SAP on IBM i: Immediate Access to Data Collection Tools for the IBM Support

In the rare event of a software problem with the operating system IBM i or database IBM Db2 for i, you may have to contact the IBM support organization to get help with your issue. Today’s application landscapes consist of many different hardware, software and network components and allow a wide range of configuration options. In such an environment, it is not easy for the support organization to capture all the information that is needed to understand what has contributed to the error situation.

To overcome this complexity, IBM has created a tool set called “Must Gather Data Collector”, which is delivered in a library named QMGTOOLS and documented at https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/qmgtools-must-gather-data-collector-users-guide. Typically you would not use the tool set on your own, but with guidance from the IBM support organization. To invoke the tool, enter the following commands on an IBM i command line:

ADDLIBLE QMGTOOLS
GO MG

This will bring up the following menu:

Must Gather Data Collector Enry Menu

In the past, the tool library needed to be downloaded from IBM per request of the IBM support, which may have added some delay in the processing of the problem. However, with the recent updates of the cumulative PTF packages for IBM i 7.2, 7.3 and 7.4, the library QMGTOOLS is now included in the cumulative PTF packages (see https://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=nas2SE72229).

The PTF will provide a save file named QSYS/QESMGTSAVF, which contains the library QMGTOOLS in a version from October 2019. If your IBM i server or partition is allowed to access the Internet, you can then use option 13 from menu QMGTOOLS/MG to update your library with the latest version. Keeping the tool set up-to-date will help speeding up the data collection process if you should experience a software problem that needs to be investigated by the IBM support organization.