HP 3000 Manuals HP 3000 Manuals
User-Defined Files
You can reference any user-defined file by writing its name and
descriptors in the filereference format, as follows:
filename[/lockword][.groupname][.accountname]
In no case must any file designator written in the filereference format
exceed 35 characters, including delimiters.
When you reference a file that belongs to your logon account and group,
you need only use thefilereference format in its simplest form, which
includes only a file name that may range from one to eight alphanumeric
characters, beginning with a letter (unless, of course, the file has a
lockword, in which case you must specify the lockword and a delimiter).
In the following examples, both formal and actual designators appear in
this format:
Formal designator
|
FILE ALPHA=BETA <---- Actual designator
FILE REPORT=OUTPUT
FILE X=AL126797
FILE PAYROLL=SELFL
A file reference is always qualified, in the appropriate directory, by
the names of the group and account to which the file belongs, so you need
ensure only that the file's name is unique within its group. For
instance, if you create a file named FILX under GROUPA and ACCOUNT1, the
system recognizes your file as FILX.GROUPA.ACCOUNT1; a file with the same
file name, created under a different group, could be recognized as
FILX.GROUPB.ACCOUNT1.
File groups serve as the basis for your local file references; thus, when
you log on, if the default file system file security provisions are in
effect, you have unlimited access to all files assigned to your logon
group and your home group. Furthermore, you are permitted to read, and
execute programs residing in, the public group of your logon account.
This group, always named PUB, is created under every account to serve as
a common file base for all users of the account. In addition, you may
read and execute programs residing in the PUB group of the System
Account. This is a special account available to all users on every
system, always named SYS.
When you reference a file that belongs to your logon account, but not to
your logon group, you must specify the name of the file's group within
your reference. In this form of the filereference format, the group name
appears after the file name, separated from it by a period. Embedded
blanks within the file or group names, or surrounding the period, are
prohibited. As an example, suppose your program references a file under
the name LEDGER, which is recorded in the system by the actual designator
GENACCT. This file belongs to your home group, but you are logged on
under another group when you run the program. To access the file, you
must specify the group name as follows:
FILE LEDGER=GENACCT.XGROUP <------- Group name
RUN MYPROG <------- Program file (in logon group)
As another example, suppose that you are logged on under the group name
XGROUP but wish to reference a file named X3 that is assigned to the
Public Group of your account. If your program refers to this file by the
name FILLER, you would enter:
FILE FILLER=X3.PUB
When you reference a file that does not belong to your logon account, you
must use an even more extensive form of the filereference format. With
this form, you include both group name and account name. The account
name follows the group name, and is separated from it by a period.
Embedded blanks are not permitted. As an example, suppose you are logged
on under the account named MYACCT but wish to reference the file named
GENINFO in the public group of the system account. Your program
references this file under the formal designator GENFILE. You would
enter:
FILE GENFILE=GENINFO.PUB.SYS
A file reference that includes the file name, group, and account is
called a fully qualified file name.
NOTE You can create a new file only within your logon account;
therefore, if you wish to have a new file under a different
account, you log on to the other account and create the file in
that account and group.
In summary, remember that if you do not supply a group name or account
name in your filereference, MPE/iX supplies the defaults of the group and
account in which you are currently logged on.
Lockwords
When you create a disk file, you can assign to it a lockword that must
thereafter be supplied (as part of the filereference format) to access
the file in any way. This lockword is independent of, and serves in
addition to, the other file system security provisions governing the
file.
You assign a lockword to a new file by specifying it in the filereference
parameter of the BUILD command or the formaldesignator parameter of the
HPFOPEN/FOPEN intrinsic used to create the file. For example, to assign
the lockword SESAME to a new file named FILEA, you could enter the
following BUILD command:
BUILD FILEA/SESAME <---- Lockword
From this point on, whenever you, or another user, reference the file in
an MPE/iX command or HPFOPEN/FOPEN intrinsic, you must supply the
lockword. It is important to remember that you need the lockword even if
you are the creator of the file. Lockwords, however, are required only
for old files on disk.
When referencing a file protected by a lockword, supply the lockword in
the following manner:
* In batch mode, supply the lockword as part of the file designator
(filereference format) specified in the FILE command or
HPFOPEN/FOPEN intrinsic call used to establish access to the file.
Enter the lockword after the file name, separated from it by a
slash mark. Neither the file name nor the lockword should contain
embedded blanks. In addition, the slash mark (/) that separates
these names should not be preceded or followed by blanks. The
lockword may contain from one to eight alphanumeric characters,
beginning with a letter. If a file is protected by a lockword and
you fail to supply that lockword in your reference, you are denied
access to the file. In the following example, the old disk file
XREF, protected by the lockword OKAY, is referenced:
FILE INPUT=XREF/OKAY <---- Lockword
* In session mode, you can supply the lockword as part of the file
designator specified in the FILE command or HPFOPEN/FOPEN
intrinsic call that establishes access to the file, using the same
syntax rules described above. If a file is protected by a
lockword and you fail to supply it when you open the file, the
file system interactively requests you to supply the lockword as
shown in the example below:
LOCKWORD: YOURFILE.YOURGRP.YOURACCT?
Always bear in mind that the file lockword relates only to the ability to
access files, and not to the account and group passwords used to log on.
Three examples of FILE commands referencing lockwords are shown below;
the last command illustrates the complete, fully qualified form of the
filereference format.
FILE AFILE=GOFILE/Z22 <---- Lockword
FILE BFILE=FILEM/LOCKB.GRO7
|
|---- Lockwords
|
FILE CFILE=PAYROLL/X229AD.GROPN.ACCT10
A file may have only one lockword at a time. You can change or remove
the lockword by using the RENAME command or the FRENAME intrinsic. You
can also initially assign a lockword to an existing file with this
command or intrinsic.
To accomplish these tasks, you must be the creator of the file.
Backreferencing files
Once you establish a set of specifications in a FILE command, you can
apply those specifications to other file references in your job or
session simply by using the file's formal designator, preceded by an
asterisk (*), in those references. For example, suppose you use a FILE
command to establish the specifications shown below for the file FILEA,
used by program PROGA. You then run PROGA. Now you wish to apply those
same specifications to the file FILEB, used by PROGB, and run that
program. Rather than specify all those parameters again in a second FILE
command, you can simply use FILE to equate the FILEA specifications to
cover FILEB, as follows:
FILE FILEA;DEV=TAPE;REC=-80,4,V;BUF=4 Establishes specifications.
RUN PROGA Runs program A.
FILE FILEB=*FILEA Backreferences specifications for
FILEA.
RUN PROGB Runs program B.
This technique is called backreferencing files, and the files to which it
applies are sometimes known as user predefined files. Whenever you
reference a predefined file in a file system command, you must enter the
asterisk before the formal designator if you want the predefinition to
apply.