OPerator Assistance Language (OPAL)
The OPerator Assistance Language (OPAL) is a powerful operations language that's part of Robot Schedule.
With OPAL, you can check a variety of tasks, including:
- If an object exists on the IBM i or if the objects has locks.
- If a file has any records in it.
- If printers, workstations, users, controllers, and communication lines are up and running.
- The completion status of any batch job, or whether the job is running.
OPAL lets you set up any type of job-prerequisite requirement. OPAL also can read or update Robot Schedule reserved command variables. This capability gives you two-way communication with other Robot products. It also allows for two-way communications with PCs.
Thus, you can use OPAL to do the following:
- Change any Robot Schedule job to reflect changed conditions.
- Change any job environment object to reflect changed conditions. For example, if one printer is down, you can automatically direct all the night’s reports to another printer.
- Change any data area, including the LDA.
- Skip running the job at this time.
- Delay running the job to a later time when conditions can be rechecked.
- Notify an expert using Robot Alert.
- Start another Robot Schedule job — even if it's on a remote system.
- Plus, many more.
This means you can create your own custom advanced scheduling options, advanced job prerequisites, and advanced event monitoring options. You can create exactly what you want using OPAL.
You work with OPAL using the Explorer or IBM i versions of Robot Schedule. Also, see the separate Robot Schedule OPAL Reference Guide for more information about using OPAL.