Specifies the initial disposition for a SAS data library in tape
format
| Default: |
OLD
|
| Engines: |
V7TAPE, V6TAPE
|
| Valid as: |
data set option
|
| CMS specifics: |
all
|
-
NEW
-
specifies that the sequential data library
is to be considered empty. SAS therefore does not look for previously written
members. The data step writes the new member at the beginning of the new (empty)
library. Any members that existed in the library prior to the write are lost.
The FILEDISP=NEW option can be valid only during the first write to a sequential
data library for a given libref. For all subsequent writes to that libref,
FILEDISP=NEW is ignored and FILEDISP=OLD is assumed.
-
OLD
-
specifies that the sequential data library
is not initially empty. SAS therefore writes members with names that do not
already exist in the library at the end of the library. If the member being
written has a name that already exists in the library, the existing member
is overwritten and any members that follow the overwritten member are lost.
A sequential data library is a single SAS file that
can contain one or more concatenated members.
To avoid inadvertent data loss, make sure that you specify
FILEDISP=NEW only when writing to new (empty) sequential data libraries. Also,
when writing to an existing sequential data library, make sure that the name
of the member being written does not inadvertently correspond to the name
of a member that already exists in the
library.
Copyright © 1999 by SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA. All rights reserved.
