Chapter 2
SAS Processing
Definition of SAS Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Types of Input to a SAS Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
The DATA Step . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
What Does the DATA Step Do? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
DATA Step Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
The PROC Step . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
What Does the PROC Step Do? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
PROC Step Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
SAS Processing Restrictions for Servers in a Locked-Down State . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
z/OS-Specific Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Specifying Functions in the Lockdown Path List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Definition of SAS Processing
SAS processing is the way that the SAS language reads and transforms input data and
generates the type of output that you request. The DATA step and the procedure (PROC)
step are the two steps in the SAS language. Generally, the DATA step manipulates data,
and the PROC step analyzes data, produces output, or manages SAS files. These two
types of steps, used alone or combined, form the basis of SAS programs.
The following figure shows a high–level view of SAS processing using a DATA step and
a PROC step. The figure focuses primarily on the DATA step.
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