Online reference - Selection Criteria Options
The following figure enables you to control record selection based on starting record key, RBA, or RRN or record counts which determine how selection processing is executed and when it stops. File-AID determines whether an individual parameter is valid based on the access method of the processed data set. For instance, File-AID allows you to specify the processing direction when selecting records from a sequential or VSAM file.
Enter option 1 on the Selection Criteria Menu to display the Selection Criteria Options screen. Selection criteria options can be combined with both formatted and unformatted selection criteria. If any formatted or unformatted selection criteria exist, they are applied after a record passes the selection criteria options selection process.
Selection Criteria Options Screen
COMMAND ===>
Specify Selection Criteria Options:
Start at the following record key
(both blank for start of dataset)
Starting record key ===>
- OR - OR at the following RBA or RRN
Starting RBA or RRN ===>
Initial records to skip ===> 0 then skip this many records
Subsequent Selection Interval: then repeat the following
Records to select ===> 1 - select this many records
Records to skip ===> 0 - then skip this many records
until
Number of records to search ===> ALL you have read this many records
Number of records to select ===> ALL or selected this many records
SEQ/VSAM processing direction ===> F (F = Forward; B = Backward)
Use END key to return to selection criteria menu
Field Descriptions
Specify Selection Criteria Options:
The Starting record key field and Starting RBA or RNN field are exclusive of each other.
Starting record key
Specify a generic or specific record key in a character or hexadecimal data format. This field allows you to specify a random starting point for record selection in a VSAM KSDS or keyed BDAM file. Records before the starting record key are not selected, regardless of matching formatted or unformatted selection criteria.
To specify a hexadecimal record key, enter the value enclosed in single quotation marks ( ’ ) and precede the quoted value with the letter X. For example, X'03E2'.
Starting RBA or RRN
Specify a generic or specific relative byte address (RBA) or relative record number (RRN).
This field allows you to specify a random starting point for record selection in a VSAM or BDAM data set. Records before the specified starting RBA or RRN are not selected, regardless of matching formatted or unformatted selection criteria.
For VSAM KSDS and VSAM ESDS data sets, enter a specific relative byte address. RBAs must be on a record boundary. To specify a hexadecimal RBA, enter the value enclosed in single quotation marks ( ’ ) and precede the quoted value with the letter X.
For VSAM RRDS or BDAM data sets, a relative record number (RRN) can be specified.
Initial records to skip
Specify a number of records for File-AID to skip before processing the data set. Possible values are any number from 0 (zero) through 999999. Use the 0 (zero) value to process all records.
Subsequent Selection Interval:
The values in the Records to select and Records to skip fields determine the record selection pattern that File-AID uses to select records from a data set until the value in the Number of records to search or the Number of records to select field is reached.
Records to select
pecify the number of records for File-AID to retrieve from the data set at a time. Possible values are any number from 1 (one) through 999999. Selection criteria is applied after the record has been retrieved. The default is 1 (one).
Records to skip
Specify the number of records for File-AID to skip after fulfilling the Records to select parameter when processing the data set. Possible values are any number from 0 (zero) through 999999. Use the 0 (zero) value for File-AID to process all remaining records. All skipped records are not selected, regardless of the selection criteria specified.
Number of records to search
Specify a limit for the number of records File-AID reads and checks for matches to selection criteria. The default for this parameter is ALL. Possible values are any number from 0 (zero) through 999999. Use the Number of records to search field on the Selection Criteria Parameters screen to alter the default. See “Selection Parameters”. Use the 0 (zero) or ALL value to search the entire file.
This parameter can prevent excessive I/O processing when searching large files. If the data set is processed randomly (a KEY or RBA have been entered), this count begins with the first record retrieved randomly.
Number of records to select
Specify a limit for the total number of records for File-AID to retrieve from the data set. Possible values are any number from 0 (zero) through 999999. The default is ALL. Use the Number of records to select field on the Selection Criteria Parameters screen to alter the default. See “Selection Parameters”. Use the 0 (zero) or ALL value to select the entire file.
When record information is requested, the additional record information line(s) are not counted as selected records. If a partitioned dataset containing JCL is processed logically, the value in the Number of records to select field is the number of logical records that File-AID selects.
SEQ/VSAM processing direction
Specify a processing direction for File-AID to read Sequential or VSAM files. Possible values are F (forward) and B (backward). The default is F (forward).
This field specifies whether File-AID starts reading a Sequential or VSAM file at the beginning or the end. File-AID ignores the B value in this field when used with data sets of other access methods.
The following figure shows an example of the effect of selection criteria options.
Selection Criteria Options Example
| |
| Subsequent Selection Interval: then repeat the following |
| Records to select ===> 2 - select this many records |
| Records to skip ===> 3 - then skip this many records |
| until |
| Number of records to search ===> ALL you have read this many records |
| Number of records to select ===> 10 or selected this many records |
| |
Selected/Not Selected Records in the file
NS Record 1
NS 2
NS 3
NS 4
S Select 2 5 <=== Starting Record Number
S 6
NS Skip 3 7
NS 8
NS 9
S Select 2 10
S 11
NS Skip 3 12
NS 13
NS 14
S Select 2 15
S 16
NS Skip 3 17
NS 18
NS 19
S Select 2 20
S 21
NS Skip 3 22
NS 23
NS 24
S Select 2 25
S 26 <=== 10th Record Selected
NS 27
NS 28
NS 29
NS Not Selected 30
NS Because Limit 31
NS Has Been Reached 32
NS 33
NS 34
NS 35
When the values shown in the following figure are entered in the selection criteria options fields, all records in the file pass this portion of the selection process and are processed by any specified formatted and unformatted selection criteria.
Selection Criteria Options Example
Description: Default — Examines All Records
| |
| Subsequent Selection Interval: then repeat the following |
| Records to select ===> 1 - select this many records |
| Records to skip ===> 0 - then skip this many records |
| until |
| Number of records to search ===> ALL you have read this many records |
| Number of records to select ===> ALL or selected this many records |
| |