topic Re: Help listing variables and types in SAS Programming

Help listing variables and types

Havi — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 12:06:37 GMT

Hi All

Please help me. I need a program to check the variables in a dataset and if possible list the variable type.

Example: I have 3 datasets. I need to check the variables in each dataset at the end of the month in order to track changes to the dataset structure and raise a flag if the table structure changes.

Test201207 has 2 variables: amount, date

Test201208 has 3 variables: amount, date and customer_id

Test201209 has 4 variables: amount, date, customer_id and count

Thanks

Re: Help listing variables and types

Linlin — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 12:31:38 GMT

is this what you want:

proc contents data=sashelp.class out=class(keep=name type) noprint;
run;
proc print data=class;run;
Obs NAME TYPE

                                       1     Age         1
                                       2     Height      1
                                       3     Name        2
                                       4     Sex         2
                                       5     Weight      1

Re: Help listing variables and types

Havi — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 12:36:46 GMT

Thanks for your response Linlin.

Yes but I need to see how it differs from the previous datasets - what new variable has been added.

Re: Help listing variables and types

Linlin — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 12:52:25 GMT

How about:

data class1 class2;
set sashelp.class;
data class1;
set class1;
room=3;
data class2;
set class2;
grade='a';

proc contents data=class1 out=class_1(keep=name type) noprint;
proc contents data=class2 out=class_2(keep=name type) noprint;
run;
proc sort data=class_1;
by name;
proc sort data=class_2;
by name;
run;

data check;
length status $ 18;
merge class_1(in=a) class_2(in=b);
by name;
if a and b then status='both';
else if a and not b then status='class_1 only';
else status='class_2 only';

proc print;run;
Obs status NAME TYPE

                               1     both            Age         1
                               2     both            Height      1
                               3     both            Name        2
                               4     both            Sex         2
                               5     both            Weight      1
                               6     class_2 only    grade       2
                               7     class_1 only    room        1

Re: Help listing variables and types

TomKari — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 13:05:55 GMT

Check out the tables in the DICTIONARY library. They make it very easy to get dataset characteristics in a machine readable form. Setting up a scheme to retain the old settings, and compare them with the new ones, should be very easy. PROC COMPARE might do the job nicely.

Tom

Re: Help listing variables and types

data_null__ — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 13:15:26 GMT

I think if you make a grid with memnames down the side and variable names across and put type in the cells you can find all the answers you need with one simple report.

data

test201207(keep=amount date)

test201208(keep=amount cdate customer_id rename=(cdate=date))

test201209(keep=amount date customer_id count)

;

attrib amount length=8;

attrib date length=8;

attrib cdate length=$10;

attrib customer_id length=$10;

attrib count length=8;

stop;

call missing(of _all_);

run;

proc contents data=work._all_ noprint

out=contents(keep=memname name type where=(memname eq: 'TEST'));

run;

proc print;

run;

proc transpose out=report(drop=_name_ _label_);

by memname;

var type;

id name;

run;

proc print;

run;

customer_

Obs MEMNAME amount date id count

1 TEST201207 1 1 . .

2 TEST201208 1 2 2 .

3 TEST201209 1 1 2 1