Sort Rows dialog box

Sort rows (rows) in the current rowset or table and save the sorted rows into a new table.

Unlike using an index, the sorting operation actually copies the current table to a new table and arranges the rows in an order you specify. All fields are copied to the new table. To rearrange the rows in the current table without creating a new table, use an index.

When you use Sort Rows, dBASE Plus creates a temporary index file. During the sorting process, your hard disk must have room for this temporary index file and the new table file.

To copy rows to a new table while excluding some fields, use an index and the Export command.

Dialog box options

Target Table Name

Enter the name of the new sorted table. If you specify a file without including its path, dBASE Plus creates the file in the current directory.

Click to specify the name, path, and type of the file to use as the sort table. Enter a new name, or select it from the Save File dialog box.

Available Fields

Select from a list of the current table’s fields, the first key field by which you want the rows to be sorted.

Order By

The key field you click appears in the Order By box. You can add more than one field to the Order By box, in cases where you may have more than one row with the same value in the key field. After grouping rows by the first key field, rows within that grouping are ordered by the second key field, and so on.

Select Key Field Sort Direction

Choose to sort the rows according the selected fields, in either ascending or descending order. The new table is sorted on the first field in the new fields list.

Limit Rows

Enter an SQL WHERE statement to limit the row selection. You can thereby exclude rows where a field has a certain value.

How to get there: In Table Run mode, choose Table|Sort Rows.