How to Read a z/OS Assembler Listing

Steve Pryor
DTS Software, LLC
steve@dtssoftware.com
1.919.833.8426
IGGCSISL

●
Sample IBM program to list entries in a catalog
●
Uses Catalog Search Interface

GPR 1 Address 1 Reason area

Address 2
Address 3 Selection
Critera

Work area

2
Assembler Language

●
Language Elements
– Machine Instructions
– Assembler Instructions
– Macro Instructions
●
Coding Conventions
– Statement field – columns 1 to 71
●
Continuation indicator column 72
●
Statement continuation column 16
●
Comments - ‘*’ in column 1
3
Important Instructions

●
Machine Instructions
– Load (L), Load address (LA), Move Characters (MVC), Branch (B, BAL, BNE, BC..)
●
Assembler Instructions
– USING – specify which registers are used when instructions are assembled
– DS / DC – define data areas and constants
– CSECT / DSECT - define program sections and maps
●
Macro Instructions
– GETMAIN/STORAGE, OPEN/CLOSE, GET/PUT, many more
4
Assembler Language

●
Statement format (1-4 entries: name, operation, operands, remarks)
– Fields separated by space
– Name entry
●
(1-64 characters, previously max 8), typically col 1 start
– Operation entry
●
Assembler mnemonic, machine instruction, macro, typically column 10 start
– Operand(s)
●
Separated by commas, may continue to next line, typically column 16 start
– Remarks (i.e., line comments)
5
Assembler Language – Symbols, Literals, Expressions

●
Ordinary Symbols
– Usually, 1-8 chars, alphameric
●
Internal symbols – from name field
●
External symbols – available to lked, binder, placed in ESD
●
Literals
●
Duplication factor – how many copies?
●
Type – what kind of literal? (address, fullword, character, hex…?)
●
Modifiers – length
●
Nominal value – value of the literal
– Assembled in to literal pool (LTORG)
6
Assembler Language – Instruction Addressing

●
Location counter
– Displacement into program or control block
●
Registers
– 16 GPRs 0-15, address 24, 31, or 64 bits
●
Base-displacement addressing
– Value in register (base) plus offset (displacement)
●
Limited to x’FFF’ (4095) bytes
●
Relative addressing
●
no. of halfwords from current location

7
CSECTS and DSECTS and USING

●
CSECT
– Control Section – usually, an executable program
●
DSECT
– Dummy section – usually, a control block
●
Reserves storage but does not put data into it
●
Referenced by base register + displacement
●
USING Instruction
– Specifies the base register for a section of code

8
Assembler Listing

●
Assembler Options and Overrides
– Options from EXEC PARM, //ASMAOPT, *PROCESS stmt
– List of options in effect
●
ESD – External Symbol Dictionary
●
External symbols for use by the Binder, section lengths
– SD
– ER – external reference

9
Assembler Listing

●
Source and Object Listing
– Columns
●
Location counter (offset)
●
Instruction object code
●
Operand locations (Addr1 Addr2)
●
Statement Number (and macro indicator)
●
Source Statement

10
Assembler Listing

●
Relocation Dictionary (RLD)
– Address constants that may be relocated by Binder
●
Ordinary Symbol and Literal Cross-Reference
– Symbols and literals defined and used in program
– Symbol type, value, where defined and referenced
●
Unreferenced symbols
●
Macro and Copy Code Source Summary
– Macros used and where they came from
11
Assembler Listing

●
DSECT Cross-Reference
– DSECTS used, length, where defined
●
USING Map
– Location of USING statements, type, and their addressable range
●
GPR Cross-Reference
– References to registers and type of reference
●
Diagnostic Cross-Reference
– Errors and statistics
12
Documentation and Further Info

●
https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/hla-and-tf/1.6
●
https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/hla-and-tf/1.6?topic=pdf-format-documentation
– HLASM Language Reference SC26-4940

– HLASM Programmer’s Guide SC26-4941

●
DFSMS Managing Catalogs SC23-6853
– Chapter 11 – The Catalog Search Interface

13
 Summary / Q and A
●
Next webinar July 26, 2022
– An Introduction to Job Control Language

support@dtssoftware.com
●
Questions??? steve@dtssoftware.com
1-919-833-8426
Have an assembler background? Know someone who does? Call or email us!
Reminders
●
Current version 7.1 now available at www.dtssoftware.com
●
Companion DTS product use available n/c for a year – just ask!
●
Send your ACS routines or DTS product rules for complimentary analysis