Chapter 20: The EXPORT Procedure

Overview: EXPORT Procedure

The EXPORT procedure reads data from a SAS data set and writes it to an external data source. External data sources can include Microsoft Access Database, Excel files, Lotus spreadsheets, and delimited external files (in which columns of data values are separated by a delimiter such as a blank, comma, or tab).

When you execute PROC EXPORT, the procedure reads the input data set and writes the data to the external data source. PROC EXPORT exports the data by one of the following methods :

• generated DATA step code

• generated SAS/ACCESS code

• translation engines.

You control the results with options and statements that are specific to the output data source. PROC EXPORT produces the specified output file and writes information about the export to the SAS log. In the log, you see the DATA step or the SAS/ACCESS code that is generated by PROC EXPORT. If a translation engine is used, then no code is submitted.

Note: To export data, you can also use the Export Wizard, which is a windowing tool that guides you through the steps to export a SAS data set. You can request the Export Wizard to generate EXPORT procedure statements, which you can save to a file for subsequent use. To invoke the Export Wizard, from the SAS windowing environment select File – Export Data