topic Re: How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine? in New SAS User

How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine?

PSARAVANAN — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 05:39:40 GMT

How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine? Is there any alternative for it?

Re: How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine?

Patrick — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 05:51:48 GMT

Save it as a .csv and then import the .csv.

If you're working in a Windows environment and need to automate things then you could write a vb script and call the vb script for saving the excel as .csv (if the SAS option is set to XCMD and not NOXCMD)

Re: How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine?

PSARAVANAN — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 06:35:21 GMT

Hi Patrick,

Thanks for your response.

Can you please explain the procedure if I have to do the same in UNIX environment?
And also, is it possible to convert the file directly from excel to SAS dataset instead of going through the .csv conversion?

Re: How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine?

andreas_lds — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 06:41:51 GMT

To the second question: no, afaik this is not possible. There could be a way involving java objects and and some fancy stuff from Apache, but I never did this, but I heard some people use this on Solaris to create and update Excel files.

Re: How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine?

Kurt_Bremser — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 08:14:28 GMT

AFAIK, Libreoffice is available on Linux and can be run in batch mode from the commandline to do such conversions.

Re: How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine?

ed_sas_member — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 09:11:55 GMT

Hi @PSARAVANAN

Have you tried to run a proc import:

proc import datafile="&path/your_file.xlsx"
			dbms=xlsx
			out=work.mydata
			replace;
	sheet=/*put sheet name*/;
run;

Re: How to import an excel file without xlsx or excel engine?

Kurt_Bremser — Tue, 18 Feb 2020 09:30:23 GMT

@ed_sas_member wrote:

Hi @PSARAVANAN

Have you tried to run a proc import:
proc import datafile="&path/your_file.xlsx"
			dbms=xlsx
			out=work.mydata
			replace;
	sheet=/*put sheet name*/;
run;

I think that the OP's problem is that they do not have ACCESS to PC Files licensed, so that won't work.