SAS/ACCESS 9.2 for Relational Databases: Reference, Fourth Edition

SAS/ACCESS Interface to Oracle 4 LIBNAME Statement Data Conversions 735Binary DataRAW(n)contains raw binary data, where n must be at least 1 and cannot exceed 255 bytes.(In Oracle Version 8, the limit is 2,000 bytes.) Values entered into columns of thistype must be inserted as character strings in hexadecimal notation. You mustspecify n for this data type.BLOBcontains raw binary data of variable length up to 2 gigabytes. Values entered intocolumns of this type must be inserted as character strings in hexadecimal notation.Oracle Null and Default ValuesOracle has a special value called NULL. An Oracle NULL value means an absence ofinformation and is analogous to a SAS missing value. When SAS/ACCESS reads anOracle NULL value, it interprets it as a SAS missing value.By default, Oracle columns accept NULL values. However, you can define columns sothat they cannot contain NULL data. NOT NULL tells Oracle not to add a row to thetable unless the row has a value for that column. When creating an Oracle table withSAS/ACCESS, you can use the DBNULL= data set option to indicate whether NULL isa valid value for specified columns.To control how Oracle handles SAS missing character values, use the NULLCHAR=and NULLCHARVAL= data set options.For more information about how SAS handles NULL values, see “Potential ResultSet Differences When Processing Null Data” on page 31.LIBNAME Statement Data ConversionsThis table shows the default formats that SAS/ACCESS Interface to Oracle assignsto SAS variables when using the LIBNAME statement to read from an Oracle table.These default formats are based on Oracle column attributes.Table 25.4LIBNAME Statement: Default SAS Formats for Oracle Data TypesOracle Data TypeCHAR(n) *VARCHAR2(n)LONGCLOBRAW(n)LONG RAWDefault SAS Format$w.* (wherew is the minimum of n and thevalue of the DBMAX_TEXT= option)$w. (where w is the minimum of n and thevalue of the DBMAX_TEXT= option)$w. (where w is the minimum of 32767 and thevalue of the DBMAX_TEXT= option)$w.* (where w is the minimum of 32767 andthe value of the DBMAX_TEXT= option)$HEXw.* (where w/2 is the minimum of n andthe value of the DBMAX_TEXT= option)$HEXw. (where w/2 is the minimum of 32767and the value of the DBMAX_TEXT= option)