topic Re: SQL database pass-through auto-output date as date fields instead of text fields in SAS Procedures

SQL database pass-through auto-output date as date fields instead of text fields

hellind — Thu, 21 Nov 2013 06:00:04 GMT

Currently the code below will output the results to the SAS dataset WORK.UOBS_RMTL.

The field SUBMISSION_DATE in WORK.UOBS_RMTL is in text. Is there anyway for SAS to auto pick up as date format?

I prefer not to run another data step to convert text to date using INPUT.

proc sql;

CONNECT to ODBC as oradb (datasrc=UOBS_PROD user=&SUser. password=&SPwd.);

%put &sqlxmsg;

CREATE TABLE WORK.UOBS_RMTL (COMPRESS=YES) AS

SELECT *

FROM connection to oradb

(

SELECT

CA_NUMBER

, CONVERT(varchar(10), SUBMISSION_DATE, 126) AS SUBMISSION_DATE

FROM [DRLPP].[dbo].[SML_CA]

) ;

%put &sqlxmsg;

DISCONNECT from oradb;

quit;

run;

Re: SQL database pass-through auto-output date as date fields instead of text fields

hellind — Thu, 21 Nov 2013 06:26:53 GMT

SAS SQL Date formatting - Stack Overflow

Someone suggested like this:

proc sql; create table data.test as select ID, INPUT(CREATION_DATE,datetime20.) AS CREATION_DATE from connection to odbc ( select ID, DATE AS CREATION_DATE from maintable ); quit;

If I have 12 date columns, it means I have to define 12 times. Quite time-consuming.

Am looking for some lazy coding.

Re: SQL database pass-through auto-output date as date fields instead of text fields

esjackso — Thu, 21 Nov 2013 13:33:36 GMT

I think the only ways that SAS "guesses" at variables types is through proc import or the import wizard.

You could do the conversions in a data step using arrays and a do loop to save a little on the typing.

Re: SQL database pass-through auto-output date as date fields instead of text fields

tfearn — Thu, 21 Nov 2013 14:19:56 GMT

I had this problem in connecting to newer SQL server database and the solution was to get an updated version of the odbc interface. The problem there was that the database had a new date field datatype. In the old odbc interface the field was processed as a text field and in the new one it was processed as sas datetime field.

Re: SQL database pass-through auto-output date as date fields instead of text fields

Marina — Thu, 21 Nov 2013 14:51:55 GMT

In the sample code you provided you are converting data type from date to character. If you just select the field you need without conversion:

SELECT CA_NUMBER,

SUBMISSION_DATE

FROM ...

you will have SUBMISSION_DATE as date if it is date in database.