File status 38: OPEN of a file closed WITH LOCK

What it means

CLOSE has an optional WITH LOCK phrase. It closes the file and marks it so the same run unit can't open it again. Any later OPEN of that file fails with 38, a permanent error.

This rule belongs to COBOL, not to the data set. It isn't a lock in the z/OS sense. Other jobs and other run units can still open the data set. Sharing between jobs is controlled by DISP and, for VSAM, by SHAREOPTIONS. The rule works the same way for QSAM and VSAM files.

Under the older CMPR2 behavior this case was reported as 92, a general logic error. Enterprise COBOL gives it its own code, which makes the cause easy to spot once you know it.

Common causes

• A routine closes a file WITH LOCK at the end of one pass, and a later pass or a restart routine opens it again.
• A called subprogram closes its file WITH LOCK, and the caller calls it again later in the same job step.
• WITH LOCK was added to stop a file being processed twice, and a later change brought in a legitimate second OPEN.

How to find the problem

1. Search the program and its subprograms for CLOSE statements with WITH LOCK for that file.
2. Trace the order of OPEN and CLOSE statements. Put a DISPLAY before each one, or use a debugger, to see which CLOSE ran before the failing OPEN.
3. If a subprogram owns the file, check how many times it's called during the run.

How to fix it

• Remove WITH LOCK if the file needs to be opened again. A plain CLOSE allows a later OPEN.
• If the lock is deliberate, keep it and change the logic so the second OPEN doesn't happen, for example by setting a flag when the file is finished.
• Check the status after every OPEN so a 38 is reported with the file name.

Last reviewed 2026-10-18 by the WND Software team. Written in our own words. For the full reference, check IBM’s Enterprise COBOL documentation for your release.