VMS Help SORT, /PROCESS  *Conan The Librarian (sorry for the slow response - running on an old VAX)

    Defines the internal sorting process. The /PROCESS qualifier
    allows you to choose one of four processes: record, tag, address,
    or index. By default, SORT uses a record sorting process. Use
    only with the SORT command.

    High-performance Sort/Merge: The high-performance Sort/Merge
    utility currently supports only the record process.

    Format

      /PROCESS=type

1 - Parameters

 type

    o  RECORD

       Keeps records intact while sorting and produces an output file
       consisting of complete records. Record is the default sorting
       process.

       High-performance Sort/Merge: The high-performance Sort/Merge
       utility currently supports only the record process.

    o  TAG

       Sorts only the keys and then rereads the input file to produce
       an output file consisting of complete records.

    o  ADDRESS

       Sorts only the keys and produces an output file that is an
       index of record addresses in binary format. The index must be
       submitted to a program for further processing.

    o  INDEX

       Creates an output file containing both RFAs and key fields,
       plus a file number when sorting multiple files. The format
       of these key fields is the same as in the input files. If the
       program needs key field content for a decision during future
       processing, select index sort rather than address sort.

2 - Example

  $ SORT/KEY=(POS:40,SIZ:2,DESC)/PROCESS=TAG YRENDAVG.DAT -
  _$ DESCYRAVG.LIS

      This sort operation uses a tag sorting process to create the
      output file DESCYRAVG.LIS.