13.2 CLOSE Statement

The CLOSE statement disconnects a file from a unit. It takes the following form:

                          {STATUS  }
 CLOSE ([UNIT=]io-unit [, {DISPOSE } =p] [,ERR=label] [,IOSTAT=i-var])
                          {DISP    }

io-unit

Is an external unit specifier.

p

Is a scalar default character expression indicating the status of the file after it is closed. It has one of the following values:

'KEEP' or 'SAVE'	Retains the file after the unit closes.
'DELETE'	Deletes the file after the unit closes.[1]
'PRINT' [2]	Submits the file to the line printer spooler, then retains it.
'PRINT/DELETE' [2]	Submits the file to the line printer spooler, then deletes it.
'SUBMIT'	Forks a process to execute the file.
'SUBMIT/DELETE'	Forks a process to execute the file, then deletes the file after the fork is completed.
[1] Unless OPEN(READONLY) is in effect. [2] Use only on sequential files.

The default is 'DELETE' for scratch files and QuickWin applications (WNT, W9*). For all other files, the default is 'KEEP'.

label

Is the label of the branch target statement that receives control if an error occurs.

i-var

Is a scalar integer variable that is defined as a positive integer if an error occurs and zero if no error occurs.

Rules and Behavior

The CLOSE statement specifiers can appear in any order. An I/O unit must be specified, but the UNIT keyword is optional if the unit specifier is the first item in the I/O control list.

The status specified in the CLOSE statement supersedes the status specified in the OPEN statement, except that a file opened as a scratch file cannot be saved, printed, or submitted, and a file opened for read-only access cannot be deleted.

If a CLOSE statement is specified for a unit that is not open, it has no effect.

Examples

Consider the following statement:

CLOSE (UNIT=J, STATUS='DELETE', ERR=99)

This statement closes the file connected to unit J and deletes it. If an error occurs, control is transferred to the statement labeled 99.

For More Information:

• On the UNIT control specifier, see Section 10.2.1.1.

• On the ERR control specifier, see Section 10.2.1.8.

• On the IOSTAT control specifier, see Section 10.2.1.7.

• On the READONLY specifier, see Section 13.6.21.