Why does job_depends show ?????? for the current status of a new external dependency?

Products

• Autosys Workload Automation

Issue/Introduction

Why, after creating a new external dependency, does the job depends command show ?????? as the current status for that external job? 

   Condition: s(test_xdep^PL2)
   Atomic Condition                              Current Status T/F
   ----------------                              -------------- ---
   s(test_xdep^PL2)                              ??????         F

Environment

Release : 11.3.6/12.0

Component : CA Workload Automation AE (AutoSys)

Resolution

This is normal behavior. When you define a new cross-instance dependency, a request is sent to the external instance to let it know that the dependency exists. The external instance stores that request in its own database and acknowledges that it received it. These messages are logged at that time in the local instance...

[09/13/2021 14:02:22]      CAUAJM_I_40245 EVENT: EXTERNAL_DEPENDENCY  JOB: test_xdep^PL2
[09/13/2021 14:02:22]      <Requested by Job: test_cross_dep>
[09/13/2021 14:02:22]      CAUAJM_I_10066 Event <PL10002h2h00> successfully sent to external instance <PL2>

The external instance does not send back the current status of the external job at that time. Therefore, the job_depends command will show ?????? for the current status of the external job because the status of that job is not yet known to the local instance...

   Condition: s(test_xdep^PL2)
   Atomic Condition                              Current Status T/F
   ----------------                              -------------- ---
   s(test_xdep^PL2)                              ??????         F

Once the external jobs runs the first time after the dependency is created, events associated with that job run will be sent to the local instance as well. Once the local scheduler processes one of these events coming from the external instance that satisfies the dependency, the local job will run...

[09/13/2021 14:05:21]      CAUAJM_I_40245 EVENT: CHANGE_STATUS    STATUS: STARTING        JOB: test_xdep^PL2   MACHINE: machineB
[09/13/2021 14:05:22]      CAUAJM_I_40245 EVENT: CHANGE_STATUS    STATUS: RUNNING         JOB: test_xdep^PL2   MACHINE: machineB
[09/13/2021 14:05:22]      <Job test_xdep 168.69.1 entered RUNNING>
[09/13/2021 14:05:22]      CAUAJM_I_40245 EVENT: CHANGE_STATUS    STATUS: SUCCESS         JOB: test_xdep^PL2   MACHINE: machineB   EXITCODE:  0
[09/13/2021 14:05:23]      CAUAJM_I_40245 EVENT: CHANGE_STATUS    STATUS: STARTING        JOB: test_cross_dep  MACHINE: machineA
[09/13/2021 14:05:23]      CAUAJM_I_10082 [machineA connected for test_cross_dep 258.15679.1]

At that point, the job_depends command will show the current status of the external job...

   Condition: s(test_xdep^PL2)
   Atomic Condition                              Current Status T/F
   ----------------                              -------------- ---
   s(test_xdep^PL2)                              SUCCESS        T