Indexes

An index is a set of key fields used to identify and access records in a file. To allow for different paths or key fields to a record, a file can have up to 16 indexes.

4GL Index Naming Conventions

In the Database Definition utility (dbdef), indexes are named using the following format:

<FilePrefix>SET<n>, where

  • <FilePrefix> is a three-letter abbreviation for the file.

  • <n> is an integer representing the Index number. The following conventions are often used, although they are not a requirement.

  • 1 is used for the primary (first) Index.

  • 2 through 16 are used for secondary indexes.

    For example, the primary index on the GLMASTER file is GLMSET1.