Declaring Variables for BYTE and TEXT Data

The keyword REFERENCES indicates that the variable does not contain a BYTE or TEXT value but is a pointer to the BYTE or TEXT value. Use the variable as though it holds the data.

The following example defines a local BYTE variable:

CREATE PROCEDURE use_byte()
   DEFINE i INT;
   DEFINE l_byte REFERENCES BYTE;
END PROCEDURE --use_byte

If you pass a variable of BYTE or TEXT data type to an SPL routine, the data is passed to the database server and stored in the root dbspace or dbspaces that the DBSPACETEMP environment variable specifies, if it is set. You do not need to know the location or name of the file that holds the data. BYTE or TEXT manipulation requires only the name of the BYTE or TEXT variable as it is defined in the routine.