SAS provides two predefined component objects for use with PROC FCMP and the DATA step: the hash object and the hash iterator object. These objects enable you to quickly and efficiently store, search, and retrieve data based on lookup keys.

The component objects are data elements that consist of attributes, methods, and operators. Attributes are the properties that specify the information that is associated with an object. Methods define the operations that an object can perform. For component objects, operators provide special functionality. You use the DATA step object dot notation to access the component object’s attributes and methods.

The following methods are available:

For more information about hash and hash iterator component objects, see SAS Component Objects: Reference.