Use the following rules when creating a description file.
- Enter elements in either uppercase or lowercase letters, as in the following example:
TYPE=FLO
or
type=flo
- Separate elements from each other with a separator (blank space, tab, or carriage return/line feed):
record=4000 key=24
- Specify the description file elements in the proper order. Table 21 presents the elements in the appropriate order.
NOTE: The order of the elements required for the CREATE, INDEX, and SINDEX commands is the same. However, these commands do not all require the same elements.
- Address all element dependencies. For example, consider the following All Segments (null key) element:
nullseg=allsegs
If you specify this element in the description file, you must also include the Null Key Value element.
- Define as many keys as you specify with the Key Count element. The following example specifies 12 keys for the file:
key=12
In this case, you must define 12 keys in the description file, each consisting of one or more segments.
- For a key with multiple segments, you must define the following elements for each key segment:
- Key Position
- Key Length
- Duplicate Key Values
- Modifiable Key Values
- Key Type
- Alternate Collating Sequence
The Descending Sort Order element is optional for each segment.
- If any key in the file uses an alternate collating sequence, include either an alternate collating sequence filename or a country ID and code page ID. You can include this information as either the last element of the key segment or the last element in the description file.
- If a description file element is optional, you can omit it from the description file.
- Make sure the description file contains no text formatting characters. Some word processors embed formatting characters in a text file.