You could be dealing with FTP translating the packed bytes. Ensure that the file on the source is identical to the file received by FTP. Comparing file sizes is a quick test, but even if the file sizes are the same, you still need to compare the file contents to make sure that the data is the same. You could send the file back to the mainframe and run a compare utility.
If the files are not the same, then the file is being shipped to Linux using FTP's ASCII mode. Ask the file to be sent via FTP's Binary mode.
DataStage can easily handle packed data, even on a Linux server. Import the COBOL file definition and use that Table Definition in the stage.
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Brian Sprecher
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Original Message:
Sent: Mon June 07, 2021 12:40 PM
From: James Powell
Subject: Dealing with Mainframe files containing packed data
First time posting, so please offer suggestions, etc. as to format. Fairly new user of Datastage and have been tasked with updating our DS jobs to use files which have been FTP'd to a Linux server and replace the ZOS stage for retrieving MainFrame data. When the data is straight character, the transition is smooth. When the data contains packed fields (dates and decimals), the process aborts. The MF files have been FTP'd as TXT files to the Linux server.
Any pointers would be appreciated.
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James Powell
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#DataIntegration