One of our user has a process that is writing ~ 10.5GB in hold files in the agent directory (C:\temp\edatemp\ts######\). We are trying to streamline this process, but I think we are stuck with some large files for the time being. When (if) the process runs to completion, the agent directory is purged and all is fine. If not, the disk can easily run out of space and the whole environment is down for the count. Thankfully, it's the dev server.

I'm hoping that there is a built in command I can pass to delete one hold file after I am done with it. Each one is ~1.5 GB and I'd like to only have 1-2 out there at a time (if possible).

- ABT

This message has been edited. Last edited by: ABT,

Put this code after the last time that you use the temp file.
/*
UNIX pwd
UNIX rm temp file name.ftm
-RUN
*\

I dont think there is any such command/process to delete the temp files in agent directory during the middle of the execution.

Are these hold files generated as part of intermediate manipulation...if so what you could do is the capture the hold files on the fly after each step and delete them manually...you can use TEMPPATH and app delete commands for this...

We had this issue and we converted all the intermediate hold files into DB temp tables ..
If you can use SQL passthru all the possible conversions/manipulations can be done there and avoid some hold files..

thanks
Sashanka

On a Windows Server 2003 box (WebFOCUS server)

Put this code after the last time that you use the temp file.

-WINNT DEL name.ftm

With our large jobs, we always delete the big temp files after we finish with them.

Its just issueing the OS command.

We use:

Unix: ! rm {filename}
Win: ! del {filename}

Awesome, guys. Thanks for the feedback/best practices. Here's what I threw together as an include in our STANDARDS folder. This can now be -MRNOEDIT INCLUDED with a variable declaration. Hope it saves someone else a few mins.

-*******************************************************************************
-* DELHOLD.FEX
-*******************************************************************************
-* AUTHOR:  Blake Thompson
-*
-* DATE:    20110715
-*
-* PURPOSE: Keep temporary agent directories clean of old hold files during
-*          long running processes or processes that consume lots of diskspace.
-*
-*******************************************************************************
-* REQUIREMENTS
-*******************************************************************************
-* SET THE &HOLDFILETODELETE variable with the name of the holdfile you specified
-* in your program.
-*
-* You MUST set a -RUN before calling this (i.e. after your ON TABLE HOLD statement).
-*
-*******************************************************************************
-* USAGE:
-*******************************************************************************
-*
-*  TABLE FILE CAR
-*  PRINT
-*  *
-*  ON TABLE HOLD AS FILE1
-*  END
-*  -RUN
-*
-*  -SET &HOLDFILETODELETE = 'FILE1';
-*  -MRNOEDIT -INCLUDE DELHOLD
-*
-*******************************************************************************
-* OPTIONS:
-*******************************************************************************
-* -SET &VERBOSE_DELHOLDFILE = 'ON';
-* TO SEE SYSTEM MESSAGES (GOOD FOR DEBUG)
-*
-* YOU CAN IGNORE THE VARIABLE IF YOU YOU DON'T WANT FEEDBACK.
-*
-*******************************************************************************


-*TABLE FILE CAR
-*PRINT
-**
-*ON TABLE HOLD AS FILE1
-*END
-*-RUN

-DEFAULT &VERBOSE_DELHOLDFILE = 'OFF';

-*-SET &HOLDFILETODELETE = 'FILE1';
-SET &HOLDFILETODELETE = &HOLDFILETODELETE | '.ftm';

-IF &VERBOSE_DELHOLDFILE = 'ON' THEN GOTO DOMSG1 ELSE GOTO SKIPMSG1;
-DOMSG1
-WINNT echo =========BEFORE============
-WINNT cd
-WINNT dir /b
-SKIPMSG1


-WINNT del &HOLDFILETODELETE


-IF &VERBOSE_DELHOLDFILE = 'ON' THEN GOTO DOMSG2 ELSE GOTO SKIPMSG2;
-DOMSG2
-WINNT echo.
-WINNT echo =========AFTER=============
-WINNT cd
-WINNT dir /b
-SKIPMSG2

This could be expanded to use &FOCMODE.

&FOCMODE has the OS type.

Windows: WINNT
Unix: UNIX

Not sure what other environments will return.

But you could branch to different code for each, making the fex cross platform.