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Overview of SAS/ACCESS Software

SAS/ACCESS software provides an interface between the SAS System and data from other software vendors' database management systems (DBMS), including PC file formats, such as DBF, DIF, WK1, WK3, WK4, and XLS 4 and 5. The SAS/ACCESS interface to PC file formats consists of two procedures and an interface view engine that perform these tasks:

• ACCESS procedure
  • creates SAS/ACCESS descriptor files that describe data in a PC file to the SAS System

  • creates a SAS data file from data that are stored in a PC file.

• interface view engine
  • enables you to use descriptor files in SAS programs to directly read data that are stored in PC files

  • enables you to specify descriptor files in SAS programs to update, insert, or delete data that are stored in some PC files.

• DBLOAD procedure
  • loads SAS data or other database-product data into PC files.

• DBF and DIF procedures
  • enable Windows, OS/2, and UNIX users to read and write to DBF and DIF files directly without using access and view descriptors. OS/390 users also have read and write access through the DBF procedure.

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