DEFINE Section

This section declares the data type of each argument in the REPORT prototype, and of any additional local variables that are referenced only within the REPORT program block. The DEFINE section is required if you pass arguments to the report, or if you reference local variables in the report.

• ariable is the identifier of a local variable that you declare here.

For declaring local variables, the same rules apply to the DEFINE section as to the DEFINE statement in MAIN and FUNCTION program blocks.

Two exceptions, however, restrict the data types of formal arguments:

Report argument cannot be of type ARRAY

Report argument cannot be records which have ARRAY members

You must include arguments in the report prototype, and declare them in the DEFINE section if one or more of the following conditions is true:

When you use the FORMAT EVERY ROW specification for a default report. In this case, you must pass all the values for each record of the report.

When there is an ORDER BY section in the report. In this case, you must pass all the values for each record of the report.

If an aggregate value that depends on all records of the report appears anywhere except in the ON LAST ROW control block, then you must pass each of the records of the report through the argument list. Examples of aggregates that depend on all records include using GROUP PERCENT(*) anywhere in a report, or using any aggregate without the GROUP keyword anywhere outside the ON LAST ROW control block.

When you use the AFTER GROUP OF control block. In this case, you must pass at least the arguments that are named in that control block.

The order of declarations in the DEFINE section is not restricted, but code may be easier to read if you list arguments before local variables. If the DEFINE section declares a variable or argument with the same identifier as a global or module variable, that global or module variable is not visible in the report.