Table A (File architecture)

Table A contains three structures:

A dictionary of the fieldgroup / field names and their attributes.

Some attributes (notably 'CODED') require sets of values to be maintained. These values are stored either in the FEW-VALUED or MANY-VALUED attributes structures.

Table A usually is small in relation to the rest of the file.

Internal File Dictionary

Defined by the ATRPG.

The internal file dictionary is a hashed file where each page contains up to ASTRPPG field or field group definitions.

Each entry contains the field code (the representation of the field as physically used in records); the field name; and the attributes as assigned by the DEFINE FIELD command (or by a redefinition).

To understand all the possible content of any entry, please refer to the ZFIELD image (the structure definition is provided with the Model 204 product). This image is populated by the $FDEF or $LSTFLD functions.

Non FILEORG x'100' Files

The maximum number of fields (the sum of ASTRPPG * ATRPG) in any Model 204 file is 4000.

Even when the product of the above is 4000 or less, this number may not actually be reached because of wasted entries (where ASTRPPG is defined too large, you can not fit the full number on any page) or due to vagaries of the hashing algorithm.

Enhanced Data Handling files (FILEORG x'100' files)

With the introduction of X'100'files (in version 7.5 of Model 204) the maximum number of fields (ASTRPPG * ATRPG) has been increased to 32000. In order to support this increase, as well as the additional attributes. the field code has been increased from 2 to three bytes.

Where the maximum number of fields exceeds 4000, no fields may be defined as KEY or NUMERIC RANGE, or FOR EACH VALUE.

Many and Few Valued Pages

If a field has the CODED or FRV attribute, a complete list of the values that the field has ever had (since it was last created or reorganized) is held in either FEW-VALUED or MANY-VALUED pages in Table A (with the latter the default).

Both of these sets of pages should be kept very small. If large numbers of values exist, the File Manager should consider making the field Ordered.

Parameters related to the use of Table A

ASIZE parameter	A view-only parameter containing the size of Table A (the sum of ATRPG + FVFPG + MVFPG).
ASTRPPG parameter	The maximum number of field / RFG definitions per page, or maximum number of field values per page in either the FEW-VALUED or MANY-VALUED section of Table A.
ATRPG parameter	The number of pages containing field / RFG definitions.
FVFPG parameter	The number of pages containing FEW-VALUED field values.
MVFPG parameter	The number of pages containing MANY-VALUED field values.