COND Parameter, Job Abend

Q. What is Return-Code(Condition Code)?

When you run COBOL Programs by typing a Job, and submitting it, how do you tell, whether the COBOL Program ran fine, or not? COBOL Programs use Code-Language to tell you about their success/failure. When a COBOL Program runs, it leaves behind a signature(trail) in the form of a 2-Digit Status Code, that indicates whether the COBOL Program completed successfully, or it completed with errors. This 2-digit number trail left behind by a COBOL Program, to indicate its success or failure is called Return-Code(Condition Code). Thus, Return Code(Condition-code) is set by the COBOL Program to send out signals to the outside-world, a code 0 could be Successful Completion, a code 5 could mean completed with warnings, a code 10 could stand for Bad-Input-Data etc. In other words, Return Code(COND CODE) represents communication from the COBOL Program to the Outside-world.

Q. How do I know, what’s a good condition-code and what’s a bad one?

The COBOL Program sets the COND CODE. If you have written your own custom COBOL Program, you are the COBOL Programmer, you would set the Return-Codes in the COBOL Program. You know what each Condition-Code would mean.