Error with file compressed with PKZIP on Z/os Mainframe

[Techow, Ric]

Hi,

Hoping for help with a gzip issue on Solaris 9. We have used gzip to decompress 
files sourced from a Z/os mainframe which have been compressed with PKZIP for 
many years.  On Z/os there is a PKZIP option to produce a gzip compatible file. 
E.g.

//STEPZIP  EXEC PGM=PKZIP,REGION=2048K
//STEPLIB  DD DISP=SHR,DSN=SYS1.ZIP.LOAD
//SYSPRINT DD SYSOUT=*
//SYSIN    DD *
-ARCHIVE(DPFCBTE.C824797.TESTZIP.ARC.DS9)
-ARCHIVE_SPACE_MULTIVOL=Y
-TEMP_SPACE_MULTIVOL=Y
-ARCHUNIT(SYSDA,59)
-ARCHSPACE(TRK)
-ARCHPRIMARY(10)
-ARCHSECONDARY(10)
-ZDW
-BINARY
-GZIP
DPFCBTE.C824797.TESTZIP.DS9
/*


Z/os job control language may not make much sense to non mainframers but I 
include it to be complete.  The SYSIN card is the command input fpr pkzip.

Recently we have started to receive bigger files and are getting an error 
message
gunzip: FLEXCBA0001241111251111_RT.gz: invalid compressed data--length error

However unzip can decompress the file.
ssdb0046t:c836088>unzip FLEXCBA0001241111251111_RT.ZIP
Archive:  FLEXCBA0001241111251111_RT.ZIP
SecureZIP for z/OS by PKWARE
  inflating: QPFCB/C1111/C25T0002/BITS/UNBLK

We can compress the uncompressed file produced by unzip.
ssdb0046t:c836088>gzip UNBLK
ssdb0046t:c836088>

We can gunzip the compressed file also
ssdb0046t:c836088>gunzip UNBLK.gz
ssdb0046t:c836088>ls -ltrh
total 10899144
-rw-r-----   1 c836088  staff       5.2G Dec  8 23:47 UNBLK
ssdb0046t:c836088>

So any problems do not appear to be due to the data itself.

Are there any known gzip bugs that might cause this error??

Ric Techow
Performance Analyst
Cost Value Engineering Group
Telstra Account | Communications, Media and Entertainment Group

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