Rational Developer for System z

KSDS editing

This topic contains information about editing KSDS VSAM clusters.

KSDS VSAM clusters are indexed based on a unique key. All records in the data set are stored in sequential order by key value. In the Formatted Data Editor, the key field is highlighted in blue by default in the Table mode during an edit session. This is done to make it easier to remember that the records key is being modified. The color used to highlight keys can be changed in the Preferences panel. If a key is changed, the record will likely be moved in the data set upon a save operation, but the user will not see the movement until after the save is performed.

There is also the possibility of creating duplicate keys, especially on a cut/copy and paste operation, or the creation of multiple new records. If there are multiple records with the same key in a data set that the client knows about (all selected records), the client will display all of the records that contain a duplicate key using red text. In addition, hovering the mouse cursor over the duplicate field or the far left column of the table view will display a duplicate key error message. Until these duplications are resolved, changes cannot be saved. If a key duplication occurs between a key in a selected record and one in a not selected record, the Formatted Data Editor has no way of knowing about the not selected record's key, so the error will not be displayed until a save operation is requested.

Note: Using a template with selection criteria on key fields is not recommended. A situation can arise where a record's key is changed so that it is a duplicate of a not-selected record, and after a save, the record becomes not-selected itself. If this happens, there is no way to alter the newly not-selected record's key and resolve the duplication so the session must be exited.

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