Requesting PTFs

You can pick up the phone and call your IBM office to request a PTF. However, the easiest and most convenient way to order PTFs is through ECS using the Send PTF Order (SNDPTFORD) command:

      SNDPTFORD PTF((SF99211) (SF98211)) PTFPART(*ALL) +      DELIV ERY(*ANY) ORDER(*REQUIRED) REORDER(*NO) 

Using this command, you order two PTFs: SF99211 and SF98211. PTFPART(*ALL) means that you want to receive both the cover letter and the actual PTF code. You could also request PTFPART(*CVRLTR). In this case you receive only the cover letter.

DELIVERY(*ANY) indicates that if the PTF is small enough, it should be transmitted to you through the ECS line. This transmission avoids the need to load the PTF into your system. If the PTF is too large (for example, a cume PTF package), IBM will (at its option) send you a tape, which you normally receive within 48 hours, and which frequently will arrive in only 24 hours. If you specify DELIVERY(*LINKONLY), the PTF is sent through the ECS line.

ORDER(*REQUIRED) means that, if the PTF you are ordering has another PTF as a prerequisite, the other PTF should be sent to you as well. For example, if you are ordering PTF B, but IBM has decided that, in order to install B you need PTF A, use ORDER(*REQUIRED) to get both. The opposite value is ORDER(*PTFID), which gets you only the PTF you ordered, even if it has a prerequisite. Use *PTFID if you know what the prerequisites are, and you know that you already have them.

With REORDER(*NO), you indicate that you are placing your original order for this PTF. Your system will check whether you already have the PTF loaded and/or applied. If you do, the SNDPTFORD command ends in error because the system is trying to help you avoid a duplicate order. REORDER(*YES) comes in handy when you have loaded and/or applied the PTF, but you lost the cover letter. You can reorder the cover letter only using PTFPART(*CVRLTR) and indicate REORDER(*YES).

Determine the PTF Number

No matter how you request PTFs, you must have the PTF number to place the order. If a friend or a fellow i5 administrator tells you about a PTF you think you need, be sure to obtain the PTF number from that person.

IBM has created some "reserved" PTF numbers that you can use to your advantage, listed in Table 35.1. In the list, "v" is the i5/OS version number, "r" is the release number, and "m" is the modification level. Therefore, for V2R1M0, "vrm" is replaced by 210.

Table 35.1: Requesting PTFs

Reserved PTF Number Description
MF98vrm	Cume HIPER PTF package for reported hardware problems. The M in the PTF number stands for machine, and the F for fix.
SF97vrm	Software PTF summary listing. It tells you the number of the latest cume PTF package, when it became available, and when you can expect the next cume package. The S in the PTF number is for software, the F for fix.
SF98vrm	Cume HIPER PTF package for reported software problems.
SF99vrm	Cume PTF package for other software problems (not HIPER).
SHnnnnn	Individual PTF for MAPICS or CMAS. Each n represents a numeral of a five-digit sequence number.