Dictionary

ALTER= Data Set Option

Assigns an alter password to a SAS file and enables access to a password-protected SAS file

Default: none

Valid in: DATA step and PROC steps

Category: Data Set Control

Engines: V9, V8, V7, V6

UNIX specifics: TAPE engines ignore the alter-password

See: ALTER= Data Set Option in SAS Language Reference: Dictionary

Syntax

ALTER= alter-password

alter-password

• must be a valid SAS name . See "Rules for Words and Names in the SAS Language" in SAS Language Reference: Concepts .

Details

The ALTER= option applies to all types of SAS files except catalogs. You can use this option to assign an alter-password to a SAS file or to access a read-protected, write-protected, or alter-protected SAS file.

Note  

Under UNIX, TAPE engines ignore the alter-password .

BUFNO= Data Set Option

Specifies the number of buffers to be allocated for processing a SAS data set

Default: 1

Valid in: DATA step and PROC steps

Category: Data Set Control

Engines: V9, V8, V7, V6, V9TAPE, V8TAPE, V7TAPE, V6TAPE

UNIX specifics: default value

See: BUFNO= Data Set Option in SAS Language Reference: Dictionary

Syntax

BUFNO= n n K hex X MIN MAX

n nK

• specifies the number of buffers in multiples of 1 (bytes); 1,024 (kilobytes). For example, a value of 8 specifies 8 buffers, and a value of 1k specifies 1024 buffers.

hexX

• specifies the number of buffers as a hexadecimal value. You must specify the value beginning with a number (0 “9), followed by hex digits (0 “9, A “F), and then followed by an X. For example the value 2dx specifies 45 buffers.

MIN

• sets the minimum number of buffers to 0, which causes SAS to use the minimum optimal value for the operating environment.

MAX

• sets the number of buffers to the maximum possible number in your operating environment, up to the largest four-byte signed integer, which is 2 ³¹ -1, or approximately 2 billion.

Details

The buffer number is not a permanent attribute of the data set; it is valid only for the current SAS session or job. BUFNO= applies to SAS data sets that are opened for input, output, or update.

See Also

• "BUFSIZE= Data Set Option" on page 225

• "BUFNO System Option" on page 318

BUFSIZE= Data Set Option

Specifies the permanent buffer page size for an output SAS data set

Default:

Valid in: DATA step and PROC steps

Category: Data Set Control

Engines: V9, V8, V7, V9TAPE, V8TAPE, V7TAPE, V6TAPE

UNIX specifics: valid range

See: BUFSIZE= Data Set Option in SAS Language Reference: Dictionary

Syntax

BUFSIZE= n n K n M n G hex X MAX

n nK nM nG

• specifies the buffer size in multiples of 1 (bytes); 1,024 (kilobytes); 1,048,576 (megabytes); or 1,073,741,824 (gigabytes). For example, a value of 8 specifies 8 bytes, and a value of 3m specifies 3,145,728 bytes.

  The buffer size can range from 1K to 2G-1. For values greater than 1G, use the n M option.

hexX

• specifies the page size as a hexadecimal value. You must specify the value beginning with a number (0 “9), followed by hex digits (0 “9, A “F), and then followed by an X. For example, 2dx sets the page size to 45 bytes.

MAX

• sets the buffer page size to the maximum possible number in your operating environment, up to the largest four-byte, signed integer, which is 2 ³¹ -1, or approximately 2 billion bytes.

Details

The BUFSIZE= data set option specifies the buffer size for data sets you are creating. This option is valid only for output data sets.

If you use the default value (0) when you create a SAS data set, the engine calculates a buffer size to optimize CPU and I/O use. This size is the smallest multiple of 8K that can hold 80 observations but is not larger than 64K.

If you specify a nonzero value when you create a SAS data set, the engine uses that value. If that value cannot hold at least one observation or is not a valid buffer size, the engine rounds the value up to a multiple of 1K.

See Also

• "BUFSIZE System Option" on page 319

FILECLOSE= Data Set Option

Specifies how a tape is positioned when a SAS file on the tape is closed

Default: REREAD

Valid in: DATA step and PROC steps

Category: Miscellaneous

Engines: V9TAPE, V8TAPE, V7TAPE, V6TAPE

UNIX specifics: list of valid values

See: FILECLOSE= Data Set Option in SAS Language Reference: Dictionary

Syntax

FILECLOSE= FREE LEAVE REREAD REWIND

FREE

• rewinds and dismounts the tape. If the device cannot dismount the tape, it will only be rewound.

LEAVE

• positions the tape at the end of the file that was just processed . Use FILECLOSE=LEAVE if you are not repeatedly accessing the same files in a SAS program but you are accessing one or more subsequent SAS files on the same tape.

REREAD

• positions the tape volume at the beginning of the file that was just processed. Use FILECLOSE=REREAD if you are accessing the same SAS data set on tape several times in a SAS program.

REWIND

• rewinds the tape volume to the beginning. Use FILECLOSE=REWIND if you are accessing one or more previous SAS files on the same tape but you are not repeatedly accessing the same files in a SAS program.

PW= Data Set Option

Assigns a read, write, or alter password to a SAS file and enables access to password-protected SAS file

Default: none

Valid in: DATA step and PROC steps

Category: Data Set Control

Engines: V9, V8, V7, V6, V9TAPE, V8TAPE, V7TAPE, V6TAPE

UNIX specifics: TAPE engines ignore the alter-password

See: PW= Data Set Option in SAS Language Reference: Dictionary

Syntax

PW= password

password

• must be a valid SAS name. See "Rules for Words and Names in the SAS Language" in SAS Language Reference: Concepts .

Details

The PW= option applies to all types of SAS files except catalogs. You can use this option to assign a password to a SAS file or to access a password-protected SAS file.

Note  

Under UNIX, TAPE engines ignore the alter-password .