IBM Mainframe Forum

I am not aware of any circumstances on a mainframe where the situation you describe makes sense or returns a valid count.

Fixed length records are that length, period. Nothing is added to them. If the LRECL is 40, the correct byte count will be 40 times the number of records. If the LRECL is 85, the correct byte count will be 85 times the number of records. If the LRECL is 32760, the correct byte count is 32760 times the number of records.

Variable length files have an additional 4-byte field at the beginning of each block (called the block descriptor word) and a 4-byte record descriptor word at the beginning of each record but not two bytes. Of course, with variable length records you have to sum the record lengths to get the correct byte count.

One more time. . . .

How will this byte count be used?

iam trtying to dynamically allocate a byte count and record count file for a 2 input files.

How does one allocate "a byte count"? If what you want to do was working, what then?

Keep in mind that you completely understand what you believe you want to do. We are still trying to understand this. . .