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When using the DATA Step FILENAME function on Unix, if the second parameter (the file name) is a SAS variable that has a length of more than 1025 characters, then the FILEREF that is created will point to the file name in the function as well as to the directory that SAS was started from.

Here is an example.

                                                                      
   length path $2000;                                                 
   path = "/temp";                                                    
   rc = filename("fname", path);                                      

The fname FILEREF will point to /temp and to the path that SAS was started from.

This can cause other functions that use the FILEREF (such as DNUM, DINFO, DOPTNAME, DOPTNUM, DREAD, FEXIST) to return incorrect values.

The work-around for this problem is to either make the length of the variable less than $1026, or to add a STRIP() function around the variable when it is used with the FILENAME function. For example, either of these will work correctly:

   length path $1025; path = "/temp"; rc = filename("fname", path);
                                                                      
   -OR-                                                               
                                                                      
   length path $2000;                                                 
   path = "/temp";                                                    
   rc = filename("fname", strip(path));                               

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