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Command syntax representation

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The following example shows the representation of the syntax of a command in a manual. The command format consists of a field with the command name. All operands with their legal values are then listed. Operand values which introduce structures and the operands dependent on these operands are listed separately.

HELP-SDF                                                                                     Alias: HPSDF

GUIDANCE-MODE = *NO / *YES

,SDF-COMMANDS = *NO / *YES

,ABBREVIATION-RULES = *NO / *YES

,GUIDED-DIALOG = *Y ES(...)

*Y ES(...)

SCREEN-STEPS = *NO / *YES

,SPECIAL-FUNCTIONS = *NO / *YES

,FUNCTION-KEYS = *NO / *YES

,NEXT-FIELD = *NO / *YES

,UNGUIDED-DIALOG = *Y ES(...) / *NO

*Y ES(...)

SPECIAL-FUNCTIONS = *NO / *YES

,FUNCTION-KEYS = *NO / *YES

Representation of the syntax of the user command HELP-SDF

This syntax description is valid for SDF V4.6A.The syntax of the SDF command/statement language is sexplained in the following three tables.

Table 1 : Notational conventions

The meanings of the special characters and the notation used to describe command and statement formats are explained in table  1.

Table 2 : Data types

Variable operand values are represented in SDF by data types. Each data type represents a specific set of values. The number of data types is limited to those described in table 2.

The description of the data types is valid for the entire set of commands/statements. Therefore only deviations (if any) from the attributes described here are explained in the relevant operand descriptions.

Table 3 : Suffixes for data types

Data type suffixes define additional rules for data type input. They contain a length or interval specification. They can be used to limit the set of values (suffix begins with without), extend it (suffix begins with with), or declare a particular task mandatory (suffix begins with mandatory). The following short forms are used in this manual for data type suffixes:

cat-id
completion
correction-state
generation
lower-case
manual-release
odd-possible
path-completion
separators
temporary-file
under-score
user-id
version
wildcard-constr
wildcards

cat
compl
corr
gen
low
man
odd
path-compl
sep
temp-file
under
user
vers
wild-constr
wild

The description of the ‘integer’ data type in table  3 contains a number of items in italics which are not part of the syntax. They are only used to make the table easier to read. For special data types that are checked by the implementation, table  3 contains suffixes printed in italics (see the special suffix) which are not part of the syntax.

The description of the data type suffixes is valid for the entire set of commands/statements. Therefore only deviations (if any) from table 3 are explained in the relevant operand descriptions.

Metasyntax

Representation

Meaning

Examples

UPPERCASE

LETTERS

Uppercase letters denote
keywords (command, statement or
operand names, keyword values) and
constant operand values. Keyword
values begin with *

HELP-SDF

SCREEN-STEPS = *NO

UPPERCASE

LETTERS

in boldface

Uppercase letters printed in boldface
denote guaranteed or
suggested abbreviations of keywords.

GUIDANCE-MODE = *YES

=

The equals sign connects an operand
name with the associated
operand values.

GUIDANCE-MODE = *NO

< >

Angle brackets denote variables
whose range of values is described
by data types and suffixes (see
Tables 2 and 3).

SYNTAX-FILE = <filename 1..54>

Underscoring

Underscoring denotes the default
value of an operand.

GUIDANCE-MODE = *NO

/

A slash serves to separate
alternative operand values.

NEXT-FIELD = *NO / *YES

(...)

Parentheses denote operand values
that initiate a structure.

,UNGUIDED-DIALOG = *Y ES(...) / *NO

[ ]

Square brackets denote operand
values which introduce a structure
and are optional. The subsequent
structure can be specified without
the initiating operand value.

SELECT = [*BY-ATTRIBUTES](...)

Indentation

Indentation indicates that the operand
is dependent on a higher-ranking
operand.

,GUIDED-DIALOG = *Y ES(...)

*Y ES(...)

SCREEN-STEPS = *NO /

*YES


A vertical bar identifies related
operands within a structure. Its
length marks the beginning and
end of a structure. A structure may
contain further structures. The
number of vertical bars preceding
an operand corresponds to the
depth of the structure.

SUPPORT = *TAPE(...)

*TAPE(...)

VOLUME = *ANY (...)

*ANY (...)

...

,

A comma precedes further
operands at the same structure level.

GUIDANCE-MODE = *NO / *YES

,SDF-COMMANDS = *NO / *YES

list-poss(n):

The entry “list-poss” signifies that a
list of operand values can be given
at this point. If (n) is present, it
means that the list must not have
more than n elements. A list of
more than one element must be
enclosed in parentheses.

list-poss: *SAM / *ISAM

list-poss(40): <structured-name 1..30>

list-poss(256): *OMF / *SYSLST(...) /

<filename 1..54>

Alias:

The name that follows represents a
guaranteed alias (abbreviation) for
the command or statement name.

HELP-SDF Alias: HPSDF

Data types

Data type

Character set

Special rules

alphanum-name

A...Z
0...9
$, #, @


cat-id

A...Z
0...9

Not more than 4 characters;
must not begin with the string PUB

command-rest

freely selectable


composed-name

A...Z
0...9
$, #, @
hyphen
period
catalog ID

Alphanumeric string that can be split into multiple
substrings by means of a period or hyphen.
If a file name can also be specified, the string
may begin with a catalog ID in the form :cat:
(see data type filename).

c-string

EBCDIC character

Must be enclosed within single quotes;
the letter C may be prefixed; any single quotes
occurring within the string must be entered
twice.

date

0...9
Structure identifier:
hyphen

Input format: yyyy-mm-dd

yyyy: year; optionally 2 or 4 digits
mm: month
dd: day

Only date specifications between 1.1.2000 and
19.1.2038 are possible. If the year is specified in
2-digit form, 2000 is added to the number

device

A...Z
0...9
hyphen

Character string, max. 8 characters in length,
corresponding to a device available in the
system. In guided dialog, SDF displays the valid
operand values. For notes on possible devices,
see the relevant operand description.

fixed

+, -
0...9
period

Input format: [sign][digits].[digits]

[sign]:+ or -
[digits]: 0...9

must contain at least one digit, but may
contain up to 10 characters (0...9, period) apart
from the sign.

filename

A...Z
0...9
$, #, @
hyphen
period

Input format:

[:cat:][$user.] { file | file(nr) | group |

group {(*abs) | (+rel) | (-rel) } }

:cat:

optional entry of the catalog identifier;
character set restricted to A...Z and 0...9;
maximum of 4 characters; must be enclosed
in colons; default value is the catalog
identifier assigned to the user ID, as
specified in the user catalog.

$user.

optional entry of the user ID;
character set is A...Z, 0...9, $, #, @;
maximum of 8 characters; first character
cannot be a digit; $ and period are
mandatory;
default value is the user's own ID.

$.  (special case)

system default ID

file

file or job variable name;
may be split into a number of partial names
using a period as a delimiter:
name1[.name2[...]]
namei does not contain a period and must

not begin or end with a hyphen;
file can have a maximum length of 41
characters; it must not begin with a $ and
must include at least one character from the
range A...Z.

#file (special case)

@file (special case)

# or @ used as the first character indicates
temporary files or job variables, depending on
system generation.



file(no)

tape file name
no: version number;
character set is A...Z, 0...9, $, #, @.
Parentheses must be specified.

group

name of a file generation group
(character set: as for “file”)

group {(*abs) | (+rel) | (-rel) }

(*abs)

absolute generation number (1-9999);
* and parentheses must be specified.

(+rel)
(-rel)

relative generation number (0-99);
sign and parentheses must be specified.

integer

0...9, +, -

+ or -, if specified, must be the first character.

name

A...Z
0...9
$, #, @

Must not begin with 0...9.

partial-filename

A...Z
0...9
$, #, @
hyphen
period

Input format: [:cat:][$user.][partname.]

:cat: see filename
$user.: see filename

partname

optional entry of the initial part of a name
common to a number of files or file
generation groups in the form:
name1.[name2.[...]]
name1 / name2 see filename.
The final character of “partname” must be a
period.
At least one of the parts :cat:, $user. or
partname must be specified.

posix-filename

A...Z
0...9
special characters

String which may have a maximum length of
255 characters. Consists of either one or two
periods or of alphanumeric characters and
special characters. The special characters must be
escaped with a preceding \ (backslash). The / is
not allowed.
Must be enclosed within single quotes if alternative
data types are permitted, separators are
used, or the first character is a ?, ! or ^.
A distinction is made between uppercase and
lowercase.

posix-pathname

A...Z
0...9
special characters
structure identifier:
slash

Input format: [/]part1/.../partn
where part1 / part2 is a posix-filename;
maximum of 510 in *POSIX syntax;
must be enclosed within single quotes if alternative
data types are permitted, separators are
used, or the first character is a ?, ! or ^

product-version

A...Z
0...9
period
single quote

Input format: [[C]' ][V][m]m.naso[' ]

a: release status
so: correction status

where m, n, s and o are all digits and a is a letter.
Whether the release and/or correction status
may/must be specified depends on the suffixes
to the data type (see the suffixes without-corr,
without-man, mandatory-man and mandatorycorr
in table 3).
product-version may be enclosed within single
quotes (possibly with a preceding C).
The specification of the version may begin with
the letter V.

structured-name

A...Z
0...9
$, #, @
hyphen

Alphanumeric string which may comprise a
number of substrings separated by a hyphen.
First character: A...Z or $, #, @

text

freely selectable

For the input format, see the relevant operand
descriptions.

time

0...9
structure identifier:
colon

Time-of-day entry:
Input format: { hh:mm:ss | hh:mm | hh }

hh: hours
mm: minutes
ss: sewconds

where leading zeros may be omitted

vsn

Case a)

A...Z
0...9

Case a)

Input format: pvsid.sequence-no
max. 6 characters
pvsid: 2-4 characters; PUB must not be
entered
sequence-no: 1-3 characters

Case b)

A...Z
0...9
$, #, @

Case b)

Max. 6 characters;
PUB may be prefixed, but must not be
followed by $, #, @.

x-string

Hexadecimal:
00...FF

Must be enclosed in single quotes; must be
prefixed by the letter X. There may be an odd
number of characters.

x-text

Hexadecimal:
00...FF

Must not be enclosed in single quotes;
the letter X must not be prefixed.
There may be an odd number of characters.

Suffixes for data types

Suffix

Meaning

x..y unit

With data type “integer”: interval specification

x

minimum value permitted for “integer”. x is an (optionally signed) integer.

y

maximum value permitted for “integer”. y is an (optionally signed)
integer.

unit

with “integer” only: additional units. The following units may be specified:
days: byte
hours 2Kbyte
minutes: 4Kbyte
seconds: Mbyte
milliseconds

x..y special

With the other data types: length specification
For data types catid, date, device, product-version, time and vsn the length
specification is not displayed.

x: minimum length for the operand value; x is an integer.

y: maximum length for the operand value; y is an integer.

x=y: the length of the operand value must be precisely x.

special

Specification of a suffix for describing a special data type that is checked
by the implementation. “special” can be preceded by other suffixes. The
following specifications are used:
arithm-expr: arithmetic expression (SDF-P)
bool-expr: logical expression (SDF-P)
string-expr:string expression (SDF-P)
expr: freely selectable expression (SDF-P)
cond-expr: conditional expression (JV)
symbol: CSECT or entry name (BLS)

with

Extends the specification options for a data type.

-compl

When specifying the data type “date”, SDF expands two-digit year specifications
in the form yy-mm-dd to:

20yy-mm-dd if yy < 60
19yy-mm-dd if yy >= 60

-low

Uppercase and lowercase letters are differentiated.

Suffix

Meaning

-pathcompl

For specifications for the data type “filename”, SDF adds the catalog and/or
user ID if these have not been specified.

-under

Permits underscores (_) for the data types “name” and “composed-name”.

-wild(n)

Parts of names may be replaced by the following wildcards.
n denotes the maximum input length when using wildcards.
Due to the introduction of the data types posix-filename and posix-pathname,
SDF now accepts wildcards from the Unix world (referred to below as
POSIX wildcards) in addition to the usual BS2000 wildcards. However, as
not all commands support POSIX wildcards, their use for data types other
than posix-filename and posix-pathname can lead to semantic errors.
Only POSIX wildcards or only BS2000 wildcards should be used within a
search pattern. Only POSIX wildcards are allowed for the data types
posixfilename and posix-pathname. If a pattern can be matched more than once
in a string, the first match is used.

BS2000
wildcards

Meaning

*

Replaces an arbitrary (even empty) character string. If the
string concerned starts with *, then the * must be entered twice
in succession if it is followed by other characters and if the
character string entered does not contain at least one other
wildcard.

Terminating
period

Partially-qualified entry of a name.
Corresponds implicitly to the string “./*”, i.e. at least one other
character follows the period.

/

Replaces any single character.

<sx:sy>

Replaces a string that meets the following conditions:

  • It is at least as long as the shortest string (sx or sy)

  • It is not longer than the longest string (sx

    or sy)

  • It lies between sx and sy in the alphabetic collating
    sequence; numbers are sorted after letters (A...Z0...9)

  • sx can also be an empty string (which is in the first position
    in the alphabetic collating sequence)

  • sy can also be an empty string, which in this position stands
    for the string with the highest possible code (contains only
    the characters X'FF' )

<s1,...>

Replaces all strings that match any of the character combinations
specified by s. s may also be an empty string. Any such
string may also be a range specification “sx:sy” (see above).

with-wild(n)


-s

Replaces all strings that do not match the specified string s.
The minus sign may only appear at the beginning of string s.
Within the data types filename or partial-filename the negated
string -s can be used exactly once, i.e. -s can replace one of
the three name components: cat, user or file.

Wildcards are not permitted in generation and version specifications for file
names. Only system administration may use wildcards in user IDs.
Wildcards cannot be used to replace the delimiters in name components cat
(colon) and user ($ and period).

POSIX
wildcards

Meaning

*

Replaces any single string (including an empty string). An *
appearing at the first position must be duplicated if it is followed
by other characters and if the entered string does not include
at least one further wildcard.

?

Replaces any single character. It is not permitted as the first
character outside single quotes.

[cx-cy]

Replaces any single character from the range defined by cx
and cy, including the limits of the range. cx and cy must be nor-
mal characters.

[s]

Replaces exactly one character from string s.
The expressions [cx-cy] and [s] can be combined into
[s1c<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255); "><sub>1</sub>c</span>x-cys<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255); "><sub>y</sub>s</span>2].

[!cx-cy]

Replaces exactly one character not in the range defined by cx
and cy, including the limits of the range. cx and cy must be nor-
mal characters.
The expressions [!cx-cy] and [!s] can be combined into
[!s1c<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255); "><sub>1</sub>c</span>x-cys2].

[!s]

Replaces exactly one character not contained in string s.
The expressions [!s] and [!cx-cy] can be combined into
[!s1c<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255); "><sub>1</sub>c</span>x-cys2].

with-wildconstr(n)


Specification of a constructor (string) that defines how new names are to be
constructed from a previously specified selector, i.e., a selection string with
wildcards (see also with-wild). n denotes the maximum input length when
using wildcards.
The constructor may consist of constant strings and patterns. A pattern
(character) is replaced by the string that was selected by the corresponding
pattern in the selector.
The following wildcards may be used in constructors:

Wildcard

Meaning

*

Corresponds to the string selected by the wildcard * in the
selector.

Terminating
period

Corresponds to the partially-qualified specification of a name in
the selector.
Corresponds to the string selected by the terminating period in
the selector.

/ or ?

Corresponds to the character selected by the / or ? wildcard in
the selector.

<n>

Corresponds to the string selected by the n-th wildcard in the
selector, where n is an integer.

Allocation of wildcards to corresponding wildcards in the selector:
All wildcards in the selector are numbered from left to right in ascending
order (global index).
Identical wildcards in the selector are additionally numbered from left to right
in ascending order (wildcard-specific index).
Wildcards can be specified in the constructor by one of two mutually exclusive
methods:

  1. Wildcards can be specified via the global index: <n>

  2. The same wildcard may be specified as in the selector; substitution
    occurs on the basis of the wildcard-specific index. For example:
    the second “/” corresponds to the string selected by the second “/” in the
    selector

Suffix

Meaning

with-wildconstr(n)

The following rules must be observed when specifying a constructor:

  • The constructor can only contain wildcards of the selector.

  • If the string selected by the wildcard <...> or [...] is to be used in the
    constructor, the index notation must be selected.

  • The index notation must be selected if the string identified by a wildcard
    in the selector is to be used more than once in the constructor. For
    example: if the selector “A/” is specified, the constructor “A<n><n>”
    must be specified instead of “A//”.

  • The wildcard * can also be an empty string. Note that if multiple asterisks
    appear in sequence (even with further wildcards), only the last asterisk
    can be a non-empty string, e.g. for “****” or “*//*”.

  • Valid names must be produced by the constructor. This must be taken
    into account when specifying both the constructor and the selector.

  • Depending on the constructor, identical names may be constructed from
    different names selected by the selector. For example:
    “A/*” selects the names “A1” and “A2”; the constructor “B*” generates
    the same new name “B” in both cases.
    To prevent this from occurring, all wildcards of the selector should be
    used at least once in the constructor.

  • If the selector ends with a period, the constructor must also end with a
    period (and vice versa). The string selected by the terminating period in
    the constructor cannot be specified via the global index.

with-wildconstr(n)

Examples:

Selector

Selection

Constructor

New name

A//*

AB1
AB2
A.B.C

D<3><2>

D1
D2
D.CB

C.<A:C>/<D,F>

C.AAD
C.ABD
C.BAF
C.BBF

G.<1>.<3>.XY<2>

G.A.D.XYA
G.A.D.XYB
G.B.F.XYA
G.B.F.XYB

C.<A:C>/<D,F>

C.AAD
C.ABD
C.BAF
C.BBF

G.<1>.<2>.XY<2>

G.A.A.XYA
G.A.B.XYB
G.B.A.XYA
G.B.B.XYB

A//B

ACDB
ACEB
AC.B
A.CB

G/XY/

GCXYD
GCXYE

1

GCXY.
G.XYC

1The period at the end of the name may violate naming conventions (e.g. for fully-qualified file names).

without

Restricts the specification options for a data type.

-cat

Specification of a catalog ID is not permitted.

-corr

Input format: [[C]' ][V][m]m.na[' ]
Specifications for the data type product-version must not include the correction
status.

-gen

Specification of a file generation or file generation group is not permitted.

-man

Input format: [[C]' ][V][m]m.n[' ]
Specifications for the data type product-version must not include either
release or correction status.

-odd

The data type x-text permits only an even number of characters.

-sep

With the data type “text”, specification of the following separators is not
permitted: ; = ( ) < > ' ' (i.e. semicolon, equals sign, left and right parentheses,
greater than, less than, and blank).

-tempfile

Specification of a temporary file is not permitted (see #file or @file under
filename).

-user

Specification of a user ID is not permitted.

-vers

Specification of the version (see “file(no)”) is not permitted for tape files.

-wild

The file types posix-filename and posix-pathname must not contain a
pattern (character).

mandatory

Certain specifications are necessary for a data type.

-corr

Input format:[[C]' ][V][m]m.naso[' ]
Specifications for the data type product-version must include the correction
status and therefore also the release status.

-man

Input format: [[C]' ][V][m]m.na[so][' ]
Specifications for the data type product-version must include the release
status. Specification of the correction status is optional if this is not prohibited
by the use of the suffix without-corr.

-quotes

Specifications for the data types posix-filename and posix-pathname must
be enclosed in single quotes.

Meaning of operands

After the format of each command there is a detailed description of all the operands, the possible value assignments and their functions.

Otherwise the same metasyntax is used in describing operands as in the representation of the command formats (see above).

Variable %UNIQUE

If a file name ends with %unique or %UNIQUE, this string will be replaced by another string, which varies with each new call.

f the receiving system is a Unix or Windows system, a suffix may follow %unique or %UNIQUE separated by a dot, e.g. "file1%unique.txt". This suffix must not contain any dot.

Only the already converted file name is displayed in both the log and the messages.

%UNIQUE is recognized and correctly converted to:

  • receive file names, on initiation from the remote system with WRITE-MODE = *REPLACE-FILE or *NEW-FILE

  • receive file names of the TRANSFER-FILE command withWRITE-MODE = *REPLACE-FILE or *NEW-FILE

  • file names in CREATE-FT-PROFILE or MODIFY-FT-PROFILE to preset the receive file name in FTAC profiles

The following restrictions must be observed when using %UNIQUE:

  • The metacharacter string %UNIQUE can only be used when specifying a file name as a C-string. The file name specified here may be a DMS file, a POSIX file or a library member.

  • The string %UNIQUE may be preceded by a prefix, provided the syntax rules for file names (especially the maximum file length) are not violated after %UNIQUE is replaced by the defined string (see above).

  • % characters are allowed in POSIX file names. Consequently, if the string %UNIQUE or %unique appears (anywhere) in a file name, and no substitution is desired, the string must be entered in the command as %%UNIQUE or %%unique. The duplicate % character will be removed on the target system.

  • %UNIQUE can be used to uniquely identify a library member, but may only be specified in the member name or the version designation, not both. The member cannot be entered using the *LIB(...) syntax in this case. The following syntax options are available:

    • C'lib/type/prefix%UNIQUE(version)'

    • C'lib/type/prefix%UNIQUE()/prefix%UNIQUE(version)'

    • C'lib/type/member(prefix%UNIQUE)'

    • C'lib/type/member()/member(prefix%UNIQUE)'