A global macro variable that is created in an AUTOEXEC.SAS file does not appear in SASHELP.VMACRO. This is most likely to occur when running SAS through SAS® Enterprise Guide® or SAS® Data Integration Studio on a workspace server. The macro variable exists and can be resolved, but it does not appear when a %PUT _USER_ or %PUT _GLOBAL_ is used.

Another problem occurs when the macro variables that are created in the AUTOEXEC.SAS file are updated within a macro. Any changes to the macro variables cause the macro variables to display in the local symbol table and not in the global symbol table. This is a problem because the updated version of the variable is not available outside of the macro. The original value is used outside of the macro.

To circumvent the problem, create a new variable as shown in the example code below.

%macro test;
   %global temp;
   %let oldvariable=new-value;
   %let temp=&oldvariable;
%mend;

Operating System and Release Information

A fix for this issue for Base SAS 9.21_M3 is available at: