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| Introduction to CL (Control Language) |
Control Language (CL)
Control Language (CL) allows AS400 programmers or administrators to write CL programs using IBM i commands or other IBM-supplied commands. We can create user-defined CL commands too.
The control language is the set of all commands using which a user or programmer or system administrator can request IBM i operating system functions.
The control language is the primary interface to the AS400 operating system. CL can be used at different workstations by the user, program, or procedures or in batch or in interactive mode. A single CL statement is known as the CL command.
CL command can be entered and executed using the below ways:
Please note that all the commands have to prompt support with default values and validity checking for most parameters to ensure that the values are entered correctly before any command gets executed.
The system provides a large number of menus that allows us to perform many system functions by selecting different menu options, different types of messages and Message Queues, and CL commands
CL command names
It consists of a combination of verbs or actions followed by a noun or phrase.
Command = verb + object acted on
For Example: CRTLIB, DLTLIB, DSPLIB.
CL command verb abbreviations
List of CL commands with their abbreviations and meaning. There are many abbreviations out of which some of the most commonly used abbreviations are listed here.
CL command verbs
| Verb abbreviation | Description |
|---|---|
| ADD | Add |
| CHG | Change |
| CRT | Create |
| DLT | Delete |
| DSP | Display |
| END | End |
| RMV | Remove |
| STR | Start |
| WRK | Work With |
| ALC | Allocate |
| CLR | Clear |
| CPY | Copy |
| DLC | Deallocate |
| DLY | Delay |
| DMP | Dump |
| DUP | Duplicate |
| FND | Find |
| HLD | Hold |
| OVR | Override |
| WRK | Work With |
| RNM | Rename |
| RST | Restore |
| RTV | Retrieve |
| SAV | Save |
| SBM | Submit |
| SET | Set |
| RST | Restore |
Parts of CL commands
It includes a command label(optional), command name (mnemonic), and one or more parameters (Keyword and value).
CL commands on IBM i object
CL command with IBM i objects
| CL commands | Description |
|---|---|
| ADD | Add |
| CHG | Change |
| CRT | Create |
| DLT | Delete |
| DSP | Display |
| WRK | Work With |
CL commands on multiple IBM i objects
Some of the CL commands are listed here.
CL command with multiple IBM i objects
| CL commands | Description |
|---|---|
| DSPOBJD | Display object description |
| SAVOBJ | Sagve object |
| RSTOBJ | Restore object |
| MOVOBJ | Move object |
| RNMOBJ | Rename object |