Mainframe Interview Question and Answers

Mainframe Training by Anil Polsani

YouTube Channel site link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBHGPFY9lm4aDuIQr8yrrvQ

AND https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBHGPFY9lm4aDuIQr8yrrvQ/videos

Website link: http://mainframes-online-training.weebly.com/

This Document is regarding Possible / required Interview question that may see in interview. This document covers all Question and Answer for Fresher and Experience
Level.

Note: This document contains questions and Answers, But the way question framed by other Interviewer will be different its your skill to figure out and present the
right answer.

Overview of the Interview:

1. Introduce yourself 2 mins

2. Project Round 10-20 mins - Not covered in this Documentation
3. Technical discussion 25-30 mins

 Self-Introduction: Not Less Than 90 Seconds Not More Than 2min, As an Interviewer we check your simple communication skill and what to know if you can at-least
introduction yourself in proper way. (u should be prepared and ready)
 Below are the points that you can use in interview:
1. Professional Summary
a. Your Name and Total Experience (Total in IT and relevant Experience in Mainframe)
b. Domain Knowledge, Technology and modules you worked and know
c. Process Knowledge like SDLC, Agile, etc.,
d. Worked on Requirement, Specification, technical design, Coding, Testing, Documentation.
e. Good at Communication with client and business user, also very much comfortable to work as a team member and individual as well
2. Experience:
a. Current Company name & duration
b. Previous Company & duration

3. Current Project:
a. About Client: 2-3 lines and business overview
 b. Application: 2-3 lines and data Process overview
c. Technical Skill used like COBOL, JCL, DB2, CICS & ZOS
d. Roles & Responsibility as per your role (Developer / Support)
4. Previous Project: Same as above

Do not drag and say stories – above information is enough.

Technical Module Questions: (Answers are given in below for each concept)

COBOL Common Interview Questions:

1. STATIC & DYNAMIC CALL CONCEPT AND DIFFERENCE
2. CALL BY REFERENCE VS CONTENT CONCEPT AND DIFFERENCE
3. COMP VS COMP-3 DIFFERENCE
4. SUB VS INDEX (OCCURS) – DIFFERENCE
5. SEARCH VS SEARCH ALL CONCEPT AND DIFFERENCE
6. REDEFINES, 88 LEVEL NUMBER, 66 LEVEL NUMBER
7. FILE STATUS CODE
8. FILE OPERATION - CASE STUDY (SCENARIO BASED QUESTION)
9. ON SIZE ERROR, INSPECT WITH EXAMPLES
10. COPYBOOKS

JCL Common Interview Questions:

1. PROC CONCEPT AND DIFFERENCE
a. INSTREAM
b. CATLOG
2. OVERDING
a. SYMBOLIC PARAMETER
b. DD DATASET OVERRIDING
c. PARAMETER OVERRIDING
d. CONTROL CARD
e. REFER BACK
3. GDG CONCEPT
4. UTILITIES
5. JCL PARAMETER
6. ABENDS --> SX22, SX37, SX06, S0CX -- WHAT IS THE REASON - HOW TO SOLVE IT

DB2 Common Interview Questions:

 1. HOW TO CODE A COBOL-DB2 PROGRAM
1. WHAT ARE THE CHANGES
2. COMPILE
3. HOW TO EXECUTE THE PROGRAM AND
4. ABOUT DCLGEN/HOST VARIABLE
2. PRE-COMPILATION
1. PRE-COMPILE STEPS
2. BIND PROCESS
3. BIND PARAMETER
4. PACKAGE VS PLAN
3. -811 – SQLCODE AND ITS ASSOCIATED QUESTIONS AS IN BELOW
1. CURSOR
2. CURSOR WITH HOLD
3. COMMIT
4. -305 SQLCODE
5. FOR UPDATE
6. -904 SQLCODE
7. DB2 RESTART LOGIC
4. LOAD & UNLOAD PROCESS
5. SQLCODE --> ERROR CODE, REASON FOR ERROR, HOW TO SOLVE
6. SQL 1. CONSTRAINTS
2. DATA TYPES DB2 – COBOL CONVERSION
3. DB2 DATA OBJECTS VIEWS & INDEX
4. SUB QUERY, JOINS, UNIONS
7. SPUFI & QMF

CICS Common Interview Questions:

1. WHAT CICS STANDS FOR

2. WHAT IS CICS
3. WHAT IS MULTITASKING & MULTITHREADING
4. WHAT IS PSEUDO CONVERSATION & HOW TO ACHIEVE /CODE PSEUDO LOGIN IN COBOL-CICS PROGRAM
5. WHERE IS EIBCALEN IS DEFINED
6. HOW TO COMPILE COBOL-CICS PROGRAM
7. WHAT IS USE OF EIBCALEN - EIBAID?
8. WHAT USE AND SYNTAX OF SEND, RECEIVE & RETURN COMMAND?
9. WHAT ARE BMS MACROS
 10. WHAT IS 1 BYTE ATTRIBUTE
11. MDT -> MODIFIED DATA TAG >> USED TO KNOW IF THE FIELDS IS EDIT OR NOT
12. WHAT IS DIFFERENCE /USE OF FRSET AND FSET
13. HOW DO U CHANGE THE FRSET TO FSET??
14. WHAT IS THE IMP OF TIOAPFX?
15. WHAT IS PHYSICAL MAP AND SYMBOLIC MAP
16. WHAT IS DIFF B/W LINK AND XCTL & WHICH ONE IS BETTER
17. WHAT IS USE AND DIFF B/W COMMAREA AND DFHCOMMAREA
18. HOW TO HANDLE ERROR IN CICS PROGRAM
19. WHAT IS PUSH AND POP
20. HOW TO CODE COBOL-CICS-DB2 PROGRAM, COMPILE
21. WHAT ARE CONTROL TABLES USED FOR PPT, PCT, RCT and FCT
22. WHAT NEWC --> USED TO UPDATE LOAD MODULE OF A PROGRAM (NEW COPY - NEWC)
23. HOW TO CODE COBOL-CICS-VSAM PROGRAM
24. HOW DO UPDATE A RECORD
25. WHAT IS QUEUE – DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TSQ AND TDQ

Some of the tools that you must be needed to have knowledge:

1. MAIL COMMUNICATION: WE USE MS- OUTLOOK
2. WORK TRACKING: WE USE SERVICE NOW (SNOW)
3. COMPONENT: PROGRAM, JOBS WE USE CHANGEMAN / ENDEVOR (VERSION CONTROL)
4. FILE MANAGEMENT: WE USE FILE-AID, FILE-MANAGER
5. SCHEDULER: WE USE ESP, AJS, OPC
6. ABEND HANDLING: WE USE ABEND-AID
7. PROGRAM DEBUGGING: WE USE XPEDITOR, INTERTEST