The FILE-EXPIRATION-DATE operand can be used in an archival request to define a file expiration date for the files to be archived; this is a logical retention period that may differ from the physical retention period defined for the volume containing the save version. The HSMS administrator can define for public long-term archives that the logical retention period for individual files may be longer than the physical retention period for the volumes. In this case, the HSMS administrator must take appropriate administrative measures to protect a volume against overwriting once the physical retention period has expired:
This can be done, for instance, by reorganizing the long-term archives and by reshuffling the volumes before the retention period expires. Reshuffling is the copying of save versions to a volume with a higher expiration date. This can be restricted to those save versions whose file expiration date has not yet been reached. From HSMS version V12.0D it is also possible to initiate automatic deletion of the save file after the copying of the save versions.
Another possibility is to use the SAVE-FILE-RETPD-UPD operand. This operand allows the retention period of a save file to be automatically extended while a new save version is created or the file expiration date is changed. This change also affects the MAREN catalog.
The function SAVE-FILES=*RETENTION-PERIOD(...) in the HSMS statement MODIFY-ARCHIVE can also be used to extend the retention period of a save file. With save files on magnetic tape cartridge, this extension also affects the MAREN catalog entry of the volume and with save files on disk it also affects the catalog entry.
The logical expiration date for a save version can be defined in two ways:
Implicitly without specifying the FILE-EXPIRATION-DATE operand or by specifying FILE-EXPIRATION-DATE=*STD
In the latter case the expiration date is calculated as follows:
(Creation-Date + Retention-Period [+ Continuation-Period])
(Creation-Date + Retention-Period [+ Continuation-Period])By explicitly specifying a value (not equal to *STD) in the FILE-EXPIRATION-DATE operand.
If the expiration date of an archived file/job variable (see catalogue entry for the EXPIR-DATE file) is earlier than the defined expiration date for the save version, a warning is issued and the archival request is assigned the substatus COMPLETED WITH WARNINGS.