BMS Map files (.bms and .bmc)

Basic Mapping Support (BMS) maps are screen definitions files for Customer Information Control System (CICS®). Each map defines all or part of a screen, and a CICS application typically displays one or more maps to create a complete screen image. The source for BMS maps is organized in groups called map sets. One map set contains one or more maps. Map sets exist in source form as one map set per source file.

BMS map set files can be imported into a project in ZIETrans Toolkit. When ZIETrans imports BMS maps, the import takes place at the map set level. It is not possible to import an individual map. Imported BMS map set files have a file extension of .bms, and the individual maps have a file extension of .bmc in ZIETrans Toolkit.

Both the map set files (.bms) and the map files (.bmc) are stored in a separate Maps folder within the ZIETrans project. By default, the Maps folder is not visible in the ZIETrans Project View until there are maps imported.

ZIETrans enables you to generate screen captures from map files. You can choose to generate the screen captures when you import map sets, or you can generate them from the maps after they are in the Maps folder. To generate screen captures from maps, right click on a map file to display the pop-up menu and select Generate Screen Captures. You can elect to create separate screen captures for each BMS map selected or merge selected BMS maps into a single screen capture. Maps cannot be merged if fields overlap. Once the screen captures are created, you can begin creating ZIETrans screen customizations.

You can open a map set file in a ZIETrans Toolkit editor by double-clicking on the file in the ZIETrans Project View. See the CICS Application Programming Reference for information about the contents of the file. When a map set file is modified and saved in the text editor, the maps that make up the file are regenerated, with one exception: map files in which the contents of fields defined with labels in the map set files have been modified. To regenerate those maps, you must import the source file again using the BMS map set import wizard.

When a CICS application runs, it can modify the contents of the fields defined with labels. You might need to create screen captures with the fields appearing as they will be when the CICS application runs. Since the labeled fields are changeable when the application runs, the map set file (and the map files that are in the map set) may not contain all the information needed to generate an actual screen capture. While you cannot edit map files, double-clicking on a file opens a file preview. The property sheet view in ZIETrans Toolkit enables you to add missing information and manually set the contents of the fields. By modifying the contents of the fields, a single map can be used for multiple screen captures.
Note:
  1. When you are previewing a map file in ZIETrans Toolkit, the fields displayed in the property sheet view are the fields for the map file highlighted in the ZIETrans Project View, not the map file you see in the preview window.
  2. You can also screen capture files using the property sheet view in ZIETrans Toolkit, as long as the screen capture files were generated from BMS map files.