The definition file is composed by instructions which are normally part of variable definition sections. Each section is introduced by the keyword VARIABLE and ends with the beginning of the next section or the end of the file. Variable definition sections contain instructions to specify the source of reference and actual data, the tests to be carried out with their relative importance in the computation of the variable score, and any variable-specific output instructions. Variables weights allow to specify the contribution of each variable's score to the global score.
Some commands (notably WEIGHT and OUTPUT commands) can be placed before variable definitions. The portion of the file preceding the first variable definition is referred to as the preamble in the text that follows. In the preamble, The TEST command can be used after the name of a test to specify the weight for that specific test in all variables unless specified. The OUTPUT command can also be used to output global-level results or data to files or to the screen. Some of the keywords which can be used in OUTPUT strings change meaning according to their placement, inside or outside a variable definition.
Comments can be included in the file by starting them with /* and ending them with */. As in the C language, these comments can span multiple lines and cannot be nested. The SVP will ignore any text included between these limits.
In the following syntax specifications, square brackets include optional parts of commands, and angled brackets include descriptions of arguments which are expected to be given by the user. The ``|'' sign separates alternative constructs. The SVP is case-sensitive: keywords are expected to be all uppercase, while parameter names are all lowercase. Instructions do not need to be on separate lines, although the definition file will be clearer in this is done.