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Control-M's ISPF client in zOS (mainframe) comes with a set of predefined values assigned to PF keys (function keys), such as:

  • PF2 = SPLIT
  • PF9 = SWAP

However, similar to other ISPF applications, I'd like to change the values of those PF keys (and a few others, such as PF2 = RETURN) like so:

  • PF2 = SPLIT NEW
  • PF9 = SWAP NEXT

And trying to use standard ISPF's primary command "PFKEYS" "KEYS" (typo, pointed out in first answer), via which you can adapt the values of your PF keys, doesn't seem to work for Control-M either (you only get error message "UNRECOGNIZED COMMAND", no matter on which screen you try this command).

Any suggestions about how to change those values for PF2 and PF9 anyhow?

Pierre.Vriens
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1 Answers1

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PFKEYS is not a valid ISPF command. The proper commands to access the ISPF PF Key Definitions and Labels dialog are KEYS for context sensitive key assignments or ZKEYS for global key assignments.

Navigate into Control-M, then use the KEYS command to launch the dialog and assign the desired function key commands. You may need to explicitly enter the SAVE command to commit your key assignment changes to your profile (although PF3 should invoke an END, which includes a SAVE).

Subsequently, PFSHOW (or the short version, FKA) will add an "infobar" of sorts to your panel that shows the PF keys, and either the defined label or the first 8 chars of the command that is currently assigned to each function key. Enter PFSHOW OFF (or FKA OFF) to remove this display.

The KEYLIST ON/OFF command can be used to switch between default and custom key assignments for some product panels. Enter the KEYLIST command with no arguments to see if options are available. FWIW... I don't have access to Control-M, but our installation of other BMC products does not include custom keylists.

Some PFkey errors can be attributed to installation procedures that do not include the appropriate members in logon procs. For Control-M, these members appear to be CMTCMDS and/or CMTUCMDS. The sysadmins responsible for installing the product would likely need to address this type of issue. However, the issue described here provides no indication of an installation problem.

Rich Jackson
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    Merci Rich for this answer. Sorry about the PFKEYS typo (corrected now). However, what you described seems to me like how any ISPF appl typically works (which is what I'm amiliar with, and also use a lot). However, if I try "KEYS" within Control-M (after navigating to it) this cmd only results in "unrecognized cmd" (as in my updated question now). Also, using "TSO ISRDDN" from within Control-M, and then "M CMTCMDS" or "M CMTUCMDS" doesn't find either member. Could that be an explanation for the "unrecognized command"? PS: my prof DSN doe contain CTMPROF, CTMUPROF, CTMUEDIT, CTMUEDRT ... – Pierre.Vriens Sep 13 '18 at 10:43
  • @Pierre.Vriens Ahh, OK. Well, I agree that my answer is not very helpful then. It looks like I too made some typos in my response... those member names should be CTMCMDS and CTMUCMDS. Can you search for the correct member names in ISRDDN? I found [this tech note](https://communities.bmc.com/docs/DOC-67197) that indicates those members should reside in a library on your ISPTLIB. If they are not there, maybe copying them from whatever product library they're in to your personal ISPTLIB will fix the problem. Beyond that, I unfortunately probably can't help much. I wish you luck. – Rich Jackson Sep 14 '18 at 04:20