2 Getting Started with 5250 Emulation

This chapter contains general instructions on how to start the 5250 emulation program. It includes instructions for:

Preparing to start the 5250 emulation program
Starting the 5250 emulation program

You can use the default settings for the appearance of the 5250 screens, or you can change them to suit your requirements and preferences. To customize these parameters before beginning emulation, turn to 5250 Style Files.

To accept the system defaults and begin 5250 display or printer emulation, continue with Preparing to Start 5250.

2.1 Preparing to Start 5250

Before you can start the 5250 emulation program, you must complete the following tasks:

Ensure that your System Administrator has configured SNAP-IX (using the Motif administration program or the command-line administration program) to do the following:
- Include you as a 5250 user
- Specify the appropriate administration style file
Set the LANG and DISPLAY environment variables.
Ensure that the SNAP-IX software is started.

These steps are described in the following sections.

2.1.1 Terminal Requirements

This section describes the functions that your terminal should support to be able to run the 5250 emulation program.

Required Functions

To run the 5250 emulation program, your SNAP-IX computer must have the following:

X11R5 or above
Motif Version 1.2 or above

To run the Motif display on a different computer from the 5250 emulation program (for example, using X Server software on a PC), some additional font files must be installed on the computer used for the display. For more information, refer to the SNAP-IX Installation, or check with your System Administrator.

Recommended Functions

It is recommended that you have Motif color support.

The way you enter double-byte characters from your keyboard varies between different Solaris systems. Your SNAP-IX supplier should provide you with information about how to enter these characters from your keyboard.

2.1.2 Specifying the Path to SNAP-IX Programs

The emulator programs are stored in the directory /opt/sna/bin/X11. If you add this directory to the definition of PATH environment variable in your .login or .profile file, the programs will be located automatically. Alternatively, you can specify the directory name when you run the program, as in the following example:

/opt/sna/bin/X11/xsna5250 -s /usr/jim/mystyle.stx

The sample command lines shown in this book assume that you have added the directories to your PATH environment variable, and do not include the directory names.

2.1.3 Configuring SNAP-IX

Before you can start the 5250 emulation program and connect a session to an AS/400, you must ensure that the SNAP-IX resources described below have been configured. See your System Administrator if necessary. Once SNAP-IX has been configured, you can automatically connect to the AS/400 application every time you start the 5250 emulation program.

Local LU alias: The local LU alias of the local LU that the 5250 emulation program will use to communicate across the network. If the local LU alias is left blank, then the emulation program will use the default local LU (the CP LU).
Partner LU name: The name of the partner LU that the 5250 emulation program will use to communicate with the AS/400. This can either be the fully qualified partner LU name or the partner LU alias.
Communications link to the AS/400: The communications link to the AS/400.
5250 users: The 5250 users that can use the 5250 emulation program, and configure their permissions.
Session names: The names of the sessions that will be used to connect to the AS/400(s). These session names must match the session names that are used in the 5250 style file or files. (For more information, see 5250 Style Files.)
Administration style file: The administration style file that will be used when you start 5250. The administration style file is typically set up by your System Administrator to define settings for groups of users who have common requirements. If no administration style file is specified, the 5250 emulation program will use its default settings. (For more information, see 5250 Style Files and Default Mappings.)

2.1.4 Setting Environment Variables

Check that your LANG environment variable is set to your local language. See your operating system documentation for the names of valid languages. Also ensure that the style file you use was created with the same LANG setting that you use to run the emulation program. For more information about style files, see 5250 Style Files.

Ensure that your DISPLAY environment variable is set appropriately. For more information about valid values, refer to your operating system documentation. You can override the DISPLAY setting using the command-line option (described in Starting 5250 Emulation).

2.1.5 Starting SNAP-IX

Before starting the 5250 emulation program, ensure that the SNAP-IX software is running. See your System Administrator if necessary, or refer to the SNAP-IX Administration Guide.