While compiling a COBOL program, the following error message appears: "Ignored  - linkcount".  

For example:

cob -C linkcount=2048 hello-world.cbl

 * Ignored  - linkcount(2048)

The LINKCOUNT compiler directive was a feature of Object COBOL Developer's Suite (an old version of Micro Focus COBOL, withdrawn from service in 2005).

The LINKCOUNT compiler directive is not included in Server Express (a newer version of Micro Focus COBOL introduced in the year 2000).

If you use Server Express to compile, and if you specify the LINKCOUNT compiler directive, an error will warn you that LINKCOUNT is no longer available.  For example:

 Unix prompt>  cat $COBDIR/etc/cobver

 cobol v5.1.00
 PRN=RXCAO/AAB:9p.k5.51.07
 PTI=WrapPack 6
 PTI=ES
 PTI=Fixpack51.07_03

 Unix prompt>  cat hello-world.cbl

  display "hello".

 Unix prompt>  cob -C linkcount=2048 hello-world.cbl

 * Ignored  - linkcount(2048)

The documentation is available here:

http://supportline.microfocus.com/productdoc.aspx

From that page, locate the Server Express documentation, then within that, click "Migration Guide", then "Chapter 5: Compiler Directives and Dialects", then look under "Excluded Directives".  It says "The following directives are not in this product:  LINKCOUNT".

To solve the problem, change the way you compile, so LINKCOUNT is no longer specified.  It is probably left over in your compilation from a time when you used Object COBOL Developer's Suite.  It is safe to remove it.  Then the error message will go away.

If you have trouble finding exactly where LINKCOUNT is specified in the way you compile, then within the Server Express documentation, navigate to:

User's Guide > Part 2: Creating Applications > 9. COBOL System Interface (Cob) > Specifying Compiler Directives

This area of the documentation outlines the various ways compiler directives might be specified.  For example it might be specified following a "-C" option on a "cob" command line, as in the above example.

Your programs will "just work" under Server Express without LINKCOUNT being specified.