Variable-Length Record Formats

In a variable-length record data set, each record or record segment can have a different length. Variable-length records can be used with all types of data sets. The variable-length record formats are format-V and format-D. They can also be spanned format (-VS or -DS), blocked format (-VB or -DB), or both format (-VBS and -DBS). Format-D, -DS, and -DBS records are used for ISO/ANSI tape data sets.