VALIDVARNAME=

VALIDVARNAME=

Controls the type of SAS variable names that can be created and processed during a SAS session

Valid in: configuration file, SAS invocation, OPTIONS statement, Systems Options window

Category: File Control: SASFILES

See: For more information on variable names see Names in the SAS Language

Syntax
Syntax Description

Syntax

VALIDVARNAME=V7 | V6 | UPCASE | ANY

Syntax Description

V7

(default) indicates that up to 32 mixed case alphanumeric characters are allowed. Names must begin with alphabetic characters or an underscore.

V6

is the same as when VALIDVARNAME=V7, except that variable names are uppercased and they may be only 8 bytes long, as in earlier versions of SAS.

CAUTION:: Transitional use only: VALIDVARNAME=V6 is intended for transitional use only. Use the V6 setting for applications that you need to use under both Version 6 and Version 7 of the SAS System.

CAUTION:: May render some applications unusable: Using VALIDVARNAME=V6 may render soem Version 7 macros or Version 7 SAS/AF applications unusable.

UPCASE

is the same as when VALIDVARNAME=V7, except that variable names are uppercased, as in earlier versions of SAS.

ANY

allows any characters to appear as valid SAS variable names. Symbols, such as "=" and "*", must be contained in a 'varname'n construct.

Restriction:	You can use variable names in this form only with the DATA step and the SQL procedure. This type of variable name may not be supported in all environments.
Restriction:	If you use any characters other than when VALIDVARNAME=V7, then you must express the variable name as a name literal.
See:	SAS Name Literals

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Valid in:	configuration file, SAS invocation, OPTIONS statement, Systems Options window
Category:	File Control: SASFILES
See:	For more information on variable names see Names in the SAS Language