Manpage of tcl3270

tcl3270

Section: User Commands (1)
Updated: 07 February 2003
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NAME

tcl3270 - IBM host access tool

SYNOPSIS

tcl3270 [script] [options] [host] [-- script-arg...]

DESCRIPTION

tcl3270 opens a telnet connection to an IBM host, then allows a tcl script to control the host login session. It is derived from x3270(1), an X-windows IBM 3270 emulator. It implements RFCs 2355 (TN3270E), 1576 (TN3270) and 1646 (LU name selection), and supports IND$FILE file transfer.

The full syntax for host is:

: [prefix:]...[LUname@]hostname[:port]

Prepending a p: onto hostname causes the connection to go through the telnet-passthru service rather than directly to the host. See PASSTHRU below.

Prepending an s: onto hostname removes the "extended data stream" option reported to the host. See -tn below for further information.

Prepending an n: onto hostname turns off TN3270E support for the session.

A specific LU name to use may be specified by prepending it to the hostname with an `@'. Multiple LU names to try can be separated by commas. An empty LU can be placed in the list with an extra comma.

On systems that support the forkpty library call, the hostname may be replaced with -e and a command string. This will cause tcl3270 to connect to a local child process, such as a shell.

The port to connect to defaults to telnet. This can be overridden with the -port option, or by appending a port to the hostname with a colon `:'. (For compatability with previous versions of tcl3270 and with tn3270(1), the port may also be specified as a second, separate argument.)

OPTIONS

tcl3270 understands the following options:

-charset name: Specifies an EBCDIC host character set. See CHARACTER SETS below.
-clear toggle: Sets the initial value of toggle to false. The list of toggle names is under TOGGLES below.
-model name: The model of 3270 display to be emulated. The model name is in two parts, either of which may be omitted:
: The first part is the base model, which is either 3278 or 3279. 3278 specifies a monochrome 3270 display; 3279 specifies a color 3270 display.
: The second part is the model number, which specifies the number of rows and columns. Model 4 is the default.

Model Number	Columns	Rows

2	80	24
3	80	30
4	80	43
5	132	27

: Note: Technically, there is no such 3270 display as a 3279-4 or 3279-5, but most hosts seem to work with them anyway.
: The default model is 3278-4.
-mono: Forces 3278 emulation.
-oversize colsxrows: Makes the screen larger than the default for the chosen model number. This option has effect only in combination with extended data stream support (controlled by the "tcl3270.extended" resource), and only if the host supports the Query Reply structured field. The number of columns multiplied by the number of rows must not exceed 16383 (3fff hex), the limit of 14-bit 3270 buffer addressing.
-port n: Specifies a different TCP port to connect to. n can be a name from /etc/services like telnet, or a number. This option changes the default port number used for all connections. (The positional parameter affects only the initial connection.)
-set toggle: Sets the initial value of toggle to true. The list of toggle names is under TOGGLES below.
-tn name: Specifies the terminal name to be transmitted over the telnet connection. The default name is IBM-model_name-E, for example, IBM-3278-4-E.
: Some hosts are confused by the -E suffix on the terminal name, and will ignore the extra screen area on models 3, 4 and 5. Prepending an s: on the hostname, or setting the "tcl3270.extended" resource to "false", removes the -E from the terminal name when connecting to such hosts.
: The name can also be specified with the "tcl3270.termName" resource.
-trace: Turns on data stream and event tracing at startup. The default trace file name is /tmp/x3trc.process_id.
-tracefile file: Specifies a file to save data stream and event traces into, overriding the default of /tmp/x3trc.process_id.
-tracefilesize size: Places a limit on the size of a trace file. If this option is not specified, or is specified as 0 or none, the trace file will be unlimited. If specified, the trace file cannot already exist, and the (silently enforced) minimum size is 64 Kbytes. The value of size can have a K or M suffix, indicating kilobytes or megabytes respectively.
-xrm "tcl3270.resource: value": Sets the value of the named resource to value. Resources control less common tcl3270 options, and are defined under RESOURCES below.
--: Terminates the list of tcl3270 options. Whatever follows will be available to the script in the $argv tcl variable.

CHARACTER SETS

The -charset option or the "tcl3270.charset" resource controls the EBCDIC host character set used by tcl3270. Available sets include:

Charset Name	Code Page	Display Character Sets

apl	37	3270cg-1a
belgian	500	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
bracket	37	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
brazilian	275	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
finnish	278	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
french	297	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
german	273	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
icelandic	871	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
iso-hebrew	424	iso8859-8
iso-turkish	1026	iso8859-9
italian	280	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
norwegian	277	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
russian	880	koi8-r
simplified-chinese	836+837	3270cg-1a iso8859-1 + gb2312.1980-0
solvenian	870	iso8859-2
thai	838	iso8859-11 tis620.2529-0
uk	285	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1
us-intl	37	3270cg-1a 3270-cg1 iso8859-1

The default character set is bracket, which is useful for common IBM hosts which use EBCDIC codes 0xAD and 0xBD for the `[' and `]' characters, respectively.

NVT (ANSI) MODE

Some hosts use an ASCII front-end to do initial login negotiation, then later switch to 3270 mode. tcl3270 will emulate an ANSI X.64 terminal until the host places it in 3270 mode (telnet BINARY and SEND EOR modes, or TN3270E mode negotiation).

If the host later negotiates to stop functioning in 3270 mode, tcl3270 will return to ANSI emulation.

In NVT mode, tcl3270 supports both character-at-a-time mode and line mode operation. You may select the mode with a menu option. When in line mode, the special characters and operational characteristics are defined by resources:

Mode/Character	Resource	Default

Translate CR to NL	tcl3270.icrnl	true
Translate NL to CR	tcl3270.inlcr	false
Erase previous character	tcl3270.erase	^?
Erase entire line	tcl3270.kill	^U
Erase previous word	tcl3270.werase	^W
Redisplay line	tcl3270.rprnt	^R
Ignore special meaning of next character	tcl3270.lnext	^V
Interrupt	tcl3270.intr	^C
Quit	tcl3270.quit	^\
End of file	tcl3270.eof	^D

TOGGLES

tcl3270 has a number of configurable modes which may be selected by the -set and -clear options.

monoCase: If set, tcl3270 operates in uppercase-only mode.
blankFill: If set, tcl3270 behaves in some un-3270-like ways. First, when a character is typed into a field, all nulls in the field to the left of that character are changed to blanks. This eliminates a common 3270 data-entry surprise. Second, in insert mode, trailing blanks in a field are treated like nulls, eliminating the annoying `lock-up' that often occurs when inserting into an field with (apparent) space at the end.
lineWrap: If set, the ANSI terminal emulator automatically assumes a NEWLINE character when it reaches the end of a line.

The names of the toggles for use with the -set and -clear options are as follows:

Option	Name

Monocase	monoCase
Blank Fill	blankFill
Track Cursor	cursorPos
Trace Data Stream	dsTrace
Trace Events	eventTrace
Save Screen(s) in File	screenTrace
Wraparound	lineWrap

These names are also used as the first parameter to the Toggle action.

COMMANDS

tcl3270 supports the following additional tcl commands:

Actions marked with an asterisk (*) may block, sending data to the host and possibly waiting for a response.

Ascii return entire screen contents in ASCII

Ascii length return screen contents at cursor in ASCII

Ascii row col length return screen contents in ASCII

Ascii row col rows cols return screen region in ASCII

AsciiField return current field in ASCII

*Attn attention key

BackSpace move cursor left (or send ASCII BS)

BackTab tab to start of previous input field

CircumNot input "^" in NVT mode, or "notsign" in 3270 mode

*Clear clear screen

Cols report screen size

*Connect host connect to host

*CursorSelect Cursor Select AID

Delete delete character under cursor (or send ASCII DEL)

DeleteField delete the entire field

DeleteWord delete the current or previous word

*Disconnect disconnect from host

Down move cursor down

Dup duplicate field

Ebcdic return entire screen contents in EBCDIC

Ebcdic length return screen contents at cursor in EBCDIC

Ebcdic row col length return screen contents in EBCDIC

Ebcdic row col rows cols return screen region in EBCDIC

EbcdicField return current field in EBCDIC

*Enter Enter AID (or send ASCII CR)

Erase erase previous character (or send ASCII BS)

EraseEOF erase to end of current field

EraseInput erase all input fields

FieldEnd move cursor to end of field

FieldExit clear to end of field and skip to next (5250 emulation)

FieldMark mark field

HexString hex_digits insert control-character string

Home move cursor to first input field

Insert set insert mode

*Interrupt send TELNET IP to host

Key keysym insert key keysym

Key 0xxx insert key with ASCII code xx

Left move cursor left

Left2 move cursor left 2 positions

MonoCase toggle uppercase-only mode

MoveCursor row col move cursor to (row,col)

Newline move cursor to first field on next line (or send ASCII LF)

NextWord move cursor to next word

*PA n Program Attention AID (n from 1 to 3)

*PF n Program Function AID (n from 1 to 24)

PreviousWord move cursor to previous word

Quit exit tcl3270

Redraw redraw window

Reset reset locked keyboard

Right move cursor right

Right2 move cursor right 2 positions

Rows report screen size

Snap same as Snap Save

Snap Ascii report saved screen data (see Ascii)

Snap Cols report saved screen size

Snap Ebcdic report saved screen data (see Ebcdic)

Snap Rows report saved screen size

Snap Save save screen image

Snap Status report saved connection status

*Snap Wait [timeout] Output wait for host output and save screen image

Status report connection status

*String string insert string (simple macro facility)

*SysReq System Request AID

Tab move cursor to next input field

Toggle option[ toggle an option

ToggleInsert toggle insert mode

ToggleReverse toggle reverse-input mode

*Transfer option=value... file transfer

Up move cursor up

*Wait [timeout] 3270mode wait for 3270 mode

*Wait [timeout] Disconnect wait for host to disconnect

*Wait [timeout] InputField wait for valid input field

*Wait [timeout] NVTMode wait for NVT mode

*Wait [timeout] Output wait for more host output

FILE TRANSFER

The Transfer command implements IND$FILE file transfer. This command requires that the IND$FILE program be installed on the IBM host, and that the 3270 cursor be located in a field that will accept a TSO or VM/CMS command.

Because of the complexity and number of options for file transfer, the parameters to the Transfer command take the unique form of option=value, and can appear in any order. The options are:

Option Required? Default Other Values

Direction No send receive

HostFile Yes

LocalFile Yes

Host No tso vm

Mode No ascii binary

Cr No remove add, keep

Exist No keep replace, append

Recfm No fixed, variable, undefined

Lrecl No

Blksize No

Allocation No tracks, cylinders, avblock

PrimarySpace No

SecondarySpace No

The option details are as follows.

Direction: send (the default) to send a file to the host, receive to receive a file from the host.
HostFile: The name of the file on the host.
LocalFile: The name of the file on the local workstation.
Host: The type of host (which dictates the form of the IND$FILE command): tso (the default) or vm.
Mode: Use ascii (the default) for a text file, which will be translated between EBCDIC and ASCII as necessary. Use binary for non-text files.
Cr: Controls how Newline characters are handled when transferring Mode=ascii files. remove (the default) strips Newline characters in local files before transferring them to the host. add adds Newline characters to each host file record before transferring it to the local workstation. keep preserves Newline characters when transferring a local file to the host.
Exist: Controls what happens when the destination file already exists. keep (the default) preserves the file, causing the Transfer command to fail. replace overwrites the destination file with the source file. append appends the source file to the destination file.
Recfm: Controls the record format of files created on the host. fixed creates a file with fixed-length records. variable creates a file with variable-length records. undefined creates a file with undefined-length records (TSO hosts only). The Lrecl option controls the record length or maximum record length for Recfm=fixed and Recfm=variable files, respectively.
Lrecl: Specifies the record length (or maximum record length) for files created on the host.
Blksize: Specifies the block size for files created on the host. (TSO hosts only.)
Allocation: Specifies the units for the TSO host PrimarySpace and SecondarySpace options: tracks, cylinders or avblock.
PrimarySpace: Primary allocation for a file created on a TSO host. The units are given by the Allocation option.
SecondarySpace: Secondary allocation for a file created on a TSO host. The units are given by the Allocation option.

NESTED SCRIPTS

The String Command

The simplest method for nested scripts is provided via the String command. The arguments to String are one or more double-quoted strings which are inserted directly as if typed. The C backslash conventions are honored as follows. (Entries marked * mean that after sending the AID code to the host, tcl3270 will wait for the host to unlock the keyboard before further processing the string.)

\b	Left
\f	Clear*
\n	Enter*
\pan	PA(n)*
\pfnn	PF(nn)*
\r	Newline
\t	Tab
\T	BackTab

Note: The strings are in ASCII and converted to EBCDIC, so beware of inserting control codes.

There is also an alternate form of the String command, HexString, which is used to enter non-printing data. The argument to HexString is a string of hexadecimal digits, two per character. A leading 0x or 0X is optional. In 3270 mode, the hexadecimal data represent EBCDIC characters, which are entered into the current field. In NVT mode, the hexadecimal data represent ASCII characters, which are sent directly to the host.

PASSTHRU

tcl3270 supports the Sun telnet-passthru service provided by the in.telnet-gw server. This allows outbound telnet connections through a firewall machine. When a p: is prepended to a hostname, tcl3270 acts much like the itelnet(1) command. It contacts the machine named internet-gateway at the port defined in /etc/services as telnet-passthru (which defaults to 3514). It then passes the requested hostname and port to the in.telnet-gw server.

RESOURCES

Certain tcl3270 options can be configured via resources. Resources are defined by -xrm options. The definitions are similar to X11 resources, and use a similar syntax. The resources available in tcl3270 are:

Resource Default Option Purpose

blankFill False -set blankFill Blank Fill mode

charset bracket -charset EBCDIC character set

charset.foo Definition of character set foo

dsTrace False -trace Data stream tracing

eof ^D NVT-mode EOF character

erase ^H NVT-mode erase character

extended True Use 3270 extended data stream

eventTrace False -trace Event tracing

ftCommand ind$file Host file transfer command

icrnl False Map CR to NL on NVT-mode input

inlcr False Map NL to CR in NVT-mode input

intr ^C NVT-mode interrupt character

kill ^U NVT-mode kill character

lineWrap False -set lineWrap NVT line wrap mode

lnext ^V NVT-mode lnext character

m3279 (note 1) -mono 3279 (color) emulation

monoCase False -set monoCase Mono-case mode

numericLock False Lock keyboard for numeric field error

oerrLock False Lock keyboard for input error

oversize -oversize Oversize screen dimensions

port telnet -port Non-default TCP port

quit ^\ NVT-mode quit character

rprnt ^R NVT-mode reprint character

secure False Disable "dangerous" options

termName (note 2) -tn TELNET terminal type string

traceDir /tmp Directory for trace files

traceFile (note 3) -tracefile File for trace output

werase ^W NVT-mode word-erase character

Note 1: m3279 defaults to False. It can be forced to True with the -model option.

Note 2: The default terminal type string is constructed from the model number, color emulation, and extended data stream modes. E.g., a model 2 with color emulation and the extended data stream option would be sent as IBM-3279-2-E. Note also that when TN3270E mode is used, the terminal type is always sent as some type of 3278.

Note 3: The default trace file is x3trc.pid in the directory specified by the traceDir resource.

If more than one -xrm option is given for the same resource, the last one on the command line is used.

COPYRIGHTS

: Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute this software and its documentation for any purpose and without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above copyright notice appear in all copies and that both that copyright notice and this permission notice appear in supporting documentation.

5250 Emulation Code Copyright Minolta (Schweiz) AG, Beat Rubischon.
tcl3270 is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the file LICENSE for more details.

VERSION

tcl3270 3.2.20

This document was created by man2html, using the manual pages.
Time: 20:50:20 GMT, May 16, 2005

Ascii	return entire screen contents in ASCII
Ascii length	return screen contents at cursor in ASCII
Ascii row col length	return screen contents in ASCII
Ascii row col rows cols	return screen region in ASCII
AsciiField	return current field in ASCII
*Attn	attention key
BackSpace	move cursor left (or send ASCII BS)
BackTab	tab to start of previous input field
CircumNot	input "^" in NVT mode, or "notsign" in 3270 mode
*Clear	clear screen
Cols	report screen size
Connect host*	connect to host
*CursorSelect	Cursor Select AID
Delete	delete character under cursor (or send ASCII DEL)
DeleteField	delete the entire field
DeleteWord	delete the current or previous word
*Disconnect	disconnect from host
Down	move cursor down
Dup	duplicate field
Ebcdic	return entire screen contents in EBCDIC
Ebcdic length	return screen contents at cursor in EBCDIC
Ebcdic row col length	return screen contents in EBCDIC
Ebcdic row col rows cols	return screen region in EBCDIC
EbcdicField	return current field in EBCDIC
*Enter	Enter AID (or send ASCII CR)
Erase	erase previous character (or send ASCII BS)
EraseEOF	erase to end of current field
EraseInput	erase all input fields
FieldEnd	move cursor to end of field
FieldExit	clear to end of field and skip to next (5250 emulation)
FieldMark	mark field
HexString hex_digits	insert control-character string
Home	move cursor to first input field
Insert	set insert mode
*Interrupt	send TELNET IP to host
Key keysym	insert key keysym
Key 0xxx	insert key with ASCII code xx
Left	move cursor left
Left2	move cursor left 2 positions
MonoCase	toggle uppercase-only mode
MoveCursor row col	move cursor to (row,col)
Newline	move cursor to first field on next line (or send ASCII LF)
NextWord	move cursor to next word
*PA n	Program Attention AID (n from 1 to 3)
*PF n	Program Function AID (n from 1 to 24)
PreviousWord	move cursor to previous word
Quit	exit tcl3270
Redraw	redraw window
Reset	reset locked keyboard
Right	move cursor right
Right2	move cursor right 2 positions
Rows	report screen size
Snap	same as Snap Save
Snap Ascii	report saved screen data (see Ascii)
Snap Cols	report saved screen size
Snap Ebcdic	report saved screen data (see Ebcdic)
Snap Rows	report saved screen size
Snap Save	save screen image
Snap Status	report saved connection status
Snap Wait [timeout*] Output	wait for host output and save screen image
Status	report connection status
String string*	insert string (simple macro facility)
*SysReq	System Request AID
Tab	move cursor to next input field
Toggle option[	toggle an option
ToggleInsert	toggle insert mode
ToggleReverse	toggle reverse-input mode
Transfer option=value*...	file transfer
Up	move cursor up
Wait [timeout*] 3270mode	wait for 3270 mode
Wait [timeout*] Disconnect	wait for host to disconnect
Wait [timeout*] InputField	wait for valid input field
Wait [timeout*] NVTMode	wait for NVT mode
Wait [timeout*] Output	wait for more host output

Option	Required?	Default	Other Values

Direction	No	send	receive
HostFile	Yes
LocalFile	Yes
Host	No	tso	vm
Mode	No	ascii	binary
Cr	No	remove	add, keep
Exist	No	keep	replace, append
Recfm	No		fixed, variable, undefined
Lrecl	No
Blksize	No
Allocation	No		tracks, cylinders, avblock
PrimarySpace	No
SecondarySpace	No