5.3 Sorting Using the Sort Task

There is little need for you to sort data in SAS Enterprise Guide. If a task requires data to be sorted, SAS Enterprise Guide will usually sort the data automatically. However, there may be times when you want to sort the data yourself. If you have a large data table, for example, you may want to store the data in sorted order. With the data presorted, SAS Enterprise Guide will not have to sort the data and your tasks will run more quickly. At other times, you may want to sort data to make it easier to find values in a Data Grid, or to eliminate duplicate rows.

There are three ways to sort data in SAS Enterprise Guide: the Filter and Sort task, the Sort task, or a query. The Sort task gives you the most control over how the data are sorted, while the Filter and Sort task and a query have other functions in addition to sorting. This section discusses the Sort task.