SAS Content - Copy File from Filesystem

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This custom step helps you copy a file from the filsystem (also referred to as "shared storage" or the SAS server) to a target SAS Content (also known as SAS Infrastructure Data Server) folder.

This custom step facilitates operations which require transfer of files from a filesystem location to the SAS Content folder. For example, users may wish to use source code from repositories such as GitHub or GitLab. This code gets pulled to filesystem folders but may be better suited for execution from SAS Content locations.

General Idea

Parameters

Note that this step only makes a copy of the file, and does not perform a cut operation. The source file will continue to remain on the filesystem unless explicitly deleted.

This custom step also wraps proc http calls to a SAS Viya endpoint. While it's likely that your environment's administrator has ensured the same, verify that north-south communication among pods is enabled / whitelisted in your environment. Proc http won't work for Viya endpoints (though they may for other endpoints) in such a case. Viya may consider the SAS Studio session pod IP (which is making the call) as not recognizable and therefore timeout the request. A quick check for this would be to run a simple proc http call (e.g. a get request) to your SAS Viya endpoint and note if you are able to get a response code of 200 (OK).

Input Parameters

1. Source file from the filesystem (file selector, required): provide the full path of a desired file you wish to transfer to SAS Content. Note that this custom step makes use of the same file name when saving in SAS Content.

2. Target folder in SAS Content (folder selector, required): select a folder inside SAS Content.

Output Specifications

The custom step provides a note informing that the file has been transferred.

In addition, there are some additional macro variables created which may be used for downstream tasks.

1. targetFolderURI (global macro variable): this macro variable is created to hold the URI of the new folder for any downstream activity.

2. contentFolderExists (global macro variable): this macro variable has a value of 1 if the SAS Content folder exists, a value of 0 in case it is not found, and 99 in case of other errors encountered during the check. Downstream code may consume these values.

Optional: Run-time Control

Note: Run-time control is optional. You may choose whether to execute the main code of this step or not, based on upstream conditions set by earlier SAS programs. This includes nodes run prior to this custom step earlier in a SAS Studio Flow, or a previous program in the same session.

Refer this blog (https://communities.sas.com/t5/SAS-Communities-Library/Switch-on-switch-off-run-time-control-of-SAS-Studio-Custom-Steps/ta-p/885526) for more details on the concept.

The following macro variable,

_cff_run_trigger

will initialize with a value of 1 by default, indicating an "enabled" status and allowing the custom step to run.

If you wish to control execution of this custom step, include code in an upstream SAS program to set this variable to 0. This "disables" execution of the custom step.

To "disable" this step, run the following code upstream:

%global _cff_run_trigger;
%let _cff_run_trigger =0;

To "enable" this step again, run the following (it's assumed that this has already been set as a global variable):

%let _cff_run_trigger =1;

IMPORTANT: Be aware that disabling this step means that none of its main execution code will run, and any downstream code which was dependent on this code may fail. Change this setting only if it aligns with the objective of your SAS Studio program.

Documentation

1. SAS Documentation on the fcopy() function used for copying files

2. SAS Communities article by Gerry Nelson which provides an example based on the fcopy() function which is used in this step.

3. Reference macro from Bruno Mueller which provides an additional approach toward transferring binary files.

4. Note this section within the documentation on the filesrvc filename reference method. Note that the filesrvc filename reference results in an automatically generated macro variable containing the URI, which is in fact used within this custom step. However, the direct use of the filesrvc reference on a non-existent folder results in an error, which is handled by this custom step.

5. The 'proc http' sections of this steps inspired by similar code by David Weik for the purpose of transferring custom steps. His full code is located here

6. Identify whether a fileref exists

7. Details on the optional run-time trigger control

SAS Program

Refer here for the SAS program used by the step. You'd find this useful for situations where you wish to execute this step through non-SAS Studio Custom Step interfaces such as the SAS Extension for Visual Studio Code, with minor modifications.

Installation & Usage

• Refer to the steps listed here.

Created/contact:

• Sundaresh Sankaran (sundaresh.sankaran@sas.com)

Also, thanks to the following (SAS) colleagues whose earlier work helped in the creation (and future direction) of this step.

• Bruno Mueller
• Gerry Nelson
• David Weik
• Bo Bidstrup

Change Log

• Version: 1.0 (07DEC2023)
  • Initial version