One of the System i 5250 keyboard's special keys is the SYSREQ (System Request) key. Technicians use this key for various tasks, including canceling a request, displaying information about the current job, and displaying and sending messages. When you press the system request key followed by the ENTER key, the System Request menu is displayed.

                        System Request                        System:   MYSYSTEM
 Select one of the following:

      1. Display sign on for alternative job
      2. End previous request
      3. Display current job
      4. Display messages
      5. Send a message
      6. Display system operator messages
      7. Display workstation user

     80. Disconnect job

     90. Sign off
 Selection  __

For each menu option, a corresponding CL command runs when the option is selected.

Menu Option					CL Command
1. Display sign-on for alternative job	TFRSECJOB
2. End previous request			ENDRQS
3. Display current job			DSPJOB
4. Display messages				DSPMSG
5. Send a message				SNDMSG
6. Display system operator messages		DSPMSG QSYSOPR
7. Display work station user			DSPWSUSR
80. Disconnect job				DSCJOB
90. Sign off					SIGNOFF

While I don't recommend that you change the System Request menu screen, you can change the functions of certain menu options. For example, Option 3 performs the Display Current Job (DSPJOB) command. This command is very useful when you are analyzing and debugging an interactive job, but it does not provide the ability to manipulate or change job attributes. To provide the capability to change a job from the System Request menu, change the command that is executed to Work with Job (WRKJOB).

The CL commands that are executed by selecting a menu option are stored in the message CPX2313 in message file QCPFMSG. To modify the action of a menu option, change the first level message text stored in the CPX2313 message. Here's a walk-through of the process:

Run the command WRKMSGD CPX2313. Select Option 2 to change the message description. You are presented with the following display:

                      Change Message Description (CHGMSGD)

 Type choices, press Enter.

 Message identifier . . . . . . . > CPX2313       Name
 Message file . . . . . . . . . . > QCPFMSG       Name
   Library  . . . . . . . . . . . >   QSYS        Name, *LIBL, *CURLIB
 First-level message text . . . .   'ENDRQS     DSPJOB     DSPMSG     SNDMSG
 SIGNOFF    DSPMSG     DSCJOB     DSPWSUSR   ENDRDBRQS  '

 Second-level message text  . . .   *NONE
                                                                     ...
 Severity code  . . . . . . . . .   0             0-99, *SAME

                                                                        More...
 F3=Exit   F4=Prompt   F5=Refresh   F12=Cancel   F13=How to use this display
 F24=More keys

For this example, type the string DSPJOB in the MSG parameter with the string WRKJOB. WRKJOB must replace the exact characters of the DSPJOB command. Press ENTER to implement the change.

The Caveats

You can't change all of the System Request menu options. For example, Option 1 --Transfer to secondary job -- runs the command TFRSECJOB. Because this command is not listed in the message text of CPX2313, you cannot change it.

You may notice that the commands listed in the message text are not in the same order as the options are listed on the menu. Make sure you change the correct command.

Make changes only when you have a lull in the action, and be sure to test all menu actions. Do not make system-wide changes like these during the normal work day, because if you do make a mistake, you can impact your users.