Endofrecord

End of Record (EOR) is a marker used in data processing to indicate the boundary between records within a stream of data. It is employed across file formats, communication protocols, and data interchange to separate discrete units of information. The exact representation of an EOR marker varies by system and context; some use specific characters or byte sequences, while others rely on structural metadata to denote the end of a record.

In text-based files, EOR is often the end-of-line marker. Common encodings include the line feed (LF, 0x0A) and carriage return–line feed (CRLF, 0x0D 0x0A). In binary formats, the terminator can be a designated byte or byte sequence defined by the protocol or file specification. Some systems employ explicit terminators such as special sentinel bytes, while others use length prefixes or fixed record lengths that determine boundaries without a separate terminator.

End of Record is distinct from End of File (EOF). EOF signals that no more data remains in the input stream, whereas EOR marks the end of a single record within a larger sequence. Some file formats rely on fixed-length records with no dedicated terminator, while others use variable-length records governed by a terminator or by a length field.

Applications of EOR include line-oriented text processing, CSV and other delimited formats, and streaming or bulk data transfer where records must be reliably separated for parsing. In programming and data systems, clear EOR definitions are important for correct parsing, avoiding misaligned data, and ensuring consistent handling of record boundaries.