Valid COBOL statements for sequential files

The following table shows the possible combinations of input-output statements for sequential files. 'X' indicates that the statement can be used with the open mode shown at the top of the column.

Table 1. Valid COBOL statements for sequential files
Access mode COBOL statement OPEN INPUT OPEN OUTPUT OPEN I-O OPEN EXTEND
Sequential OPEN X X X X
WRITE   X   X
START        
READ X   X  
REWRITE     X  
DELETE        
CLOSE X X X X