Compare Utility: Options panel

The Compare Utility - Options panel (Figure 1) is used to specify the way in which the comparison is processed and the type of listing produced.

Panel and field definitions

Figure 1. Compare Utility : Options panel
  Process   Options   Help
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 File Manager              Compare Utility : Options

 Compare Options:
    Compare type      Synchronization     Listing type     Long Report
    2  1. Record      4  1. One-to-one    2  1. Summary    Enter "/" to exclude
       2. Formatted      2. Read-ahead       2. Delta         Inserted
                         3. Keyed            3. Matching      Deleted
    MQ Processing        4. Read-ahead Keyed 4. Long          Changed
       Include descriptors                   5. None          Matched

 Processing Options:                      Listing Options:
    Enter "/" to select option               Enter "/" to select option
       Edit template mapping                 /  Wide listing
    /  Clear print data set                     Show hex chars
       Create result data sets               /  Highlight changes
    /  Ignore record length mismatch            Show field attributes
       Left justify numeric fields              Show changed fields only
       Sort before compare                      Always show SELECTed fields
                                                Suppress fields Inserted/Deleted
    ISPF Packing
    2  1. Unpack if packed               
       2. None                            Number of differences to report ALL   
       3. Skip                           
                                          Template Reporting Options:
                                             Enter "/" to select option
                                                Show template layouts
                                                Show template criteria
                                                Show mapped fields
                                             /  Show unmapped fields
                                                Show array elements
                                                Show start/end as hex offset
                                                Show length in hex
                                             /  Show field statistics
 Command ===>                                                                   
  F1=Help      F2=Split     F3=Exit      F4=CRetriev  F7=Backward  F8=Forward
  F9=Swap     F10=Actions  F12=Cancel
Compare Options
Compare Type
Choose either Record comparison or Formatted comparison.
1. Record
When the record comparison option is selected, pairs of records (determined by the record selection criteria and synchronization method) are compared byte by byte. For the records to match, the corresponding bytes in each record must be the same and either the record lengths are equal or the pad option has been specified and the trailing bytes equal the pad character.

To use record identification and selection criteria to filter the records to be compared, specify a copybook or template for either the “Old” or the “New” data set or both.

Note: To perform a "record" comparison restricted to certain columns in the records, use dynamic templates to define the areas in the records to be compared using data type AN.
2. Formatted
When the formatted comparison option is selected, mapped pairs of fields (from each pair of records selected by the record selection criteria and synchronization method) are compared, according to the format defined for each field. For the records to match, every pair of mapped fields must match.

To specify field mapping, you must specify a copybook or template for both the “Old” and the “New” data sets. Optionally, you can also use the copybooks or templates to specify record identification and selection criteria to filter the records to be compared.

When this option is selected, pressing Enter displays the Formatted Comparison Options panel, in which you can specify additional comparison options. The display of this panel is "delayed" if read-ahead or keyed synchronization is requested, because the sub-option panels for synchronization are displayed first.

Figure 2. Formatted Comparison Options panel
  Process   Options   Help
 ─ ┌─────────────── Formatted Comparison Options ────────────────┐ ────────────
 F │                                                             │
   │ Specify additional options for formatted comparison.        │
 C │                                                             │
   │    Ignore leading blanks in character fields . . . _        │
   │    Ignore trailing blanks in character fields  . . _        │
   │    Match reformatted character fields  . . . . . . _        │
   │    Ignore case in character fields . . . . . . . . _        │
   │                                                             │
   │ Press ENTER to perform formatted comparison.                │
   │ Press EXIT or CANCEL to return to the options panel.        │
 P │ Command ===> _____________________________________________  │
   │  F1=Help        F2=Split       F3=Exit        F7=Backward   │ ion
   │  F8=Forward     F9=Swap       F12=Cancel                    │
   └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
       Batch execution                         Highlight changes
                                               Show field attributes



 Command ===>
  F1=Help      F2=Split     F3=Exit      F4=CRetriev  F7=Backward  F8=Forward
  F9=Swap     F10=Actions  F12=Cancel                                           

Panel fields:

Ignore leading blanks in character fields
Select this option if you want leading blanks to be ignored when character comparisons are performed. This option is ignored if you also select the Match reformatted character fields option, because that option also causes leading blanks to be ignored.
Ignore trailing blanks in character fields
Select this option if you want trailing blanks to be ignored when character comparisons are performed. This option is ignored if you also select the Match reformatted character fields option because that option also causes trailing blanks to be ignored.
Match reformatted character fields
Select this option if you want character fields to use a reformatted comparison method. Using this option, character fields match as if leading and trailing blanks were stripped, and all sequences of intermediate blanks were compressed to a single blank. The ignore leading and trailing blanks options are ignored if you select this option.
Ignore case in character fields
Select this option if you want character fields to match regardless of the case of the data being compared. Using this option character fields match as if all the alphabetic characters were converted to upper case.
Synchronization
1. One-to-one
The compare sets are assumed to contain records in a corresponding sequence.
2. Read-ahead
The compare sets are assumed to contain records in roughly corresponding sequences.

When this option is selected, pressing Enter displays an additional panel in which you can specify the Read-ahead synchronization limit and the Read-ahead synchronization length.

Figure 3. Read-ahead Synchronization Limit panel
  Process   Options   Help
 ─ ┌─────────────── Read-ahead Synchronization Options ──────────┐
 F │                                                             │
   │Specify additional options for read-ahead synchronization.   │
 C │                                                             │
   │    Read-ahead synchronization limit  . . . . . . . 100      │
   │    Read-ahead synchronization length . . . . . . . 1        │
   │                                                             │
   │ Press ENTER to perform read-ahead comparison.               │
   │ Press EXIT or CANCEL to return to the options panel.        │
   │ Command ===>                                                │
   │  F1=Help        F2=Split       F3=Exit        F7=Backward   │
 P │  F8=Forward     F9=Swap       F12=Cancel                    │
   └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
       Edit template mapping       Wide listing
       Clear print data set        Show hex chars
     / Create result data sets   / Highlight changes
                                   Show field attributes
    ISPF Packing                   Show changed fields only
    1  1. Unpack if packed         Always show SELECTed fields
       2. None
 Command ===>
  F1=Help      F2=Split     F3=Exit      F4=CRetriev  F7=Backward
  F8=Forward   F9=Swap      F10=Actions  F12=Cancel

Panel fields:

Read-ahead synchronization limit
Range: 1–999. Specifies the number of records to read ahead in each compare set.
Read-ahead synchronization length
Range: 1–99. Specifies the number of records that must match during read-ahead processing for synchronization to occur.

When non-matching records are found by the compare utility and read-ahead synchronization was specified, File Manager attempts to resynchronize the data by looking ahead in each of the data sets. The read-ahead length is the minimum number of matching records that must be found to recognize a resynchronization point. If insufficient matching records are found, read-ahead processing continues.

3. Keyed
The compare sets are assumed to be sequenced by a key, which consists of one or more segments of the record (up to sixteen).

When this option is selected, pressing Enter displays the Keyed Synchronization Settings panel, in which you must specify at least one key segment (and up to sixteen key segments). Any existing key segment information, such as that drawn from an intrinsically keyed data set or from key sequences specified in the “Old” or “New” templates, or both, is displayed in the panel. You can edit or modify these details.

Figure 4. Keyed Synchronization Settings panel - no key segment information
  Process   Options   Help
   ┌────────────── Keyed Synchronization Settings ───────────────┐ 
 ─ │ Command ===>                                   Line 1 of 16 │ ──────
 F │                                                             │
 C │ Press ENTER to perform keyed comparison.                    │ 
   │ Press EXIT or CANCEL to return to the options panel.        │ e:         +
 C │                                                             │
   │ Enter "/" to select option                                  │
   │    Match records when all key fields match                  │ exclude
   │                                                             │
   │               Key position    Key length    Key type  Order │
   │ Key segment   Old     New     Old     New   Old  New  A/D   │
   │           1   1       1       8       8     AN   AN         │
   │           2                                                 │
 P │           3                                                 │
   │           4                                                 │
   │           5                                                 │
   │           6                                                 │
   │           7                                                 │
   │           8                                                 │
   │           9                                                 │
   │           10                                                │ lds
   │           11                                                │ /Deleted
   │           12                                                │
   └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ t ALL
Panel fields:
Match records when all key fields match
Enter / to match records when all the key fields match.
Key position - Old
Range: 1-32760. Specifies the position of a key segment in the “Old” compare set records for keyed synchronization.
Key position - New
Range: 1-32760. Specifies the position of a key segment in the “New” compare set records for keyed synchronization.
Key length - Old
Range: 1-32760. Specifies the length of a key segment in the “Old” compare set records for keyed synchronization.
Key length - New
Range: 1-32760. Specifies the length of a key segment in the “New” compare set records for keyed synchronization. Defaults to the old key length. If it is specified and the length is different from the old length, the shorter key is padded with hex zeros in alphanumeric fields; or the shorter key is padded with the pad character (normally a blank) in alphanumeric fields if the system pad option is on, before comparisons are performed.
Key type - Old
Specifies the type of a key segment in the “Old” compare set records for keyed synchronization. The data type of the key segment must be one of the following data types:
AN
Alphanumeric
CH
Character (same as alphanumeric)
BI
Binary
PD
Packed decimal
FP
Internal floating point
ZD
Zoned decimal

Default: AN.

Key type - New
Specifies the type of a key segment in the “New” compare set records for keyed synchronization. For the types that are supported, see Key type - Old. If you do not provide the type, the default is the old type.
Note: If either old or new is a numeric key type, a numeric comparison is performed and a key field is considered in error if it cannot be converted for numeric comparison.
Order (A/D)
Default: A. Specify A for ascending. Specify D for descending.
4. Read-ahead Keyed
This option is similar to Read-ahead except the fact that instead of record matching, key field matching is performed when synchronizing records. As a result, it can detect changes to records that match according to key field data but differ according to record comparison. Therefore, both the Figure 3 and the Figure 4 will be displayed when this option is selected. The order field that is described in Figure 4 will be protected because it is ignored for Read-ahead Keyed.
Listing type
1. Summary
Generates a summary listing only.
2. Delta
Generates a delta listing containing all deleted and inserted records, and a summary.
3. Matching
Generates a listing containing only matching records, and a summary. Matching records are only listed once.
4. Long
Generates a listing containing all matching and non-matching records. Matching records are only listed once.
5. None
Suppresses the listing. A message is issued instead to indicate whether or not the data sets matched.
Long Report
Selecting one or more of these options causes those compare result types to be excluded from the report. These options are used in conjunction with the Long listing type to tailor the output report. If a listing type other than Long has been selected, these options are ignored.
Inserted
When selected, excludes inserted records from the report.
Deleted
When selected, excludes deleted records from the report.
Changed
When selected, excludes changed records from the report.
Matched
When selected, excludes matched records from the report.
Processing Options
Edit template mapping
Specify / to edit the template mapping before use. This option is only available if a copybook or template was specified for both the “Old” and “New” data sets, and is only valid if a formatted comparison is requested. See Creating and editing templates for detailed information about creating and editing templates and Comparing data sets for details on using templates during the compare process.
Clear print data set
Specify / to clear the File Manager print data set before use. This option has no effect if File Manager print output is not directed to a data set. See Setting your Print Processing Options for more information about controlling the print data set.
Create result data sets
Specify / to create one or more output data sets. These data sets are specified on the Compare Utility: Output Data Sets panel.
Ignore record length mismatch
Enter "/" to ignore length mismatches with the template. If you do not select this option, records that are shorter or longer than the matching structure length in the template are not selected for processing.
Left justify numeric fields
If you specify "/" for this option and you have selected a Compare Type of Formatted, numeric fields are shown as left-justified.
Sort before compare
Enter “/” to have File Manager sort both the old and new data sets before compare processing starts. This option is only valid if the Record Synchronization option is set to either Keyed or Read-ahead Keyed. The data sets are sorted based on the keys defined in the Keyed Synchronization Settings panel.
A sort request is ignored if the old or new data set has any of the following characteristics:
  • RECFM=U
  • VSAM linear file
  • VSAM file with maximum record length greater than 32K
  • QSAM spanned file with a record length greater than 32K
  • The template indicates that the file has segmented records
  • PDS or PDSE file
A sort request is also ignored when any of the following conditions is true:
  • I/O exits are used to process the data sets
  • The comparison involves MQ queues
  • The comparison involves remote files
  • The comparison involves HFS files
Listing Options
Wide listing
Specify / to generate a wide listing. Wide listings are not suitable for printing if the width of the record or the width of the formatted data exceeds the maximum record length supported by the printer, but they can make it easier to analyze as the corresponding data in the “New” and “Old” records are vertically aligned.

Wide listings can accommodate records not exceeding 32K bytes in length. Longer records are truncated, but still marked correctly when changed.

Show hex chars
Specify / to generate a hexadecimal display of the records or formatted fields in addition to the standard character display.
Note: The Compare Utility and DCM function always use the UPDOWN format for hexadecimal display, regardless of the setting of the DUMP option in your Set Print Processing Options (option 0.1).
Highlight changes
Specify / to highlight any differences between “Old” and “New” records. For record comparisons and wide formatted comparisons, the differences are indicated by placing a "change bar" (|) beneath the altered bytes. For narrow formatted comparisons the fields that have changed are indicated by placing an asterisk (*) to the left of the field name.
Note: For altered numeric fields in a wide formatted comparison the change bars always indicate the entire field because the display characters do not necessarily correspond to individual bytes in the data.
Show field attributes
Specify / to show field attributes in formatted comparison reports. For a wide listing, leaving this option unchecked reduces the overall width of the report. For a narrow listing, leaving this option unchecked provides more space in the formatted field area for the field name and data. This option has no effect for record type comparisons.
Show changed fields only
Specify / to report only changed fields if a narrow formatted report. This option has no effect for record type comparisons.
Always show SELECTed fields
Specify / to show SELECTed fields in formatted comparison reports. The option is intended to allow you to ensure that certain fields that you have SELECTed are always printed, regardless of whether they are changed or not. This option has effect only if the Show changed fields only option has been selected and only if the SELECTed fields have been mapped.
Suppress Inserted/Deleted fields
Specify / to suppress the field reporting on the inserted and deleted fields when the Show changed fields only is selected.
ISPF Packing
Provided that the data set is a sequential, PDS or PDSE file and an I/O exit routine is not used, one of these options can be used to control the comparison behavior when processing data that is in ISPF PACK format.
1. Unpack
If the data set is packed, it is unpacked before any processing or comparison is performed.
2. None
No checking or processing of ISPF packed data occurs. Packed records are processed and compared in packed format. This option is forced if an I/O exit has been used.
3. Skip
If the input data is packed, no processing or comparison occurs.
Template Reporting Options
These options control the template details reported by the Compare utility. If any of the template reporting options are specified, and template information participated in the comparison, a report of the relevant requested information appears after the comparison summary. If none of the template reporting options are specified, or no options relevant to the comparison are specified, no template information is reported.
Show template layouts
Specify / to show template field details in comparison reports. For each template used in the comparison, the template fields are listed with their attributes.

This option has no effect for record type comparisons, because template field information is not used in record type comparisons.

Show template criteria
Specify / to show template identification and selection criteria in comparison reports. For each template used in the comparison, the identification and selection criteria, if any, are listed.
Show mapped fields
Specify / to show how fields in the new data set template are mapped to fields in the old data set template.

This option has no effect for record type comparisons, because template mapping information is not used in record type comparisons.

Show unmapped fields
Specify / to show fields in the old and new data set templates that are not mapped to fields in the other template.

This option has no effect for record type comparisons, because template mapping information is not used in record type comparisons.

Show array elements
Specify / to show all occurrences of array elements in layouts. Array elements are not shown in mappings because mapping at the array element level is not supported.

For COBOL OCCURS DEPENDING ON tables, the maximum occurrences are shown.

For PL/1 REFER arrays, the minimum occurrences are shown.

Show start/end as hex offset
Specify / to show the start and end values as hexadecimal offsets in layouts and mappings.
Show length in hex
Specify / to show the length values as hexadecimal in layouts and mappings.
Show field statistics
Specify / to produce a field statistics report showing the number and percentage of mismatches by field.
Number of differences to report
The number of differences after which the Compare Utility stops processing the data sets.

Parent panels

  • Compare Utility: “New” panel

Child panels

Equivalent functions

Related tasks and examples