File Manager actions

You can use File Manager to display, edit, update, create, copy, compare, print and erase data. You can manipulate this data as logical units, accessed by the data set name; or as physical units, accessed at each physical disk or tape location. Adding to this capability is an interactive interface that allows you to view data in both TABLE and SINGLE RECORD formats.

When working with data sets, you can:

  • View, change, sort, copy and print data as unformatted or formatted with copybook or dynamic templates
  • Perform sophisticated data set comparisons
  • Find and change data strings in a single data set or in multiple data sets
  • Create new HFS files or QSAM, VSAM or IAM data sets and data set records
  • Create REXX procedures for advanced record processing
  • Use selected DFSORT™ control statements to control the Data Set Copy and Data Set Print functions
  • Create batch jobs, REXX procedures or CLISTs to automate tasks

For many of these tasks, you can use File Manager templates. A template provides a logical view of a data set, based upon field definitions in a copybook, or else created dynamically. If you use a template, you can:

  • Format data according to record structures defined in the copybooks, or dynamically define your own record structure
  • Select the fields and records that you want to work with, adjust how fields are displayed, select fields for copying, and set the contents of fields for created data
  • Code record identification and selection criteria within File Manager panels, or use the File Manager REXX interface to code complex criteria
  • Copy data between fields of different data type and length; and
  • Work with files containing multiple record structures

File Manager also provides utilities that allow you to manipulate data in other ways:

  • With the Tape Utility you can:
    • Copy tape files, optionally changing the block size and record format
    • Copy a logical volume from an Exported Stacked Volume to a physical tape volume
    • Update tape records on-screen, while copying the records from one tape to another
    • Compare two tapes byte-by-byte
    • Bypass tape blocks with data-check errors
    • Summarize the contents of a tape
  • With the Disk Utility, you can look at and edit a file, based on the contents of the data at each physical disk location. There is support for character and hexadecimal format. Because the access is done at the level of the physical track, all file types are supported, including BDAM. With the disk utilities, you can:
    • List data sets on a disk
    • Edit data on a specific track
    • Identify the disk extents of a data set
    • Search for data within a disk extent
  • You can use the Object Access Method (OAM) Utility to list, view, print, update, erase, copy, back up and restore OAM objects.
  • The IDCAMS front end (Catalog Services) allows you to control the OS/390® IDCAMS utility from user-friendly File Manager panels.