used. This value is only valid for RCVR, RQSTR, and SVRCONN channels.

CONNAME(string <, string >)

Connection name.

For CLUSRCVR channels, CONNAME relates to the local queue manager, and for other channels it relates to the target queue manager.

On CLUSRCVR channels, when using automatic cluster setup, this parameter can use any variable configured at queue manager create time surrounded by +; for example +CONNAME+.

See the crtmqm -iv option for more information. Note: When using these inserts, both the unexpanded inserts and the expanded values must fit inside the field maximum size.

On z/OS, CONNAME is mandatory for CLUSRCVR channels. In addition, whether you specify CONNAME, or the name is generated for you, the CONNAME produced must be a valid connection name for the local queue manager, otherwise the full repository is not able to make a connection back to the local queue manager.

On z/OS, the maximum length of the string is 48 characters.

On Multiplatforms, the maximum length of the string is 264 characters

A workaround to the 48 character limit might be one of the following suggestions:

Set up your DNS servers so that we use, for example, host name of myserver instead of myserver.location.company.com, ensuring we can use the short host name.
Use IP addresses.

Specify CONNAME as a comma-separated list of names of machines for the stated TRPTYPE. Typically only one machine name is required. We can provide multiple machine names to configure multiple connections with the same properties. The connections are usually tried in the order they are specified in the connection list until a connection is successfully established. The order is modified for clients if the CLNTWGHT attribute is provided. If no connection is successful, the channel attempts the connection again, as determined by the attributes of the channel. With client channels, a connection-list provides an alternative to using queue manager groups to configure multiple connections. With message channels, a connection list is used to configure connections to the alternative addresses of a multi-instance queue manager.

CONNAME is required for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, RQSTR, CLNTCONN, and CLUSSDR. It is optional for SVR channels, and for CLUSRCVR channels of TRPTYPE(TCP), and is not valid for RCVR or SVRCONN channels.

Providing multiple connection names in a list was first supported in IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.0.1. It changes the syntax of the CONNAME parameter. Earlier clients and queue managers connect using the first connection name in the list, and do not read the rest of the connection names in the list. In order for the earlier clients and queue managers to parse the new syntax, we must specify a port number on the first connection name in the list. Specifying a port number avoids problems when connecting to the channel from a client or queue manager that is running at a level earlier than IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.0.1.

On Multiplatforms, the TCP/IP connection name parameter of a cluster-receiver channel is optional. If you leave the connection name blank, IBM MQ generates a connection name for you, assuming the default port and using the current IP address of the system. We can override the default port number, but still use the current IP address of the system. For each connection name leave the IP name blank, and provide the port number in parentheses; for example:

(1415)

The generated CONNAME is always in the dotted decimal (IPv4) or hexadecimal (IPv6) form, rather than in the form of an alphanumeric DNS host name. Tip: If we are using any of the special characters in your connection name (for example, parentheses) we must enclose the string in single quotation marks. The value you specify depends on the transport type (TRPTYPE) to be used:

LU62

On z/OS, there are two forms in which to specify the value:
On IBM i, UNIX, Linux, and Windows, CONNAME is the name of the CPI-C communications side object. Alternatively, if the TPNAME is not blank, CONNAME is the fully qualified name of the partner logical unit. See Configuration parameters for an LU 6.2 connection.

NetBIOS

Form	Example
luname	IGY12355
luname/TPname	IGY12345/APING
luname/TPname/modename	IGY12345/APINGD/#INTER

A unique NetBIOS name (limited to 16 characters).

SPX

The 4-byte network address, the 6-byte node address, and the 2-byte socket number. These values must be entered in hexadecimal, with a period separating the network and node addresses. The socket number must be enclosed in brackets, for example:

CONNAME('0a0b0c0d.804abcde23a1(5e86)')

TCP

Either the host name, or the network address of the remote machine (or the local machine for CLUSRCVR channels). This address can be followed by an optional port number, enclosed in parentheses.

If the CONNAME is a host name, the host name is resolved to an IP address.

The IP stack used for communication depends on the value specified for CONNAME and the value specified for LOCLADDR. See LOCLADDR for information about how this value is resolved.

On z/OS, the connection name can include the IP_name of an z/OS dynamic DNS group or a Network Dispatcher input port. Do not include the IP_name or input port for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLUSSDR.

On all platforms, , we do not always need to specify the network address of our queue manager. If you define a channel with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLUSRCVR that is using TCP/IP, IBM MQ generates a CONNAME for you. It assumes the default port and uses the current IPv4 address of the system. If the system does not have an IPv4 address, the current IPv6 address of the system is used.

Note: If we are using clustering between IPv6-only and IPv4-only queue managers, do not specify an IPv6 network address as the CONNAME for CLUSRCVR channels. A queue manager that is capable only of IPv4 communication is unable to start a CLUSSDR channel definition that specifies the CONNAME in IPv6 hexadecimal form. Consider, instead, using host names in a heterogeneous IP environment.

CONVERT

Specifies whether the sending message channel agent attempts conversion of the application message data, if the receiving message channel agent cannot perform this conversion.

NO: No conversion by sender
YES: Conversion by sender

On z/OS, N and Y are accepted as synonyms of NO and YES.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

DEFCDISP

Specifies the default channel disposition of the channel.

PRIVATE: The intended disposition of the channel is as a private channel.
FIXSHARED: The intended disposition of the channel is as a shared channel associated with a specific queue manager.
SHARED: The intended disposition of the channel is as a shared channel.

This parameter does not apply to channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLNTCONN, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

DEFRECON

Specifies whether a client connection automatically reconnects a client application if its connection breaks.

NO: Unless overridden by MQCONNX, the client is not reconnected automatically.
YES: Unless overridden by MQCONNX, the client reconnects automatically.
QMGR: Unless overridden by MQCONNX, the client reconnects automatically, but only to the same queue manager. The QMGR option has the same effect as MQCNO_RECONNECT_Q_MGR.
DISABLED: Reconnection is disabled, even if requested by the client program using the MQCONNX MQI call.

DEFRECON	Reconnection options set in the application
	MQCNO_RECONNECT	MQCNO_RECONNECT_Q_MGR	MQCNO_RECONNECT_AS_DEF	MQCNO_RECONNECT_DISABLED
NO	YES	QMGR	NO	NO
YES	YES	QMGR	YES	NO
QMGR	YES	QMGR	QMGR	NO
DISABLED	NO	NO	NO	NO

DESCR(string)

Plain-text comment. It provides descriptive information about the channel when an operator issues the DISPLAY CHANNEL command.

It must contain only displayable characters. The maximum length is 64 characters. In a DBCS installation, it can contain DBCS characters (subject to a maximum length of 64 bytes).

Note: If the information is sent to another queue manager they might be translated incorrectly. The characters must be in the coded character set identifier (CCSID) of the local queue manager.

DISCINT(integer)

The minimum time in seconds for which the channel waits for a message to arrive on the transmission queue. The waiting period starts after a batch ends. After the end of the waiting period, if there are no more messages, the channel is ended. A value of zero causes the message channel agent to wait indefinitely.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999 999.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SVRCONN, SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, CLUSRCVR.

For SVRCONN channels using the TCP protocol, DISCINT has a different interpretation. It is the minimum time in seconds for which the SVRCONN instance remains active without any communication from its partner client. A value of zero disables this disconnect processing. The SVRCONN inactivity interval applies only between IBM MQ API calls from a client, so no client is disconnected during an extended MQGET with wait call. This attribute is ignored for SVRCONN channels using protocols other than TCP.

HBINT(integer)

HBINT specifies the approximate time between heartbeat flows sent by a message channel agent (MCA). The flows are sent when there are no messages on the transmission queue.

Heartbeat flows unblock the receiving MCA, which is waiting for messages to arrive or for the disconnect interval to expire. When the receiving MCA is unblocked, it can disconnect the channel without waiting for the disconnect interval to expire. Heartbeat flows also free any storage buffers that are allocated for large messages. They also close any queues that are left open at the receiving end of the channel.

The value is in seconds and must be in the range 0 - 999999. A value of zero means that no heartbeat flows are to be sent. The default value is 300. To be most useful, the value needs to be less than the disconnect interval value.

For SVRCONN and CLNTCONN channels, heartbeats can flow from both the server side as well as the client side independently. If no data is transferred across the channel during the heartbeat interval, the CLNTCONN MQI agent sends a heartbeat flow. The SVRCONN MQI agent responds to it with another heartbeat flow. The flows happen irrespective of the state of the channel. For example, irrespective of whether it is inactive while making an API call, or is inactive waiting for client user input. The SVRCONN MQI agent is also capable of initiating a heartbeat to the client, again irrespective of the state of the channel. The SVRCONN and CLNTCONN MQI agents are prevented from heart beating to each other at the same time. The server heartbeat is flowed if no data is transferred across the channel for the heartbeat interval plus 5 seconds.

For server-connection and client-connection channels working in the channel mode before IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.0, heartbeats flow only when a server MCA is waiting for an MQGET command with the WAIT option specified, which it has issued on behalf of a client application.

For more information, see Heartbeat interval (HBINT).

KAINT(integer)

The value passed to the communications stack for keepalive timing for this channel.

For this attribute to be effective, TCP/IP keepalive must be enabled both in the queue manager and in TCP/IP.

On z/OS, enable TCP/IP keepalive in the queue manager by issuing the ALTER QMGR TCPKEEP(YES) command. If the TCPKEEP queue manager parameter is NO, the value is ignored, and the keepalive facility is not used.

On Multiplatforms, TCP/IP keepalive is enabled when the KEEPALIVE=YES parameter is specified in the TCP stanza. Modify the TCP stanza in the distributed queuing configuration file, qm.ini, or through the IBM MQ Explorer.

Keepalive must also be enabled within TCP/IP itself. Refer to your TCP/IP documentation for information about configuring keepalive:

On AIX, use the no command.
On Windows, edit the registry.
On z/OS, update your TCP/IP PROFILE data set and add or change the INTERVAL parameter in the TCPCONFIG section.

Although the KAINT parameter is available on all platforms, its setting is implemented only on z/OS.

On Multiplatforms, we can access and modify the parameter, but there is no functional implementation of the parameter, it is only stored and forwarded. This functionality is useful in a clustered environment where a value set in a cluster-receiver channel definition on AIX, for example, flows to (and is implemented by) z/OS queue managers that are in, or join, the cluster. On Multiplatforms, if we need the functionality provided by the KAINT parameter, use the Heartbeat Interval (HBINT) parameter, as described in HBINT.

(integer)

The KeepAlive interval to be used, in seconds, in the range 1 through 99999.

0

The value used is that specified by the INTERVAL statement in the TCP profile configuration data set.

AUTO

The KeepAlive interval is calculated based upon the negotiated heartbeat value as follows:

If the negotiated HBINT is greater than zero, keepalive interval is set to that value plus 60 seconds.
If the negotiated HBINT is zero, the keepalive value used is that specified by the INTERVAL statement in the TCP/IP PROFILE configuration data set.

If AUTO is specified for KAINT, and it is a server-connection channel, the TCP INTERVAL value is used instead for the keepalive interval.

In this case, KAINT is zero in DISPLAY CHSTATUS; it would be non-zero if an integer had been coded instead of AUTO.

This parameter is valid for all channel types. It is ignored for channels with a TRPTYPE other than TCP or SPX.

LIKE(channel-name)

The name of a channel. The parameters of this channel are used to model this definition. If we do not set LIKE, and do not set a parameter field related to the command, its value is taken from one of the default channels. The default values depend upon the channel type:

SYSTEM.DEF.SENDER: Sender channel
SYSTEM.DEF.SERVER: Server channel
SYSTEM.DEF.RECEIVER: Receiver channel
SYSTEM.DEF.REQUESTER: Requester channel
SYSTEM.DEF.SVRCONN: Server-connection channel
SYSTEM.DEF.CLNTCONN: Client-connection channel
SYSTEM.DEF.CLUSSDR: CLUSSDR channel
SYSTEM.DEF.CLUSRCVR: Cluster-receiver channel
SYSTEM.DEF.AMQP: AMQP channel

This parameter is equivalent to defining the following object for a SDR channel, and similarly for other channel types:

LIKE(SYSTEM.DEF.SENDER)

These default channel definitions can be altered by the installation to the default values required.

On z/OS, the queue manager searches page set zero for an object with the name you specify and a disposition of QMGR or COPY. The disposition of the LIKE object is not copied to the object and channel type we are defining. Note:

QSGDISP(GROUP) objects are not searched.
LIKE is ignored if QSGDISP(COPY) is specified. However, the group object defined is used as a LIKE object.

LOCLADDR(string)

LOCLADDR is the local communications address for the channel. For channels other than AMQP channels, use this parameter if we want a channel to use a particular IP address, port, or port range for outbound communications. LOCLADDR might be useful in recovery scenarios where a channel is restarted on a different TCP/IP stack. LOCLADDR is also useful to force a channel to use an IPv4 or IPv6 stack on a dual-stack system. We can also use LOCLADDR to force a channel to use a dual-mode stack on a single-stack system. Note: AMQP channels do not support the same format of LOCLADDR as other IBM MQ channels. For the format supported by AMQ, see the next parameter AMQP: LOCLADDR.

For channels other than AMQP channels, the LOCLADDR parameter is valid only for channels with a transport type (TRPTYPE) of TCP. If TRPTYPE is not TCP, the data is ignored and no error message is issued.

The value is the optional IP address, and optional port or port range used for outbound TCP/IP communications. The format for this information is as follows:

LOCLADDR([ip-addr][(low-port[,high-port])][,[ip-addr][(low-port[,high-port])]])

The maximum length of LOCLADDR, including multiple addresses, is MQ_LOCAL_ADDRESS_LENGTH.

If we omit LOCLADDR, a local address is automatically allocated.

Note, that we can set LOCLADDR for a C client using the Client Channel Definition Table (CCDT).

All the parameters are optional. Omitting the ip-addr part of the address is useful to enable the configuration of a fixed port number for an IP firewall. Omitting the port number is useful to select a particular network adapter without having the identify a unique local port number. The TCP/IP stack generates a unique port number.

Specify [,[ip-addr][(low-port[,high-port])]] multiple times for each additional local address. Use multiple local addresses if we want to specify a specific subset of local network adapters. We can also use [,[ip-addr][(low-port[,high-port])]] to represent a particular local network address on different servers that are part of a multi-instance queue manager configuration.

ip-addr

ip-addr is specified in one of three forms:

IPv4 dotted decimal: For example, 192.0.2.1
IPv6 hexadecimal notation: For example, 2001:DB8:0:0:0:0:0:0
Alphanumeric host name form: For example WWW.EXAMPLE.COM

low-port and high-port

low-port and high-port are port numbers enclosed in parentheses.

The following table shows how the LOCLADDR parameter can be used:

LOCLADDR	Meaning
9.20.4.98	Channel binds to this address locally
9.20.4.98, 9.20.4.99	Channel binds to either IP address. The address might be two network adapters on one server, or a different network adapter on two different servers in a multi-instance configuration.
9.20.4.98(1000)	Channel binds to this address and port 1000 locally
9.20.4.98(1000,2000)	Channel binds to this address and uses a port in the range 1000 - 2000 locally
(1000)	Channel binds to port 1000 locally
(1000,2000)	Channel binds to port in range 1000 - 2000 locally

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, RQSTR, CLNTCONN, CLUSSDR, OR CLUSRCVR.

On CLUSSDR channels, the IP address and port to which the outbound channel binds, is a combination of fields. It is a concatenation of the IP address, as defined in the LOCLADDR parameter, and the port range from the cluster cache. If there is no port range in the cache, the port range defined in the LOCLADDR parameter is used.

This port range does not apply to z/OS systems.

Even though this parameter is similar in form to CONNAME, it must not be confused with it. The LOCLADDR parameter specifies the characteristics of the local communications, whereas the CONNAME parameter specifies how to reach a remote queue manager.

When a channel is started, the values specified for CONNAME and LOCLADDR determine the IP stack to be used for communication; see Table 3 and Local Address ( LOCLADDR).

If the TCP/IP stack for the local address is not installed or configured, the channel does not start and an exception message is generated.

For example, on z/OS systems, the message is "CSQO015E: Command issued but no reply received." The message indicates that the connect() request specifies an interface address that is not known on the default IP stack. To direct the connect() request to the alternative stack, specify the LOCLADDR parameter in the channel definition as either an interface on the alternative stack, or a DNS host name. The same specification also works for listeners that might not use the default stack. To find the value to code for LOCLADDR, run the NETSTAT HOME command on the IP stacks that we want to use as alternatives.

Protocols supported	CONNAME	LOCLADDR	Action of channel
IPv4 only	IPv4 address ¹		Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv6 address ²		Channel fails to resolve CONNAME
	IPv4 and 6 host name ³		Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv4 address	IPv4 address	Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv6 address	IPv4 address	Channel fails to resolve CONNAME
	IPv4 and 6 host name	IPv4 address	Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	Any address ⁴	IPv6 address	Channel fails to resolve LOCLADDR
	IPv4 address	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv6 address	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel fails to resolve CONNAME
	IPv4 and 6 host name	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel binds to IPv4 stack
IPv4 and IPv6	IPv4 address		Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv6 address		Channel binds to IPv6 stack
	IPv4 and 6 host name		Channel binds to stack determined by IPADDRV
	IPv4 address	IPv4 address	Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv6 address	IPv4 address	Channel fails to resolve CONNAME
	IPv4 and 6 host name	IPv4 address	Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv4 address	IPv6 address	Channel maps CONNAME to IPv6 ⁵
	IPv6 address	IPv6 address	Channel binds IPv6 stack
	IPv4 and 6 host name	IPv6 address	Channel binds IPv6 stack
	IPv4 address	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel binds to IPv4 stack
	IPv6 address	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel binds to IPv6 stack
	IPv4 and 6 host name	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel binds to stack determined by IPADDRV
IPv6 only	IPv4 address		Channel maps CONNAME to IPv6 ⁵
	IPv6 address		Channel binds to IPv6 stack
	IPv4 and 6 host name		Channel binds to IPv6 stack
	Any address	IPv4 address	Channel fails to resolve LOCLADDR
	IPv4 address	IPv6 address	Channel maps CONNAME to IPv6 ⁵
	IPv6 address	IPv6 address	Channel binds to IPv6 stack
	IPv4 and 6 host name	IPv6 address	Channel binds to IPv6 stack
	IPv4 address	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel maps CONNAME to IPv6 ⁵
	IPv6 address	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel binds to IPv6 stack
	IPv4 and 6 host name	IPv4 and 6 host name	Channel binds to IPv6 stack
Notes: IPv4 address. An IPv4 host name that resolves only to an IPv4 network address or a specific dotted notation IPv4 address, for example 1.2.3.4. This note applies to all occurrences of ' IPv4 address' in this table. IPv6 address. An IPv6 host name that resolves only to an IPv6 network address or a specific hexadecimal notation IPv6 address, for example 4321:54bc. This note applies to all occurrences of ' IPv6 address' in this table. IPv4 and 6 host name. A host name that resolves to both IPv4 and IPv6 network addresses. This note applies to all occurrences of ' IPv4 and 6 host name' in this table. Any address. IPv4 address, IPv6 address, or IPv4 and 6 host name. This note applies to all occurrences of 'Any address' in this table. Maps IPv4 CONNAME to IPv4 mapped IPv6 address. IPv6 stack implementations that do not support IPv4 mapped IPv6 addressing fail to resolve the CONNAME. Mapped addresses might require protocol translators in order to be used. The use of mapped addresses is not recommended.

AMQP: LOCLADDR(ip-addr)

Note: For the format of LOCLADDR that other IBM MQ channels use, see the previous parameter LOCLADDR.

For AMQP channels, LOCLADDR is the local communications address for the channel. Use this parameter if we want to force the client to use a particular IP address. LOCLADDR is also useful to force a channel to use an IPv4 or IPv6 address if a choice is available, or to use a particular network adapter on a system with multiple network adapters.

The maximum length of LOCLADDR is MQ_LOCAL_ADDRESS_LENGTH.

If we omit LOCLADDR, a local address is automatically allocated.

ip-addr

ip-addr is a single network address, specified in one of three forms:

IPv4 dotted decimal: For example, 192.0.2.1
IPv6 hexadecimal notation: For example, 2001:DB8:0:0:0:0:0:0
Alphanumeric host name form: For example, WWW.EXAMPLE.COM

If an IP address is entered, only the address format is validated. The IP address itself is not validated.

LONGRTY(integer)

The LONGRTY parameter specifies the maximum number of further attempts that are made by a SDR, SVR, or CLUSSDR channel to connect to a remote queue manager. The interval between attempts is specified by LONGTMR. The LONGRTY parameter takes effect if the count specified by SHORTRTY is exhausted.

If this count is exhausted without success, an error is logged to the operator, and the channel stops. In this circumstance, the channel must be restarted with a command. It is not started automatically by the channel initiator.

The LONGRTY value must be in the range 0 - 9999999.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type ( CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

A channel attempts to reconnect if it fails to connect initially, whether it is started automatically by the channel initiator or by an explicit command. It also tries to connect again if the connection fails after the channel successfully connecting. If the cause of the failure is such that more attempts are unlikely to be successful, they are not attempted.

LONGTMR(integer)

For LONGRTY, LONGTMR is the maximum number of seconds to wait before reattempting connection to the remote queue manager.

The time is approximate; zero means that another connection attempt is made as soon as possible.

The interval between attempting to reconnect might be extended if the channel has to wait to become active.

The LONGTMR value must be in the range 0 - 9999999.

Note: For implementation reasons, the maximum LONGTMR value is 999,999; values exceeding this maximum are treated as 999,999. Similarly, the minimum interval between attempting to reconnect is 2 seconds. Values less than this minimum are treated as 2 seconds.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type ( CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

MAXINST(integer)

The maximum number of simultaneous instances of an individual SVRCONN channel or AMQP channel that can be started.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999999.

A value of zero prevents all client access on this channel.

New instances of SVRCONN channels cannot start if the number of running instances equals or exceeds the value of this parameter. If MAXINST is changed to less than the number of instances of the SVRCONN channel that are currently running, the number of running instances is not affected.

If an AMQP client attempts to connect to an AMQP channel, and the number of connected clients has reached MAXINST, the channel closes the connection with a close frame. The close frame contains the following message: amqp:resource-limit-exceeded. If a client connects with an ID that is already connected (that is, it performs a client-takeover), and the client is permitted to take over the connection, the takeover will succeed regardless of whether the number of connected clients has reached MAXINST.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SVRCONN or AMQP.

MAXINSTC(integer)

The maximum number of simultaneous individual SVRCONN channels that can be started from a single client. In this context, connections that originate from the same remote network address are regarded as coming from the same client.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999999.

A value of zero prevents all client access on this channel.

If you reduce the value of MAXINSTC to less than the number of instances of the SVRCONN channel that is currently running from an individual client, the running instances are not affected. New SVRCONN instances from that client cannot start until the client is running fewer instances than the value of MAXINSTC.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SVRCONN.

MAXMSGL(integer)

Specifies the maximum message length that can be transmitted on the channel. This parameter is compared with the value for the partner and the actual maximum used is the lower of the two values. The value is ineffective if the MQCB function is being executed and the channel type (CHLTYPE) is SVRCONN.

The value zero means the maximum message length for the queue manager; see ALTER QMGR MAXMSGL.

On Multiplatforms, specify a value in the range zero to the maximum message length for the queue manager.

On z/OS, specify a value in the range 0 - 104857600 bytes (100 MB).

Note that by adding the digital signature and key to the message, Advanced Message Security increases the length of the message.

MCANAME(string)

Message channel agent name.

This parameter is reserved, and if specified must be set to blanks (maximum length 20 characters).

MCATYPE

Specifies whether the message-channel-agent program on an outbound message channel runs as a thread or a process.

PROCESS: The message channel agent runs as a separate process.
THREAD: The message channel agent runs as a separate thread

In situations where a threaded listener is required to service many incoming requests, resources can become strained. In this case, use multiple listener processes and target incoming requests at specific listeners though the port number specified on the listener.

On Multiplatforms, this parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, RQSTR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

On z/OS, this parameter is supported only for channels with a channel type of CLUSRCVR. When specified in a CLUSRCVR definition, MCATYPE is used by a remote machine to determine the corresponding CLUSSDR definition.

MCAUSER(string)

Message channel agent user identifier. Note: An alternative way of providing a user ID for a channel to run under is to use channel authentication records. With channel authentication records, different connections can use the same channel while using different credentials. If both MCAUSER on the channel is set and channel authentication records are used to apply to the same channel, the channel authentication records take precedence. The MCAUSER on the channel definition is only used if the channel authentication record uses USERSRC(CHANNEL). For more details, see Channel authentication records

This parameter interacts with PUTAUT, see PUTAUT.

If MCAUSER is nonblank, a user identifier is used by the message channel agent for authorization to access IBM MQ resources. If PUTAUT is DEF, authorization includes authorization to put the message to the destination queue for RCVR or RQSTR channels.

If it is blank, the message channel agent uses its default user identifier.

The default user identifier is derived from the user ID that started the receiving channel. The possible values are:

z/OS: The user ID assigned to the channel-initiator started task by the z/OS started-procedures table.
TCP/IP, Multiplatforms: The user ID from the inetd.conf entry, or the user that started the listener.
SNA, Multiplatforms: The user ID from the SNA server entry. In the absence of the user ID from the SNA server entry, the user from the incoming attach request, or the user that started the listener.
NetBIOS or SPX: The user ID that started the listener.

The maximum length of the string is:

64 characters on Windows.
For channels with a CHLTYPE of AMQP, before IBM MQ Version 9.1.1, the MCAUSER user ID setting is only supported for user IDs up to 12 characters in length. From Version 9.1.1 Continuous Delivery, and from Version 9.2.0 Long Term Support, the 12 character limit is removed.
12 characters on platforms other than Windows.

On Windows, we can optionally qualify a user identifier with the domain name in the format user@domain.

This parameter is not valid for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, CLNTCONN, CLUSSDR.

MODENAME(string)

LU 6.2 mode name (maximum length 8 characters).

This parameter is valid only for channels with a transport type (TRPTYPE) of LU62. If TRPTYPE is not LU62, the data is ignored and no error message is issued.

If specified, this parameter must be set to the SNA mode name unless the CONNAME contains a side-object name. If CONNAME is a a side-object name it must be set to blanks. The actual name is then taken from the CPI-C Communications Side Object, or APPC side information data set, see Configuration parameters for an LU 6.2 connection.

This parameter is not valid for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR or SVRCONN.

MONCHL

Controls the collection of online monitoring data for channels:

QMGR: Collect monitoring data according to the setting of the queue manager parameter MONCHL.
OFF: Monitor data collection is turned off for this channel.
LOW: If the value of the queue manager MONCHL parameter is not NONE, online monitoring data is turned on. Data us collected at a low rate for this channel.
MEDIUM: If the value of the queue manager MONCHL parameter is not NONE, online monitoring data is turned on. Data us collected at a medium rate for this channel.
HIGH: If the value of the queue manager MONCHL parameter is not NONE, online monitoring data is turned on. Data us collected at a high rate for this channel.

Changes to this parameter take effect only on channels started after the change occurs.

For cluster channels, the value of this parameter is not replicated in the repository and, therefore, not used in the auto-definition of CLUSSDR channels. For auto-defined CLUSSDR channels, the value of this parameter is taken from the queue manager attribute MONACLS. This value might then be overridden in the channel auto-definition exit.

MRDATA(string)

Channel message-retry exit user data. The maximum length is 32 characters.

This parameter is passed to the channel message-retry exit when it is called.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR, RQSTR, or CLUSRCVR.

MREXIT(string)

Channel message-retry exit name.

The format and maximum length of the name is the same as for MSGEXIT, however we can specify only one message-retry exit.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR, RQSTR, or CLUSRCVR.

MRRTY(integer)

The number of times the channel tries again before it decides it cannot deliver the message.

This parameter controls the action of the MCA only if the message-retry exit name is blank. If the exit name is not blank, the value of MRRTY is passed to the exit to use. The number of attempts to redeliver the message is controlled by the exit, and not by this parameter.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999999. A value of zero means that no attempts to redeliver the message are tried.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR, RQSTR, or CLUSRCVR.

MRTMR(integer)

The minimum interval of time that must pass before the channel can try the MQPUT operation again. The time interval is in milliseconds.

This parameter controls the action of the MCA only if the message-retry exit name is blank. If the exit name is not blank, the value of MRTMR is passed to the exit to use. The number of attempts to redeliver the message is controlled by the exit, and not by this parameter.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999999. A value of zero means that if the value of MRRTY is greater than zero, the channel reattempts delivery as soon as possible.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR, RQSTR, or CLUSRCVR.

MSGDATA(string)

User data for the channel message exit. The maximum length is 32 characters.

This data is passed to the channel message exit when it is called.

On UNIX, Linux, and Windows, we can specify data for more than one exit program by specifying multiple strings separated by commas. The total length of the field must not exceed 999 characters.

On IBM i, we can specify up to 10 strings, each of length 32 characters. The first string of data is passed to the first message exit specified, the second string to the second exit, and so on.

On z/OS, we can specify up to eight strings, each of length 32 characters. The first string of data is passed to the first message exit specified, the second string to the second exit, and so on.

On other platforms, we can specify only one string of message exit data for each channel.

Note: This parameter is accepted but ignored for SVRCONN and CLNTCONN channels.

MSGEXIT(string)

Channel message exit name. If MSGEXIT is nonblank the exit is called at the following times:

Immediately after a SDR or SVR channel retrieves a message from the transmission queue.
Immediately before a RQSTR channel puts a message on destination queue.
When the channel is initialized or ended.

The exit is passed the entire application message and transmission queue header for modification.

MSGEXIT is accepted and ignored by CLNTCONN and SVRCONN channels. CLNTCONN or SVRCONN channels do not call message exits.

The format and maximum length of the exit name depends on the platform; see Table 6. If the MSGEXIT, MREXIT, SCYEXIT, SENDEXIT, and RCVEXIT parameters are all left blank, the channel user exit is not invoked. If any of these parameters is nonblank, the channel exit program is called. We can enter text string for these parameters. The maximum length of the string is 128 characters.

Platform	Exit name format	Maximum length	Comment
UNIX and Linux	libraryname (functionname)	128	We can specify the name of more than one exit program. Specify multiple strings separated by commas. However, the total number of characters specified must not exceed 999.
Windows	dllname (functionname)	128	We can specify the name of more than one exit program. Specify multiple strings separated by commas. However, the total number of characters specified must not exceed 999. dllname is specified without the suffix (.DLL).
IBM i	progname libname	20	We can specify the names of up to 10 exit programs by specifying multiple strings separated by commas. program name occupies the first 10 characters and libname the second 10 characters. If necessary, both fields are padded to the right with blanks.
z/OS	loadModuleName	8	We can specify the names of up to eight exit programs by specifying multiple strings separated by commas. 128 characters are allowed for exit names for CLNTCONN channels, subject to a maximum total length including commas of 999.

NETPRTY(integer)

The priority for the network connection. Distributed queuing chooses the path with the highest priority if there are multiple paths available. The value must be in the range 0 - 9; 0 is the lowest priority.

This parameter is valid only for CLUSRCVR channels.

NPMSPEED

The class of service for nonpersistent messages on this channel:

FAST: Fast delivery for nonpersistent messages; messages might be lost if the channel is lost. Messages are retrieved using MQGMO_SYNCPOINT_IF_PERSISTENT and so are not included in the batch unit of work.
NORMAL: Normal delivery for nonpersistent messages.

If the value of NPMSPEED differs between the sender and receiver, or either one does not support it, NORMAL is used. Notes:

If the active recovery logs for IBM MQ for z/OS are switching and archiving more frequently than expected, given that the messages being sent across a channel are non-persistent, setting NPMSPEED(FAST) on both the sending and receiving ends of the channel can minimize the SYSTEM.CHANNEL.SYNCQ updates.
If we are seeing high CPU usage relating to updates to the SYSTEM.CHANNEL.SYNCQ, setting NPMSPEED(FAST) can significantly reduce the CPU usage.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a CHLTYPE of SDR, SVR, RCVR, RQSTR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

PASSWORD(string)

Password used by the message channel agent when attempting to initiate a secure LU 6.2 session with a remote message channel agent. The maximum length is 12 characters.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, RQSTR, CLNTCONN, or CLUSSDR.

On z/OS, it is supported only for channels with a channel type ( CHLTYPE) of CLNTCONN.

Although the maximum length of the parameter is 12 characters, only the first 10 characters are used.

PORT(integer)

The port number used to connect an AMQP channel. The default port for AMQP 1.0 connections is 5672. If we are already using port 5672, we can specify a different port.

PROPCTL

Property control attribute; see PROPCTL channel options.

PROPCTL specifies what happens to message properties when a message is sent to another queue manager; see

This parameter is applicable to SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, and CLUSRCVR channels.

This parameter is optional.

Permitted values are:

COMPAT

COMPAT allows applications which expect JMS-related properties to be in an MQRFH2 header in the message data to continue to work unmodified.

Message properties	Result
The message contains a property with a prefix of mcd., jms., usr. or mqext.	If the Support value is MQPD_SUPPORT_OPTIONAL, all optional message properties are placed in one or more MQRFH2 headers. This rule does not apply to properties in the message descriptor or extension, which remain in the same place. Optional message properties are moved into the message data before the message it sent to the remote queue manager.
The message does not contain a property with a prefix of mcd., jms., usr. or mqext.	All message properties, except properties in the message descriptor or extension, are removed from the message before the message is sent to the remote queue manager.
The message contains a property where the Support field of the property descriptor is not set to MQPD_SUPPORT_OPTIONAL	The message is rejected with reason MQRC_UNSUPPORTED_PROPERTY and treated in accordance with its report options.
The message contains one or more properties where the Support field of the property descriptor is set to MQPD_SUPPORT_OPTIONAL. Other fields of the property descriptor are set to non-default values.	The properties with non-default values are removed from the message before the message is sent to the remote queue manager.
The MQRFH2 folder that would contain the message property needs to be assigned with the content='properties' attribute	The properties are removed to prevent MQRFH2 headers with unsupported syntax flowing to a Version 6 or prior queue manager.

NONE

All properties of the message, except properties in the message descriptor or extension, are removed from the message. The properties are removed before the message is sent to the remote queue manager.

If the message contains a property where the Support field of the property descriptor is not set to MQPD_SUPPORT_OPTIONAL then the message is rejected with reason MQRC_UNSUPPORTED_PROPERTY. The error is reported in accordance with the report options set in the message header.

ALL

All properties of the message are included with the message when it is sent to the remote queue manager. The properties, except properties in the message descriptor (or extension), are placed in one or more MQRFH2 headers in the message data.

PUTAUT

PUTAUT specifies which user identifiers are used to establish authority for a channel. It specifies the user identifier to put messages to the destination queue using a message channel, or to run an MQI call using an MQI channel.

DEF: The default user ID is used.
On z/OS, DEF might involve using both the user ID received from the network and that derived from MCAUSER.
CTX: The user ID from the UserIdentifier field of the message descriptor is used.
On z/OS, CTX might involve also using the user ID received from the network or that derived from MCAUSER, or both.
ONLYMCA: The user ID derived from MCAUSER is used. Any user ID received from the network is not used. This value is supported only on z/OS.
ALTMCA: The user ID from the UserIdentifier field of the message descriptor is used. Any user ID received from the network is not used. This value is supported only on z/OS.

On z/OS, the user IDs that are checked, and how many user IDs are checked, depends on the setting of the MQADMIN RACF class hlq.RESLEVEL profile. Depending on the level of access the user ID of the channel initiator has to hlq.RESLEVEL, zero, one, or two user IDs are checked. To see how many user IDs are checked, see RESLEVEL and the channel initiator connection. For more information about which user IDs are checked, see User IDs used by the channel initiator.

On z/OS, this parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR, RQSTR, CLUSRCVR, or SVRCONN. CTX and ALTMCA are not valid for SVRCONN channels.

On Multiplatforms, this parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR, RQSTR, or CLUSRCVR.

QMNAME(string)

Queue manager name.

For CLNTCONN channels, QMNAME is the name of a queue manager to which an IBM MQ MQI client application can request connection. QMNAME is not necessarily the same as the name of the queue manager on which the channel is defined; see Queue manager groups in the CCDT.

For channels of other types, the QMNAME parameter is not valid.

QSGDISP

This parameter applies to z/OS only.

Specifies the disposition of the object to which we are applying the command (that is, where it is defined and how it behaves).

QSGDISP	DEFINE
COPY	The object is defined on the page set of the queue manager that executes the command using the QSGDISP(GROUP) object of the same name as the LIKE object.
GROUP	The object definition resides in the shared repository but only if the queue manager is in a queue sharing group. If the definition is successful, the following command is generated. The command is sent to all active queue managers in the queue sharing group to make or refresh local copies on page set zero: DEFINE CHANNEL(channel-name) CHLTYPE(type) REPLACE QSGDISP(COPY) The DEFINE command for the group object takes effect regardless of whether the generated command with QSGDISP(COPY) fails.
PRIVATE	Not permitted.
QMGR	The object is defined on the page set of the queue manager that executes the command.

RCVDATA(string)

Channel receive exit user data (maximum length 32 characters).

This parameter is passed to the channel receive exit when it is called.

On UNIX, Linux, and Windows, we can specify data for more than one exit program by specifying multiple strings separated by commas. The total length of the field must not exceed 999 characters.

On IBM i, we can specify up to 10 strings, each of length 32 characters. The first string of data is passed to the first receive exit specified, the second string to the second exit, and so on.

On z/OS, we can specify up to eight strings, each of length 32 characters. The first string of data is passed to the first receive exit specified, the second string to the second exit, and so on.

On other platforms, we can specify only one string of receive exit data for each channel.

RCVEXIT(string)

Channel receive exit name. If this name is nonblank, the exit is called at the following times:

Immediately before the received network data is processed.
The exit is given the complete transmission buffer as received. The contents of the buffer can be modified as required.
At initialization and termination of the channel.

On UNIX, Linux, and Windows, we can specify the name of more than one exit program by specifying multiple strings separated by commas. However, the total number of characters specified must not exceed 999.

On IBM i, we can specify the names of up to 10 exit programs by specifying multiple strings separated by commas.

On z/OS, we can specify the names of up to eight exit programs by specifying multiple strings separated by commas.

On other platforms, we can specify only one receive exit name for each channel.

The format and maximum length of the name is the same as for MSGEXIT.

REPLACE and NOREPLACE

Replace the existing definition with this one, or not. This parameter is optional.

On z/OS it must have the same disposition. Any object with a different disposition is not changed.

REPLACE: The definition replaces any existing definition of the same name. If a definition does not exist, one is created. REPLACE does not alter the channel status.
NOREPLACE: The definition does not replace any existing definition of the same name.

SCYDATA(string)

Channel security exit user data (maximum length 32 characters).

This parameter is passed to the channel security exit when it is called.

SCYEXIT(string)

Channel security exit name. If this name is nonblank, the exit is called at the following times:

Immediately after establishing a channel.
Before any messages are transferred, the exit is able to instigate security flows to validate connection authorization.
Upon receipt of a response to a security message flow.
Any security message flows received from the remote processor on the remote queue manager are given to the exit.
At initialization and termination of the channel.

The format and maximum length of the name is the same as for MSGEXIT but only one name is allowed.

SENDDATA(string)

Channel send exit user data. The maximum length is 32 characters.

This parameter is passed to the channel send exit when it is called.

On UNIX, Linux, and Windows, we can specify data for more than one exit program by specifying multiple strings separated by commas. The total length of the field must not exceed 999 characters.

On IBM i, we can specify up to 10 strings, each of length 32 characters. The first string of data is passed to the first send exit specified, the second string to the second exit, and so on.

On z/OS, we can specify up to eight strings, each of length 32 characters. The first string of data is passed to the first send exit specified, the second string to the second exit, and so on.

On other platforms, we can specify only one string of send exit data for each channel.

SENDEXIT(string)

Channel send exit name. If this name is nonblank, the exit is called at the following times:

Immediately before data is sent out on the network.
The exit is given the complete transmission buffer before it is transmitted. The contents of the buffer can be modified as required.
At initialization and termination of the channel.

On IBM i, we can specify the names of up to 10 exit programs by specifying multiple strings separated by commas.

On z/OS, we can specify the names of up to eight exit programs by specifying multiple strings separated by commas.

On other platforms, we can specify only one send exit name for each channel.

The format and maximum length of the name is the same as for MSGEXIT.

SEQWRAP(integer)

When this value is reached, sequence numbers wrap to start again at 1.

This value is nonnegotiable and must match in both the local and remote channel definitions.

The value must be in the range 100 - 999999999.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, RCVR, RQSTR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

SHARECNV(integer)

Specifies the maximum number of conversations that can be sharing each TCP/IP channel instance. A SHARECNV value of:

1: Specifies no sharing of conversations over a TCP/IP channel instance. Client heart beating is available whether in an MQGET call or not. Read ahead and client asynchronous consumption are also available, and channel quiescing is more controllable.
0: Specifies no sharing of conversations over a TCP/IP channel instance.

The value must be in the range zero through 999999999.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of CLNTCONN or SVRCONN. If the CLNTCONN SHARECNV value does not match the SVRCONN SHARECNV value, the lower of the two values is used. This parameter is ignored for channels with a transport type (TRPTYPE) other than TCP.

All the conversations on a socket are received by the same thread.

High SHARECNV limits have the advantage of reducing queue manager thread usage. If many conversations sharing a socket are all busy, there is a possibility of delays. The conversations contend with one another to use the receiving thread. In this situation, a lower SHARECNV value is better.

The number of shared conversations does not contribute to the MAXINST or MAXINSTC totals.

Note: We should restart the client for this change to take effect.

SHORTRTY(integer)

SHORTRTY specifies the maximum number of attempts that are made by a SDR, SVR, or CLUSSDR channel to connect to the remote queue manager, at intervals specified by SHORTTMR. After the number of attempts is exhausted, the channel tries to reconnect using to the schedule defined by LONGRTY.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999999.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type ( CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

SHORTTMR(integer)

For SHORTRTY, SHORTTMR is the maximum number of seconds to wait before reattempting connection to the remote queue manager.

The time is approximate. From IBM MQ Version 8.0, zero means that another connection attempt is made as soon as possible.

The interval between attempting to reconnect might be extended if the channel has to wait to become active.

The value must be in the range 0 - 999999999.

Note: For implementation reasons, the maximum SHORTTMR value is 999,999; values exceeding this maximum are treated as 999,999. From IBM MQ Version 8.0, if SHORTTMR is set to 1 then the minimum interval between attempting to connect is 2 seconds.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type ( CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, CLUSSDR, or CLUSRCVR.

SPLPROT

SPLPROT (Security Policy Protection) specifies how a server-to-server Message Channel Agent should deal with message protection when AMS is active and an applicable policy exists.

This parameter applies to z/OS only, from IBM MQ Version 9.1.3 onwards.

The permitted values are:

PASSTHRU: Pass through, unchanged, any messages sent or received by the message channel agent for this channel.; This value is valid for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, RCVR, or RQSTR, and is the default value.
REMOVE: Remove any AMS protection from messages retrieved from the transmission queue by the message channel agent, and send the messages to the partner.; When the message channel agent gets a message from the transmission queue, if an AMS policy is defined for the transmission queue, it is applied to remove any AMS protection from the message prior to sending the message across the channel. If an AMS policy is not defined for the transmission queue, the message is sent as is.; This value is valid only for channels with a channel type of SDR or SVR.
ASPOLICY: Based on the policy defined for the target queue, apply AMS protection to inbound messages prior to putting them on to the target queue.; When the message channel agent receives an inbound message, if an AMS policy is defined for the target queue, AMS protection is applied to the message prior to the message being put to the target queue. If an AMS policy is not defined for the target queue, the message is put to the target queue as is.; This value is valid only for channels with a channel type of RCVR or RQSTR.

SSLCAUTH

SSLCAUTH defines whether IBM MQ requires a certificate from the TLS client. The TLS client is the initiating end of the channel. SSLCAUTH is applied to the TLS server, to determine the behavior required of the client. The TLS server is the end of the channel that receives the initiation flow.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR, SVRCONN, CLUSRCVR, SVR, OR RQSTR.

The parameter is used only for channels with SSLCIPH specified. If SSLCIPH is blank, the data is ignored and no error message is issued.

REQUIRED: IBM MQ requires and validates a certificate from the TLS client.
OPTIONAL: The peer TLS client system might still send a certificate. If it does, the contents of this certificate are validated as normal.

SSLCIPH(string)

Specifies the CipherSpec that is used on the channel. The maximum length is 32 characters. Attention: On IBM MQ for z/OS, we can also specify the four digit hexadecimal code of a CipherSpec, whether or not it appears in the following table. On IBM i, we can also specify the two digit hexadecimal code of a CipherSpec, whether or not it appears in the following table. Also, on IBM i, installation of AC3 is a prerequisite for the use of TLS. We should not specify hexadecimal cipher values in SSLCIPH, because it is unclear from the value which cipher will be used, and the choice of which protocol to be used is indeterminate. Using hexadecimal cipher values can lead to CipherSpec mismatch errors.

The SSLCIPH values must specify the same CipherSpec on both ends of the channel.

This parameter is valid on all channel types that use transport type TRPTYPE(TCP). If the parameter is blank, no attempt is made to use TLS on the channel.

The value for this parameter is also used to set the value of SECPROT, which is an output field on the DISPLAY CHSTATUS command.

Note: When SSLCIPH is used with a telemetry channel, it means TLS Cipher Suite. See the SSLCIPH description for DEFINE CHANNEL (MQTT).

From IBM MQ Version 9.1.1, we can specify a value of ANY_TLS12, which represents a subset of acceptable CipherSpecs that use the TLS 1.2 protocol; these CipherSpecs are listed in the following table. See Migrating existing security configurations to use the ANY_TLS12 CipherSpec for information on changing your existing security configurations to use the ANY_TLS12 value.

From Version 9.1.4, on AIX, Linux, and Windows, IBM MQ provides an expanded set of alias CipherSpecs that includes ANY_TLS12_OR_HIGHER, and ANY_TLS13_OR_HIGHER. These alias CipherSpecs are listed in the following table.Attention: If your enterprise needs to guarantee that a certain CipherSpec is negotiated and used, we must not use an alias CipherSpec value such as ANY_TLS12.

For information on changing your existing security configurations to use the ANY_TLS12_OR_HIGHER CipherSpec, see Migrating existing security configurations to use the ANY_TLS12_OR_HIGHER CipherSpec.

Platform support¹	CipherSpec name	Protocol used	Data integrity	Encryption algorithm	Encryption bits	FIPS²	Suite B
Alias CipherSpecs
All	ANY_TLS13_OR_HIGHER ³ ⁴ ⁵	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated
All	ANY_TLS13 ⁴ ⁵ ⁶	TLS 1.3	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated
All	ANY_TLS12_OR_HIGHER ⁴ ⁵ ⁷	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated
All	ANY_TLS12 ⁸	TLS 1.2	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated
All	ANY ⁹	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated	Negotiated
CipherSpecs for TLS 1.3
All	TLS_AES_128_GCM_SHA256⁴ ⁵	TLS 1.3	GCM	AES-128 with GCM	128	No	No
All	TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384⁴ ⁵	TLS 1.3	GCM	AES-256 with GCM	256	No	No
All	TLS_CHACHA20_POLY1305_SHA256⁴ ⁵	TLS 1.3	POLY1305	CHACHA20	256	No	No
	TLS_AES_128_CCM_SHA256	TLS 1.3	CBC-MAC	AES-128 with CTR	128	No	No
	TLS_AES_128_CCM_8_SHA256 ¹¹	TLS 1.3	CBC-MAC	AES-128 with CTR	128	No	No
CipherSpecs for TLS 1.2
All	TLS_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA256¹⁰	TLS 1.2	SHA-256	AES	128	Yes	No
All	TLS_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA256 ¹⁰ ¹²	TLS 1.2	SHA-256	AES	256	Yes	No
All	TLS_RSA_WITH_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 ¹⁰ ¹³	TLS 1.2	SHA-256 and AEAD GCM	AES	128	Yes	No
All	TLS_RSA_WITH_AES_256_GCM_SHA384¹⁰ ¹² ¹³	TLS 1.2	SHA-384 and AEAD GCM	AES	256	Yes	No
All	ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_128_CBC_SHA256 ¹⁰	TLS 1.2	SHA-256	AES	128	Yes	No
All	ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_256_CBC_SHA384 ¹⁰ ¹²	TLS 1.2	SHA-384	AES	256	Yes	No
All	ECDHE_RSA_AES_128_CBC_SHA256 ¹⁰	TLS 1.2	SHA-256	AES	128	Yes	No
All	ECDHE_RSA_AES_256_CBC_SHA384 ¹⁰ ¹²	TLS 1.2	SHA-384	AES	256	Yes	No
	ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 ¹² ¹³	TLS 1.2	SHA-256 and AEAD GCM	AES	SHA384	Yes	128 bit
	ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 ¹² ¹³	TLS 1.2	SHA-384 and AEAD GCM	AES	SHA384	Yes	192 bit
All	ECDHE_RSA_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 ¹³	TLS 1.2	SHA-256 and AEAD GCM	AES	128	Yes	No
All	ECDHE_RSA_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 ¹² ¹³	TLS 1.2	AEAD AES-128 GCM	AES	SHA384	Yes	No
Notes: For a list of platforms covered by each platform icon, see Release and platform icons in the product documentation. Specifies whether the CipherSpec is FIPS-certified on a FIPS-certified platform. See Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) for an explanation of FIPS. The ANY_TLS13_OR_HIGHER alias CipherSpec negotiates the highest level of security that the remote end will allow but will only connect using a TLS 1.3 or higher protocol. To use TLS 1.3, or the ANY CipherSpec, on IBM MQ for z/OS, the operating system must be z/OS Version 2.4 or later. To use TLS 1.3, or the ANY CipherSpec, on IBM i the underlying operating system version must support TLS 1.3. See System TLS support for TLSv1.3 for more information. The ANY_TLS13 alias CipherSpec represents a subset of acceptable CipherSpecs that use the TLS 1.3 protocol, as listed in this table for each platform. The ANY_TLS12_OR_HIGHER alias CipherSpec negotiates the highest level of security that the remote end will allow but will only connect using a TLS 1.2 or higher protocol. The ANY_TLS12 CipherSpec represents a subset of acceptable CipherSpecs that use the TLS 1.2 protocol, as listed in this table for each platform. The ANY alias CipherSpec negotiates the highest level of security that the remote end will allow. These CipherSpecs are not enabled on IBM i 7.4 systems that have System Value QSSLCSLCTL set to *OPSSYS. These CipherSpecs use an 8-octet Integrity Check Value (ICV) instead of a 16-octet ICV. This CipherSpec cannot be used to secure a connection from the IBM MQ Explorer to a queue manager unless the appropriate unrestricted policy files are applied to the JRE used by the Explorer. Following a recommendation by GSKit, TLS 1.2 GCM CipherSpecs have a restriction which means that after 2ˆ24.5 TLS records are sent, using the same session key, the connection is terminated with message AMQ9288. To prevent this error from happening: avoid using TLS 1.2 GCM Ciphers, enable secret key reset, or start the IBM MQ queue manager or client with the environment variable GSK_ENFORCE_GCM_RESTRICTION=GSK_FALSE set. This restriction does not apply to IBM MQ for z/OS.Important: The GCM restriction is active, regardless of the FIPS mode being used.

For more information about CipherSpecs, see Enable CipherSpecs.

When you request a personal certificate, you specify a key size for the public and private key pair. The key size that is used during the SSL handshake can depend on the size stored in the certificate and on the CipherSpec:

On z/OS, UNIX, Linux, and Windows, when a CipherSpec name includes _EXPORT, the maximum handshake key size is 512 bits. If either of the certificates exchanged during the SSL handshake has a key size greater than 512 bits, a temporary 512-bit key is generated for use during the handshake.
For z/OS, System SSL state that if a TLS V1.3 connection is being negotiated:
- The minimum key size for an RSA peer certificate is the larger of the following two values: 2048, or the value specified in the GSK_PEER_RSA_MIN_KEY_SIZE attribute.
- The minimum key size for an ECC peer certificate is the larger of the following two values: 256, or the value specified in the GSK_PEER_ECC_MIN_KEY_SIZE attribute.
On UNIX, Linux, and Windows, when a CipherSpec name includes _EXPORT1024, the handshake key size is 1024 bits.
Otherwise the handshake key size is the size stored in the certificate.

SSLPEER (string)

Specifies the certificate filter used by the peer queue manager or client at the other end of the channel. The filter is used to compare with the distinguished name of the certificate. A distinguished name is the identifier of the TLS certificate. If the distinguished name in the certificate received from the peer does not match the SSLPEER filter, the channel does not start.

Note: An alternative way of restricting connections into channels by matching against the TLS Subject distinguished name, is to use channel authentication records. With channel authentication records, different TLS subject distinguished name patterns can be applied to the same channel. Both SSLPEER and a channel authentication record can be applied to the same channel. If so, the inbound certificate must match both patterns in order to connect. For more information, see Channel authentication records.

SSLPEER is optional. If it is not specified, the distinguished name of the peer is not checked at channel startup. The distinguished name from the certificate is still written into the SSLPEER definition held in memory, and passed to the security exit. If SSLCIPH is blank, the data is ignored and no error message is issued.

This parameter is valid for all channel types.

The SSLPEER value is specified in the standard form used to specify a distinguished name. For example:

SSLPEER('SERIALNUMBER=4C:D0:49:D5:02:5F:38,CN="H1_C_FR1",O=IBM,C=GB')

We can use a semi-colon as a separator instead of a comma.

The possible attribute types supported are:

Attribute	Description
SERIALNUMBER	Certificate serial number
MAIL	Email address
E	Email address (Deprecated in preference to MAIL)
UID or USERID	User identifier
CN	Common Name
T	Title
OU	Organizational Unit name
DC	Domain component
O	Organization name
STREET	Street / First line of address
L	Locality name
ST (or SP or S)	State or Province name
PC	Postal code / zipcode
C	Country
UNSTRUCTUREDNAME	Host name
UNSTRUCTUREDADDRESS	IP address
DNQ	Distinguished name qualifier

IBM MQ accepts only uppercase letters for the attribute types.

If any of the unsupported attribute types are specified in the SSLPEER string, an error is output either when the attribute is defined, or at run time. When the error is output depends on which platform we are running on. An error implies that the SSLPEER string does not match the distinguished name of the flowed certificate.

If the distinguished name of the flowed certificate contains multiple organizational unit (OU) attributes, and SSLPEER specifies that these attributes are to be compared, they must be defined in descending hierarchical order. For example, if the distinguished name of the flowed certificate contains the OUs OU=Large Unit, OU=Medium Unit, OU=Small Unit, specifying the following SSLPEER values works:

('OU=Large Unit,OU=Medium Unit')
('OU=*,OU=Medium Unit,OU=Small Unit')
('OU=*,OU=Medium Unit')

but specifying the following SSLPEER values fails:

('OU=Medium Unit,OU=Small Unit')
('OU=Large Unit,OU=Small Unit')
('OU=Medium Unit')
('OU=Small Unit, Medium Unit, Large Unit')

As indicated in these examples, attributes at the low end of the hierarchy can be omitted. For example, ('OU=Large Unit,OU=Medium Unit') is equivalent to ('OU=Large Unit,OU=Medium Unit,OU=*')

If two DNs are equal in all respects except for their domain component (DC)) values, almost the same matching rules apply as for OUs. The exception is that with DC values, the left-most DC is the lowest-level and most specific, and the comparison ordering differs accordingly.

Any or all the attribute values can be generic, either an asterisk * on its own, or a stem with initiating or trailing asterisks. Asterisks allow the SSLPEER to match any distinguished name value, or any value starting with the stem for that attribute. We can specify an asterisk at the beginning or end of any attribute value in the DN on the certificate. If you do so, we can still check for an exact match with SSLPEER. Specify \* to check for an exact match. For example, if you have an attribute of CN='Test*' in the DN of the certificate, we use the following command to check for an exact match:

SSLPEER('CN=Test\*')

The maximum length of the parameter is 1024 bytes on Multiplatforms.

The maximum length of the parameter is 256 bytes on z/OS.

Channel authentication records provide greater flexibility when using SSLPEER and support 1024 bytes on all platforms.

STATCHL

Controls the collection of statistics data for channels:

QMGR: The value of the STATCHL parameter of the queue manager is inherited by the channel.
OFF: Statistics data collection is turned off for this channel.
LOW: If the value of the STATCHL parameter of the queue manager is not NONE, statistics data collection is turned on. Data is collected at a low rate for this channel.
MEDIUM: If the value of the STATCHL parameter of the queue manager is not NONE, statistics data collection is turned on.Data is collected at a medium rate for this channel.
HIGH: If the value of the STATCHL parameter of the queue manager is not NONE, statistics data collection is turned on.Data is collected at a high rate for this channel.

Changes to this parameter take effect only on channels started after the change occurs.

On z/OS systems, enabling this parameter simply turns on statistics data collection, regardless of the value you select. Specifying LOW, MEDIUM, or HIGH makes no difference to your results. This parameter must be enabled in order to collect channel accounting records.

For cluster channels, the value of this parameter is not replicated in the repository and therefore is not used in the auto-definition of CLUSSDR channels. For auto-defined CLUSSDR channels, the value of this parameter is taken from the attribute STATACLS of the queue manager. This value might then be overridden in the channel auto-definition exit.

TPNAME(string)

LU 6.2 transaction program name (maximum length 64 characters).

This parameter is valid only for channels with a transport type (TRPTYPE) of LU62.

Set this parameter to the SNA transaction program name, unless the CONNAME contains a side-object name in which case set it to blanks. The actual name is taken instead from the CPI-C Communications Side Object, or the APPC side information data set. See Configuration parameters for an LU 6.2 connection

On Windows SNA Server, and in the side object on z/OS, the TPNAME is wrapped to uppercase.

This parameter is not valid for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of RCVR.

TPROOT

The topic root for an AMQP channel. The default value for TPROOT is SYSTEM.BASE.TOPIC. With this value, the topic string an AMQP client uses to publish or subscribe has no prefix, and the client can exchange messages with other IBM MQ publish/subscribe applications. Alternatively, AMQP clients can publish and subscribe under a different topic prefix, specified in the TPROOT attribute.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of AMQP.

TRPTYPE

Transport type to be used:

LU62: SNA LU 6.2
NETBIOS: Supported on Windows, and DOS.; Also used on z/OS for defining client-connection channels that connect to servers on the platforms supporting NetBIOS.
SPX: Sequenced packet exchange; Supported on Windows, and DOS.; Also used on z/OS for defining client-connection channels that connect to servers on the platforms supporting SPX.
TCP: Transmission Control Protocol - part of the TCP/IP protocol suite.

If we do not enter a value for this parameter, the value specified in the SYSTEM.DEF.channel-type definition is used. If the channel is initiated from the other end, no check is made that the correct transport type is specified.

On Multiplatforms, if the SYSTEM.DEF.channel-type definition does not exist, we must specify a value.

On z/OS, if the SYSTEM.DEF.channel-type definition does not exist, the default is LU62.

USECLTID

Specifies that the client ID should be used for authorization checks for an AMQP channel, instead of the MCAUSER attribute value.

NO: The MCA user ID should be used for authorization checks.
YES: The client ID should be used for authorization checks.

USEDLQ

Determines whether the dead-letter queue is used when messages cannot be delivered by channels.

NO: Messages that cannot be delivered by a channel are treated as a failure. The channel either discards the message, or the channel ends, in accordance with the NPMSPEED setting.
YES: When the DEADQ queue manager attribute provides the name of a dead-letter queue, then it is used, else the behavior is as for NO. YES is the default value.

USERID(string)

Task user identifier. The maximum length is 12 characters.

This parameter is used by the message channel agent when attempting to initiate a secure LU 6.2 session with a remote message channel agent.

On Multiplatforms, this parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR, SVR, RQSTR, CLNTCONN, or CLUSSDR.

On z/OS, this parameter is supported only for CLNTCONN channels.

Although the maximum length of the parameter is 12 characters, only the first 10 characters are used.

At the receiving end, if passwords are encrypted and the LU 6.2 software is using a different encryption method, the channel does not start. The error is diagnosed as invalid security details. We can avoid invalid security details by modifying the receiving SNA configuration to either:

Turn off password substitution, or
Define a security user ID and password.

XMITQ(string)

Transmission queue name.

The name of the queue from which messages are retrieved. See Rules for naming IBM MQ objects.

This parameter is valid only for channels with a channel type (CHLTYPE) of SDR or SVR. For these channel types, this parameter is required.

There is a separate syntax diagram for each type of channel.

Sender channel
Syntax diagram for a sender channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
Server channel
Syntax diagram for a server channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
Receiver channel
Syntax diagram for a receiver channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
Requester channel
Syntax diagram for a requester channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
Client-connection channel
Syntax diagram for a client-connection channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
Server-connection channel
Syntax diagram for a server-connection channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
Cluster-sender channel
Syntax diagram for a cluster-sender channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
Cluster-receiver channel
Syntax diagram for a cluster-receiver channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.
AMQP channel
Syntax diagram for an AMQP channel when using the DEFINE CHANNEL command.

Parent topic: MQSC commands