SAS Management Console, SASHELP Library, and METAAUTORESOURCE option

[ScottBass]

Hi,

I've created a library in SMC pointing to SASHELP to give me some simple tables to help with some Proof of Concept Stored Processes I'm creating.

As I understand it, the only way to do this is to make the library pre-assigned.  So that was the library template I used.

However, now I'm getting this warning in SAS jobs launched via the Batch Server:

WARNING: The library SASHELP cannot be assigned. The metadata for this library was probably created with the pre-assigned library template. This library cannot be pre-assigned using metadata.

1.  Why does the Batch Server care if the library is pre-assigned?  IOW I don't get what this message is meant to warn me?

2.  How can I get rid of this warning message?

Thanks,

Scott

[JuanS_OCS]

Hi Scott,

I will try to help you out with your questions.

1.  Why does the Batch Server care if the library is pre-assigned?  IOW I don't get what this message is meant to warn me?

The batch server it is a service still attached to the SAS Metadata server, as part of the SASApp (the applications server) through the Object Spawner. Therefore, the Batch Server will see your libraries registered in the metadata.

The warning means that, since sashelp is a library already registered by SAS Base/SAS Foundation (sas.exe), when connects to the metadata and it sees another sashelp library pre-assigned, then it warns you of this fact, and the action taken by the metadata server to automatically counter-measure the conflict.

2.  How can I get rid of this warning message?

By ignoring it or removing the pre-asignment on the SAS Metadata.

I hope this can help you a bit.

Kind regards,

Juan

[ScottBass]

Hi Juan,

Thanks for your reply.

1) Sorry I didn't make this clear.  Why is this even worth a warning?  I defined a library as pre-assigned, because that's what it is, so I could register tables in metadata, so I could generate proof of concept from prompts in a stored process.  So why is creating a metadata object for a pre-assigned library a warning situation.

2) The coding standards where I work make it unacceptable to ignore the warning.  Plus this would mean that every batch job we run would have a warning error code in the scheduler.  And if I don't create the library using the pre-assigned library template, then SMC expects a path in order to define the metadata object.

What I really want is a way to make this library accessible from the Stored Process server, but not from the other SASApp servers.  And to not generate a warning from the Batch Server when running jobs in batch.

Is this possible to configure?

Thanks,

Scott

[JuanS_OCS]

Hi there,

please let me answer your questions with another question:

why would you want to convert sashelp (a SAS BASE library based on a physical location/folder) into a metadata library, only for the stored processes? I mean: you can already access sashelp from any SAS code (without any SASHELP metadata library) as on this example:

proc reg data=sashelp.class;
   model weight = height;
run; quit;

[ScottBass]

In my proof of concept example, I've defined a SASHELP library, so I could register the SASHELP.SHOES table, so I could demonstrate cascading prompts Region -> Subsidiary -> Products.  I can't define those prompts without having the table registered in metadata.

This will also serve as a simple teaching example for my colleagues.  It's not worth the effort (at this time) to define external metadata when SASHELP.SHOES works just fine.

If there is a way I can do this without defining the SASHELP library, please let me know 🙂

[LinusH]

Can't find from the post how you were defining it. Did you chose "by external configuration"?

[ScottBass]

Hi,

RMB -> New Library

Choose the pre-assigned library template

Name=SASHELP, libref=SASHELP

Assign to SASApp server

Accept all other defaults

My current workaround is to create the library, but unassign it from the SASApp server unless I'm demoing the POC Stored Process.

But, again, I'm just not getting why it matters if the library is pre-assigned, and why this is considered a warning.  Or how to turn off this warning.  I just want to use some of the sample SASHELP datasets in both my prompts and stored process data sources.

[LinusH]

What version?

[ScottBass]

9.2 on Linux

EG 4.3

Migrating to 9.4 and an upgraded version of EG (exact version unknown) in a month or so.

[LinusH]

Oh, that explains why you didn't took my "external configuration" bait, the pre assignment type weren't available until 9.4...
You'll have more options in 9.4 so if that's only a month away I sugest that you wait until then.