Output Tables

About Output Tables

When you design a query, you specify an output table on the Properties tab. When you save the query, the output table is registered (or updated) in the metadata. When you run the query, the physical output table is created. The metadata that is created when you save the query enables you to use the table as a source table for another query or another SAS application.

Specifying the Output Table

Every query must have an output table in order to run it. How you specify the output table affects whether metadata is updated or created.

The following table shows the different ways to specify an output table.

Action	How To
Create a new output table 1.	Click Clear, and specify a table name, location, and library. If the query was already saved with an output table, that table is not changed and is no longer associated with the query.
Reuse an existing table.	Select a metadata table . If the query was already saved with an output table, that table is not changed and is no longer associated with the query.
Change the name of the output table 1.	Enter the new name in the Table field, and save the query. This changes both the name and physical name in metadata in order to make them the same. All queries, reports, explorations, and so on, still reference the same table object.
1If you replace the default table name, OutputTable, with another name before you save the query, the data builder registers a new output table and uses it with the query.

To specify an output table:

Select the top-level query object from the Properties tab.
Specify an output table name, location, and library. For SAS libraries, use 32 characters or less, and do not include spaces or special characters. Third-party vendor databases can have restrictions as well.

If you select a SAS LASR Analytic Server or SAS Data in HDFS library, the Partition by menu becomes available. After the settings for the output table are specified, the Staging section becomes available.

The following display shows an example of the Output and Staging properties.

Output and Staging Properties