DSNTIAUL Files

Use this format to import data from files that were exported by IBM's DSNTIAUL facility.

When you use the Browse button to choose a file to import, SQLWizard defaults the file listing to the *.dsn extension. The file you are importing can have a different extension.

In DSNTIAUL files, all data fields are consecutive (no delimiters), and are padded for the full length of each field (similar to a columnar, fixed-format ASCII file). If nulls are allowed, a one-byte trailer after each field indicates null status:

• A zero (0) indicates NOT NULL.
• An EBCDIC question mark (?) indicates NULL.

Data is stored as follows:

• Text data is stored in EBCDIC format.
• Date, Time, and Timestamp fields are stored as text.
• Decimal and Money fields are stored in BCD format.
• Smallint fields are stored in binary format. Byte order is automatically transposed as it is read from the source file so that the data is stored in standard Intel format (that is, least significant byte first).
• Integer fields are stored in binary format. Byte order is automatically transposed as it is read from the source file so that the data is stored in standard Intel format (that is, least significant byte first).
• Float is stored in IBM370 format (different from PCs).
• Varchar fields have a two-byte header containing the length of the text.

The DSNTIAUL file format is based on the characteristics of the table from which the file was created. When importing data using the DSNTIAUL format, the entire format, including null permissions and field lengths, must be the same for the original table and the XDB Server table. If the null permissions or the field lengths do not match, the data being imported could be corrupted or the import could fail.

The DSNTIAUL format uses page-oriented storage for each record in the table. The typical page size is approximately 4K bytes.

EBCDIC to ASCII Translation

Values of the following data types are usually stored in EBCDIC format in a DSNTIAUL file:

Import converts date, time, and timestamp values from EBCDIC into ASCII, and then into XDB Server's internal format. Character values are converted from EBCDIC to ASCII and then inserted into the XDB Server table as ASCII values.

You can specify whether a value of any of the above types is in EBCDIC by selecting Yes or No from the EBCDIC column in the specification grid on the Import window. If you specify that a value is not in EBCDIC, then Import will not perform any EBCDIC to ASCII translation on it.

By default, Import assumes character data is stored in a DSNTIAUL source file using the American EBCDIC character set and converts it to the American ASCII character set when inserting it into an XDB Server table.

You can have the Import utility translate character data containing characters from any international EBCDIC character set to any international ASCII character set using the code page feature in Import. For the ASCII code page number, use the default ASCII character set for your country. EBCDIC to ASCII translation is performed using the translation table that corresponds to the specific ASCII and EBCDIC code pages. This translation table is in the TRANSTAB field of the SYSIBM.SYSSTRINGS table in the SYSTEM location. Currently, you are responsible for loading this table with the translation tables that you use.

Code Page Support

If any translation tables are defined in SYSIBM.SYSSTRINGS, they will appear on the Import window in the Codepage list box. The format in the list box is FROM n1 TO n2, where n1 is the number of the code page being translated from and n2 is the number of the code page being translated to.

When you select an item from the Codepage list box, Import loads the translation table for that conversion and uses it to convert character data during the import operation. You can specify which fields to convert by selecting Yes or No in the EBCDIC column of the Table Definition Grid. Normally, a conversion is performed for all applicable fields.

The format of the SYSIBM.SYSTRINGS table is as follows: