Oracle Apps Application Object Library

General AOL

Where do concurrent request logfiles and output files go?

        The concurrent manager first looks for the environment variable $APPLCSF

        If this is set, it creates a path using two other environment variables:

        $APPLLOG and $APPLOUT

        It places log files in $APPLCSF/$APPLLOG

        Output files go in $APPLCSF/$APPLOUT

        So for example, if you have this environment set:

                $APPLCSF = /u01/appl/common

                $APPLLOG = log

                $APPLOUT = out

        The concurrent manager will place log files in /u01/appl/common/log, and

        output files in /u01/appl/common/out

        Note that $APPLCSF must be a full, absolute path, and the other two are

        directory names.

        If $APPLCSF is not set, it places the files under the product top of the

        application associated with the request.

        So for example, a PO report would go under $PO_TOP/$APPLLOG and $PO_TOP/$APPLOUT

        Logfiles go to:  /u01/appl/po/9.0/log

        Output files to: /u01/appl/po/9.0/out

        Of course, all these directories must exist and have the correct permissions.

        Note that all concurrent requests produce a log file, but not necessarily

        an output file.

What are the logfile and output file naming conventions?

        Logfiles: l<request id>.req

        Output files: If $APPCPNAM is not set:  <username>.<request id>

                      If $APPCPNAM = REQID:     o<request id>.out

                      If $APPCPNAM = USER:      <username>.out

                     

        Where: <request id> = The request id of the concurrent request

        And: <username> = The id of the user that submitted the request

                  

How do I check if Multi-org is installed?

        SELECT multi_org_flag FROM fnd_product_groups;

How do I find out what the currently installed release of Applications is?

        SELECT release_name FROM fnd_product_groups

                

How do I find the name of a form?

        GUI: Use Help->About Oracle Applications

             Scroll down to find the form name

        Character: Use \Help->Version

       

How do I lookup ORA errors? (and TNS errors)

        Use: oerr ora XXXX

        or:  oerr tns XXXX     

        where XXXX is the error number

        (This also supports a number of other error types. Use the 3-letter  error prefix in place of 'ora')

How do I generate a message file (usaeng.msb)?

        Use: FNDMDCMF applsys/pwd 0 Y APP usaeng

        where: applsys/pwd is the APPLSYS user and password

        and APP is the short name of the application (like PO or INV)

       

How do I submit a concurrent request from PL/SQL?

        Use FND_REQUEST.SUBMIT_REQUEST

        Example: req_id := FND_REQUEST.SUBMIT_REQUEST('FND', 'FNDSCARU');

        Note that this can only be called from a concurrent program

        See the Coding Standards for parameter details

How do I cancel a running concurrent request?

        Navigate to the Concurrent Request Summary form

        Select a request

        In character, do a Quickpick on the Status column

        You can select Cancel or Hold

        In GUI, use the Cancel or Hold buttons

        The Sysadmin responsibility can cancel or hold any running request

       

Why can't I find adrelink on my NT APPL_TOP?

        This is a trick question right?

        There is no adrelink, we supply executables pre-built. There is no need to relink

        as on UNIX.

        There is also no adunload.

Why can't I use character mode on NT?

        You're just full of trick questions today...

        Applications for NT does not include character mode forms.

       

Why does Help->Tools->Examine ask for a password?

        The profile option Utilities:Diagnostics is set to NO

        This profile option controls whether users can use the Examine utility.

        The password should be the APPS password.

How do I set the name of the site that shows up under Help->About Oracle Applications?

        Set the profile option 'Site Name'

How do I open a form in query-only mode?

        Navigate to the Form Functions form (Application->Function)

        Query the particular form and add the parameter QUERY_ONLY=YES

        Not all forms will accept this parameter however.

               

How do I find the version of an installed product? (such as Reports, SQL*Net etc.)

One of the easiest ways is to run the product if you can. Running Reports designer will  give you the Reports version, running SQL*Plus will give you its version etc.

Another easy way is to launch the Oracle Installer and look in the installed products  on the right side. It will list all the products installed with their versions.

            Another way is to look at the .rgs file. This file is located in $ORACLE_HOME/orainst

        On UNIX, it will be called unix.rgs. On the PC, it will be called Windows.rgs.

        This file will list all the products installed and their versions. Note though that

        this file is not always correct. For example, patching Reports from 2.5.5.4 to 2.5.5.8

        will not show up in this file as the new version. Running Reports Designer is the best

        way of getting the correct version.

        Also, on UNIX there is an executable called 'inspdver'. It is located in $ORACLE_HOME/orainst.

        Running it will produce a display of all the installed products. It just pulls the

        information from unix.rgs, so it may show the wrong information as well.

I just ran AutoInstall successfully, but I don't have character mode! (on UNIX)

        You probably picked 'Server' when asked what type of installation to do.

        This choice installs everything except the character mode forms and

        executables. The choice you wanted to pick was 'Standalone'.

        You can recreate character mode by unloading the forms directories,

        regenerating the forms, and relinking aiap.

I changed a profile option, but it doesn't seem to take effect?

        Profile option values are cached, so you need to log out and back in in order to have

        the new value take effect. Switching responsibilities will usually do it too.

How do I generate one single form? (As opposed to using adadmin to generate them all)

        Character mode forms: Use adfrmgen

        Usage : adfrmgen filelist=<name of filelist file>

        or    : adfrmgen product="product shortname(s)" [filepath="dir-path/filename"]

        For example :

               adfrmgen filelist=filelist.txt

      adfrmgen product="gl" filepath="forms/GLXSSMTY.inp" (one file)

      adfrmgen product="gl" filepath="forms" (entire directory)

      adfrmgen product="gl" (entire product)

      adfrmgen product="fnd gl" (multiple products)

adfrmgen product="fnd gl" filepath="forms" (entire directories from multiple products)

       

        GUI forms: use f45gen

        Usage : f45gen module=<source file> userid=<Apps account/password>

output_file=<destination file> module_type=form batch=yes compile_all=special

       

        Example:

        f45gen module=/u16/appl/nca/au/1.0/forms/US/FNDCPMCP.fmb userid=APPS_APPDEMO/APPS

        output_file=/u16/appl/nca/fnd/7.5/forms/US/FNDCPMCP.fmx

        module_type=form batch=yes compile_all=special

        Note that in Release 11, adadmin will allow you to compile specific forms

What do I do if I am missing an executable from my APPL_TOP?

        Binary executables are created with adrelink.

        For example, if addmimp is missing use:

        adrelink force=y ranlib=y "ad addmimp"

In Release 11, where do I apply all of these new patch drivers?

(i.e. where do I apply the c driver, the d driver and the g driver?)

        The 'c' driver is the copy driver. It copies files and relinks  executables, similar to the old patch.drv.

        The 'd' driver is the database driver. It runs scripts against the database like the old db driver.

        The 'g' driver is new to release 11. It is the generate driver. It generates forms, reports, and message files.

        In a multiple-tier environment, you should apply the copy driver to all tiers, the database driver to the    administration tier, and the generate  driver to the forms and concurrent processing tier.

        (Some of these may be the same tier)

        Adpatch will ask questions about what kind of APPL_TOP it is in, so it  will know what portions of the   driver to run.

       

Reports/Printing

How do I run reports from the commandline?

        ar25run userid=apps/apps@database destype=file desname=try.out

        desformat=$FND_TOP/srw/L

        batch=yes report=<path to report>

                       

        Substitute the report name you want to run.  Use the srw file appropriate for the report

        The output will be in the try.out file

How do I run ar25run in debug mode?

        Under $FND_TOP/bin there should be two files: ar25run, and ar25rund

        Rename ar25run to ar25run.save

        Rename ar25rund to ar25run

        Now, whenever a report is run, it will produce a log file called ar20run.log

        This file will contain the command line used to run the report, as well as the environment

        (Note that this will not actually run the report)

                               

How do I relink Reports?

        cd $ORACLE_HOME/reports25/lib

        make -f ins_reports25.mk cinstall

        make -f ins_reports25.mk minstall                                              

               

How do I install SQL*Report?   

        On the 10.7 CD, there is a directory called rdbms732.

        Under this is a directory called rptpatch.

        Copy this directory to your local disk and run the script 'patchutil.sh'

        On HP-UX, the directory does not exist on the CD. Instead, there is a

        file called PATCHES. Copy this file to your disk and execute:

        cpio -icdvu < "PATCHES;1"

What are the different Reports executables?

        The Applications versions: (These are linked with Applications user exits)

        ar25desb: Reports Designer

        ar25run:  Reports runtime - ascii

        ar25runb: Reports runtime - bitmapped

        ar25rund: Reports runtime - debug version

       

        The regular Reports versions:

        r25desm:  Reports Designer

        r25run:   Reports runtime - ascii

        r25runm:  Reports runtime - bitmapped

       

How do I troubleshoot print driver problems?

        One technique is to create a shell script that will capture the print command and  arguments the concurrent manager is using.

       

        1) Create the following shell script and place in a directory in the

        concurrent managers PATH (such as /usr/bin)

        2) Give execute privileges to the script

        3) Shut down the managers

        4) Pick a print driver and add the name of the script before the lp command in the

        Arguments field

        eg. testprt lp -c -d$PROFILES$.PRINTER ...

        5) Make sure this driver is assigned to a style and a printer

        6) Start the managers

        7) Print a report using this driver

        8) The output should look like:

        Mon Jul  6 10:49:34 EDT 1998

        Arguments are:  lp -c -dorlprt1 -n1 -tPFERGUSO.1457540 /usr/tmp/OFAAAa001O_.t

        The script is:

        #!/bin/sh

        (date; echo 'Arguments are: '$*;cat) >>/tmp/oracle-wws.log

        This is for print drivers with std input set to yes

        For drivers with std input set to no, remove the 'cat' command

       

        You will see the actual command executed by the concurrent manager, and any arguments  passed to it. You should be able to execute this from the command line. From the example above, we see that lp is being called to print one copy on printer

        orlprt1, with the title being 'PFERGUSO.1457540'

        The last argument is the file to be printed. You can open up this file and see the escape codes at the top and bottom. From this information, you can determine if the concurrent manager is using the correct  arguments and escape codes. If everything looks OK, and the problem replicates  from the command line, the problem may be with the printer or the OS print services.

       

How do I add escape codes at the beginning of a report?

        Open the report in vi (Note that 'more' does not always display escape codes)

        Add an escape character with:  Ctrl-V Ctrl-[

        This will show up as:  ^[

        This corresponds to the /e in the form.

        Eg. if you have the escape code /e&k3G in the form, add: Ctrl-V Ctrl-[ &k3G

        This will show up as: ^[&k3G

        Once you add the escape codes, you can use 'lp' to print the report. This lets you

        troubleshoot the correct escape code sequence much faster than submitting a report.

How do I get a title printed on the banner page of a report?

        Use the '-t' option of lp

        Add this option to the arguments field in your print driver.

        For example, the command line might look like:

        lp -c -t "This is the title" -d$PROFILE$.PRINTER ...

               

Alerts

How can I find an event alert trigger?

        You need to know the name of the table the event alert is on

        Connect as APPS in SQL*Plus

        SELECT trigger_name, table_name, status

        FROM user_triggers

        WHERE table_name = 'TABLE_NAME';

        Alert triggers will have names like: ALR_TABLE_NAME_IAR or ALR_TABLE_NAME_UAR

        the IAR trigger is the INSERT trigger, the UAR trigger is the UPDATE trigger

        Selecting TRIGGER_BODY from USER_TRIGGERS will give the text of the trigger

Concurrent Manager     

Check/set the PMON method?

        To check the PMON method:

        1) cd $FND_TOP/sql

   2) sqlplus apps/apps @afimchk.sql

        This will tell whether the internal manager is running, what the PMON method is,

        and where the log file is

       

        To set the PMON method:

        1) first shut the concurrent managers down

        2)   cd $FND_TOP/sql

   3) sqlplus apps/apps @afimpmon.sql LOCK  (or RDBMS)

Enable/disable the Conflict Resolution Manager?

        Use the system profile option 'Concurrent: Use ICM'

        Setting this to No (which is the default) allows the CRM to be started

        Setting it to Yes causes the CRM to be shutdown and the Internal manager will  take over the conflict resolution duties.

        If the CRM will not start (it is started automatically by the ICM), check this profile option.

        

Clean out the Concurrent Manager tables?

        First, be sure to shutdown the managers

        As the APPLSYS user:

       

        DELETE from fnd_concurrent_processes;

       

        UPDATE fnd_concurrent_queues

        SET running_processes=0, max_processes=0;

       

        DELETE from fnd_concurrent_requests

        WHERE status_code='T';

       

        If you do not need the information in fnd_concurrent_requests and it is getting  very large, you can truncate this table as well. This also works to shutdown the concurrent managers after killing the OS processes.

       

Tell concurrent manager processes apart?

        Use: pf -ef | grep FNDLIBR

       

        This will produce output like:

        vd11 13703 13660  0   May 11 ?            0:01 FNDLIBR FND Concurrent_Processor

             MANAGE OLOGIN="APPS/94A491A1000000000000000000

        n1070161 24936 24927  0   Apr 29 ?        0:05 FNDLIBR FND Concurrent_Processor

             MANAGE OLOGIN="APPS_APPDEMO/94C4B1C10000000000

        n1070161 24938 24927  0   Apr 29 ?        0:06 FNDLIBR FND Concurrent_Processor

             MANAGE OLOGIN="APPS_APPDEMO/94C4B1C10000000000

        n1070161 24927 24922  0   Apr 29 ?        2:03 FNDLIBR FND CPMGR FNDCPMBR sysmgr

             =""  sleep=60 pmon=20  diag=N logfile=/u16/app

        The last process, #24927, shows 'FNDLIBR FND CPMGR'

        This one is the Internal concurrent manager

        Notice that it gives some of the parameters it was started with.

        The other processes showing 'Concurrent_Processor' are Standard manager processes

Notice that the Internal manager process is the parent process of the Standard  managers. (processes 24936 and 24938)

       

        Other managers will have the name of the executable, like ARLIBR or INVLIBR:

        $ ps -ef | grep ARLIBR

        vd11 13683 13660  0   May 11 ?        0:20 ARLIBR APPS/82A2A4940000000000000

             000000000000000000000000000000000000000 AR ART

            

        The Conflict Resolution manager will look like:

        $ ps -ef | grep FNDCRM

        n1070161 24941 24927  0   Apr 29 ?        1:17 FNDCRM APPS_APPDEMO/84BFBEB900000

             0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

  

I hit the Restart button to start the Standard manager but it still didn't start?

        Telling a manager to restart just sets the status to Restart. The ICM will start it  the next process monitor session or the next time the ICM starts.

        Use Activate to start a manager immediately.

        Also, when a manager is deactivated manually, the ICM will not restart it. You will  need to set it to Restart, or activate it manually.    

Why does the "to start" date of my concurrent request default to 24 hours in the past?

The short story:

If you get patch 387798, then this behavior can be turned on and off using  the profile "Concurrent:Multiple Time Zones".

The long story:

        This behavior is a temporary fix until we can build time zone  support into the product in a future release.

If the profile "Concurrent:Request Start Time" is set, then we default  the "to start" date of a request to that value. Otherwise we assume that the user wants the request to start as soon as possible.

Problems occur when the user is in a time zone that is ahead of the time  zone in which the concurrent managers are running. Say a user submits the request in a field office in the Eastern time zone at 9:00, so we default the requested start date to 9:00. But now the concurrent managers are at HQ in California, so user's request will run at 9:00 Pacific time, 12:00 Eastern. In order to default requests to start as soon as possible, we submit them to start 24 hours before their request date.  This covers the worst case time zone difference.

Can I submit a report set using CONCSUB?

        No, you may not. This is documented in bug 334337.

How do I submit a request with CONCSUB that has a null parameter?

        Use '""' as the null parameter.

        (Single quote, double quote, double quote, single quote)

How can users submit requests with CONCSUB without giving them the APPS password?

 Try this:

       1. As the applmgr user, create a shell script that runs CONCSUB

           Either hardcode the parameters for the report, or pass them in as parameters to the

           script.

        2. Change the permissions on this script to 700. Now no one can read this script and get

           the password.

        3. Create another script that calls the first script. Pass parameters along if you need

           to.

        4. Change the permissions on this script to 6755. Now any user can execute and read

           the second script, which calls the first one. Have the users run this script to submit

           their requests without knowing the password.

           

What is the syntax for controlling the concurrent manager using startmgr and concsub in NT?

        On NT, the concurrent manager is run as an NT service. You start and stop the managers  using the Services control panel.

        See the Applications Installation manual for NT, Appendix A for details.

        See pg. 5-9 of this manual for instructions on creating the concurrent manager service.

NCA            

Do I need to reinstall the 16.1 server patches when I install NCA?

        NO! See the 10.7 NCA install manual. Chapter 2 says that if you previously installed

        the 16.1 server patches, you can omit all steps in the chapter.

        The patches included with 16.1 and the NCA server updates are exactly the same thing.

     

How do I get help files to work with the appletviewer?

        1) Configure the virtual directories for the web server

           This is documented in the 10.7 NCA installation notes and the Release 11 installation

           manual. 10.7 NCA calls for using oa-doc, and R11 calls for OA_DOC.

           Either way, the virtual directory should point to where the help files have been

           installed.

        2) Make sure the parameter clientBrowser is NOT commented out in the html file

           You should remove the exclamation mark at the beginning of the tag

        3) Make sure that the path to Netscape (or whatever browser you are using) is included

           in the PATH environment variable.

           One way is to add a line to the batch file that starts the appletviewer that

           appends to the PATH variable. This way, every time that the batch file is run,

           the correct path will be used.

        4) Make sure the environment variable HELP_BASE_URL is set on the Forms Server.

           It should be set to: http://server name:port/oa-doc

           In Release 11, it is set with the profile option 'Help System Base URL'

           http://server name:port/OA_DOC

How do I get the Forms server to produce a diagnostic log file?

        See Using Forms Runtime Diagnostics

When using this with webforms, you add the "record=collect" parameter to the serverArgs parameter in your html file.

        For example, if your html file contains:

   <PARAM name="serverArgs" value="module= ... FNDNAM=APPS>

        You would change it like so:

   <PARAM name="serverArgs" value="module= ... record=collect FNDNAM=APPS>

     

How do I tell if the Forms Server is running?

        Use: ps -ef |grep f45

        The forms server process is called f45srvm

You will also see other processes named f45runw. There should always be   at least one of these processes.       Each user that connects will spawn another f45runw process.

        Example:

        $ ps -ef | grep f45

        oracle    68     1  0   May 11 ?        0:00 f45srvm port=9002 pool=1

        oracle 18295    68  0   Jun 12 ?        0:00 f45runw webfile=7,80

What is f45runw? What happened to f45webm?

        For some reason, the f45webm executable is executed with the name f45runw. They are the same thing, f45webm is the name of the executable  on disk, and f45runw is the name of the process.

How does my environment need to be set before starting the Forms Server?

        The Forms server needs to be started with a complete Applications environment,  similar to starting the concurrent managers. This means having APPL_TOP set, and  sourcing the APPLSYS.env environment file.

        The Forms server will encounter many problems, including failing to start, if  this is not done.

What is f45ctl for?

        f45ctl is used to start/stop the Forms server.  This way, you do not need to start it in the background, and the process  will not terminate when you log out.

        f45ctl { start | stop } port=port_num log=log_file

        Example: f45ctl start port=9000 log=f45log.txt

        port number and log file are optional, it will use 9000 as the default port

Run the Forms server on a different port using the static html file?

        In the html file, add the line:

        <PARAM name="serverPort" value="9003">

        after the other PARAM tags, using the port number you want

        Then start the Forms server on that port

Do I need separate ORACLE_HOMES for my database server and my Forms server if they are on

the same machine?

        Yes, because Dev2K 1.3.2 is installed in one, and Dev2K 1.6 is installed in the  other. You can install them both in one home, but you will have problems when you  try to relink.

What about Release 11?

        In Release 11, Dev2K 1.6.1 is used for both Forms and Reports so you can install

        the database server and forms server in one home.

Can I run more than 1 Forms server on a machine?

        Yes, on different ports.

  

What is the correct syntax for running a local copy of the jar file?

        archive="file:///c:/java/jdk1.1.5.16/appscore.jar"

        (Using the correct path and drive letter for your PC)

Can I use the same html file for JInitiator as the appletviewer?

        No, the JInitiator file contains <EMBED> and <OBJECT> tags instead of

        an <APPLET> tag. You will get an error using this file with the appletviewer.

Java/JDK

How do I tell what version of the JDK I am using?

        At a command prompt, type: java -version

How do I get a stack dump from the appletviewer?

        In the DOS window where appletviewer is running, hit Control and Break

What is the difference between the JDK and JRE?

        JRE is the Java Runtime Environment

        JDK is the Java Developers Kit

        They both can run Java programs, the JDK is also a full development environment.

        It contains the Java compiler and other utilities required to create Java programs,

        The JRE can only run the programs.

What is this CLASSPATH thing anyway?

        CLASSPATH is an environment variable the Java interpreter uses to search for class files.

        It is set to a colon separated list of directories, similar to the PATH variable.

        It it used both to locate the Java system classes, and user-written classes.

        In Java 1.0, you always had to set it, or it would not be able to find the system classes.

        In Java 1.1, the interpreter uses classes.zip and the current directory as a default if CLASSPATH

        is not set.

        This means that using the 1.1 JDK on the PC, you do not need to set CLASSPATH.

        It also means that if you do set it, you must include the defaults, or the system classes will

        not be found.

        The JRE uses rt.jar instead of classes.zip, so always include this file in CLASSPATH.

What is the story on those yellow bars on the appletviewer windows?

        The Java security mechanism normally prevents applets from performing certain actions on the user's

        machine. These include accessing the local disk, launching programs, and printing.

        This is a good thing, since you would not normally want to download an applet off the Internet

        and have that applet be able to do these things on your computer. (That would spoil all

        the fun for the virus writers)

        The yellow bars signify that this is an 'untrusted' applet, and it will not be allowed to do these

        things. (You will not be able to print from Action->Print, or launch a browser to view Help files.)

        Oracle supplies a digital certificate with Applications that essentially turns the applet into

        a 'trusted' applet, and the yellow bars are not displayed.

        This is the reason for running appscert.bat and importing the certificate before running Apps.

How do I specify where I want the identitydb.obj file to be put on the client?

        The identitydb.obj file is created when javakey is first run. (From appscert.bat)

        This file is used to hold security information for the appletviewer

        In the jdk\lib\security directory is a file called java.security

        Add a line to this file:

        identity.database=C:\\directory\\path

        using the path you want the file placed in

        Note that you must use double backslashes

Where can I find documentation on the appletviewer, javakey, etc.?

        Go to the Tools Reference Page at Sun's website //WWW.SUN.COM

Customization

How do I create a custom application?

        Step 1: Create the directory

                Create a top directory for your product underneath $APPL_TOP.

                Make sure applmgr has the correct ownership and permissions.

                Create subdirectories underneath this directory that you will need.

                (bin, forms, log, out, lib, etc.)

                Add an entry into your APPLSYS.env file to set the product top environment variable:

                PF_TOP=/u01/appl/pf

      export PF_TOP

                If you will be creating custom 10SC forms, you will need to create a

                top directory on the client PCs. Create a Forms and a Mesg directory

                underneath it, and add the product top environment variable to oaconfig.ora.

               

        Step 2: Create the Oracle ID

                Create a new Oracle ID in the database. Give the new schema any roles and privileges it will need.

                At this time you can run $AD_TOP/admin/sql/adappss.pls and adappsb.pls  to create the APPS_DDL and APPS_ARRAY_DDL packages.

               

        Step 3: Register the Oracle ID

                Navigate to the Register Oracle ID form. Enter the custom Oracle ID,

                password, and logical database. Select 'Register' and save the screen.

               

        Step 4: Register the application

                Navigate to the Register Applications form. Enter the long and short

                application name, abbreviation, and product top environment variable.

               

        Step 5: Add the application to a datagroup

                Navigate to the Define Data Group form. Add your application to a datagroup,

                using the APPS schema as the Oracle ID.

               

        Step 6: Register custom tables and packages

                Custom tables and indexes are created in the custom schema, and registered

                with AOL using the AD_DD package. See Appendix B of the Installation

                manual for an example of this. The APPS schema must have a synonym for

                all tables, and be granted privileges on them. Custom packages and procedures

                must be created in the APPS schema.

                

        Now custom concurrent programs, forms, reports, etc. can be registered against

        your new application.

How do I register a custom concurrent program?

        Step 1: Register a concurrent program executable

        Navigate to the Define Executable form (AOL Reference manual pg 9-84)

        This determines the type of program being run,

        ie an Oracle Report, a C program, a shell script etc.

        Fill in the executable name, application and execution method.

        For the Execution File, fill in just the filename. The concurrent manager will

        look in the appropriate directory under the application's top directory.

        For spawned programs, the file must be in the bin directory, for Oracle Reports the

        rdf file must be in the srw directory.

        For PLSQL concurrent programs, put the name of the stored procedure.

       

        Step 2: Define the concurrent program

        Navigate to the Define Concurrent Program form (AOL Reference manual pg 9-87)

        This form links a concurrent program to the executable you just defined, as well as

        defines the programs parameters, incompatibilities, and other options.

       

        Enter the concurrent program name, application, short name and description.

        Check Standard Submission if you want to be able to submit this program from the

        Standard Report Submission form.

        Enter the name of the executable you defined and any report information if necessary.

        Also define any parameters your program needs here and any incompatibilities.

       

        Step 3: Add the concurrent program to a Report Group

        First you will need to find the name of the Report Group to use.

        Go to Security->Responsibility and query the responsibility you want to run the program with.

        It should show a Report Group name. Query this name in Security->Responsibility->Report

        Add your new program to the list of available programs. Now when you go to submit

        a request with this responsibility, you will be able to submit your custom program.

How do I compile a custom C program?

        Spawned programs:

        Step 1: Write the code

        Step 2: Compile the source

                You must use the makefile under $FND_TOP/usrxit

                Use: make -f $FND_TOP/usrxit/Makefile program.o

                We do not support using any other makefile

        Step 3: Link the program

                This part is a little tricky. You need to create a custom makefile for this step.

                Use $FND_TOP/lib/sample.mk as a starting point. Copy this file to the lib directory

                under your applications top directory. Rename it <short name>.mk (ie fnd.mk, gl.mk etc)

                Modify this file according to the directions in it. Basically you need to add a target

                and build commands for your executable.

                Next, use adrelink to link the executable:

                adrelink force=y ranlib=y "shortname programname"

        Step 4: Register the program as in the above question

       

        Immediate programs:

        Just don't do it.

How do I run a shell script as a concurrent program?   

        1: Write the script and call it <name>.prog

           Place the script under the bin directory under your applications  top directory.

           For example, call the script CUSTOM.prog and place it under

           $CUSTOM_TOP/bin

        2: Make a symbolic link from your script to $FND_TOP/bin/fndcpesr

           For example, if the script is called CUSTOM.prog use this:

           ln -s $FND_TOP/bin/fndcpesr CUSTOM

           This link should be named the same as your script without the .prog  extension

           It should be in the same directory as the script.

        3: Register a concurrent program as described above, using an execution method of 'Host'

           Use the name of your script without the .prog extension as the name  of the executable

           For the example above, you would use CUSTOM

        4: Your script will be passed at least 4 parameters, in $1 through $4

           These will be: orauser/pwd, userid, username, request_id

           Any other parameters you define will be passed in $5 and higher.

           Make sure your script returns an exit status.

        5: If your script returns a failure exit status but the concurrent  manager does not report the error (shows it as still running normal)

           apply patch 442824

  

Can I run my custom forms with Forms Designer?

        16-bit (SmartClient):

        You should be able to run forms with the Forms Designer that comes on  the SmartClient CD. The debugger will not work, however. See bug

       

        32-bit (NCA):

If the forms are AOL forms (ie created from template.fmb) they cannot be run from the Forms Designer or Forms Runtime because these executables do not have the AOL user exits linked in.

You will see many FRM-40800 errors trying to run forms this way.

Also see bug 414115 that describes a problem with Forms 4.5 and  attaching libraries.

The only way to run these forms is through Applications.

Why do my PLSQL stored procedure concurrent programs error out with:

'Invalid number of arguments'?

        See pg. 9-79 of the AOL Reference manual.

        PLSQL concurrent programs must have 2 OUT arguments defined.

        RETCODE is used to return the error status

        ERRBUF is used to return an error message

        Note that you do not need to define these arguments in the Define Arguments form,

        only in the procedure itself.

How come when I close my custom form using the 'X' close box I get an export window popping up?

        You need to look at the procedure APP_CUSTOM.CLOSE_WINDOW

        This procedure is defined in the TEMPLATE form. It contains instructions in the  comments on how to modify this procedure. You must do this for all of the custom forms  you write or you will have problems closing the window.

How do I preserve customizations through an upgrade?

        The upgrade process may overwrite any data owned by one of the Oracle Applications.

        Move all of your customizations (menus, responsibilities, report groups, etc) to a   custom application. After the upgrade, you can move them back if you want.     

Can I disable the items in the Help menu? (like Trace, Debug, etc)             

        Yes.

Web Applications

How can I assign responsibilities in Release 11 Web Apps?

        In Release 11, regular applications users and web users have been  merged. This means that the same user name and password is used to log into Apps and Web apps. Also, OSSWA responsibilities are assigned in  the Define Users form, just like regular responsibilities.

        This also means that FND_WEB_USERS is no longer used.

Where do I find the configuration files for the Webserver?

        Go to $ORAWEB_ADMIN (usually $ORACLE_HOME/ows/admin). 

Navigate down to the ows directory, then into the site name directory. 

There should be a wrb directory here and a http_servername directory here.        

Under the wrb directory will be a config directory and a log directory. 

In config, you will find a file called wrb.app. This file contains the configuration for  the Web Request Broker.

It is all the information you enter on the admin screens. (ie, all the DAD info, cartridge info, virtual directories etc..)

The log directory of course holds log files.

Back up in the http_servername directory, you will find directories for each listener.

In each directory there will be config and log directories again.

In the config directory is a file called sv'listenername'.cfg (substitute the name of the  listener)

This file holds the configuration for this listener.   

Database questions

Which version of 'alter package' compiles just the header? the body? both?

        ALTER PACKAGE package_name COMPILE - compiles the header and the body

        ALTER PACKAGE package_name COMPILE PACKAGE - compiles just the header

        ALTER PACKAGE package_name COMPILE BODY - compiles just the body

How do I find the errors when a package will not compile?

        From SQL*Plus, 'show errors' will usually give you the last error messages.

        SELECT name, text FROM user_errors will give you the errors.   

What is the best way to recompile invalid objects?

        This has been debated, but my money is on adadmin. It uses the AD_PARALLEL_COMPILE_PKG

        to find invalid objects, create a dependency tree of them, and divides the jobs up among multiple workers.

        Also, the adcmpusr script does the same thing, if adadmin is not working, or you really just want to run a script.

How do I get the version of a package or package body?

        The table USER_SOURCE contains the text of all the packages in the current schema.

        Each package header or body will have a version number in the text, something like:

                 /* $Header: AFSCWEBS.pls 61.0 98/08/13 09:26:56 porting ship $ */

        This shows that this package is version 61.0

        You can use:

        SELECT text FROM user_source WHERE name = <package name> AND TEXT LIKE '%$Header%';

       

        This also shows the name of the file (AFSCWEBS.pls) that contains the CREATE statement  for this package. You can run this script if you need to recreate this package.

How do I find the name of the script that creates a particular package header or body?

        See the question above.

       

How do I backup a table?

        CREATE TABLE backup_table AS SELECT * FROM table_to_backup;

Tick the types that can be selected for the value sets declared for getting the parameter in reports?

  A. SEGMENT

  B. PROFILE

  C. SQL Statement

  D. CURRENT TIME

  E. CURRENT DATE

  F. CONSTANT

Answer: All

What profile(from user_profile) option is user for getting Set of Books Id?

Answer: GL_SET_OF_BKS_ID

Tick the different report format types available in Apps Reports?

  A. HTML

  B. PDF

  C. RDF

  D. TEXT

  E. BITMAP

  F. POSTSCRIPT

Answer: A, B, D, F

SPAWNED execution method is used for what types?

Answer: Pro*C and C

Which package is used for registering table into apps.

Answer: AD_DD

Folders can be attached at

            A. USER

            B. RESPONSIBILITY

            C. ANY OF THE ABOVE

            D. NONE

Answer: C

To define descriptive flexfield, which package is called

Answer: FND_DESCR_FLEX

Can we exclude any specific function from a menu, if yes where is it done?

Answer: yes, and it is done at responsibility definition form and at function and menu exclusion alternate region

Registration of key and descriptive flexfield is done in

A. AOL

B. SYSTEM ADMIN

C. GL

D. ANY MODULE

Answer: A

Which table is associated with report paramenters assigment?

Answer: FND_DESCR_FLEX_COL_USAGE_VL

What is not the compulsory PLL file required on the client side for Apps forms customization?

A.    APPCORE

B.     FNDSQF

C.     CUSTOM

D.    FNDCONC

Answer: D

In which table are the menus stored

A. FND_MENUS

B. FND_MENU_ENTRIES

C. BOTH

Answer: C

What is a non-form function

Answer: A Non-Form Function (Subfunction) is a subset of a form's functionality. subfunctions are frequently associated with buttons or other graghical elements on the forms.

What is the property class of a pop list if it is associated with alternative regions.

Answer: LIST_REGION_CONTROL

In apps convention what is used in place of open_form()

Answer: FND_FUNCTION.EXECUTE

What is ROOT_WINDOW?

Answer: The ROOT_WINDOW is a special Oracle Forms window that behaves differently from other windows. ROOT_WINDOW interferes with the proper functioning of the toolbar and other standard Oracle Applications objects.

What is Non-modal window?

Answer: A non-modal window (a regular window) allows the user to interact with any other window, as well as the toolbar and the menu. Non-modal windows are used for the display of most application entities

What type of indicator is preferred with multi-record blocks?

A. Current record indicator

B. Drill down indicator

Answer: B

Which of the following is not associated with a responsibility?

A. Menu

B. Request group

C. Data group

D. Password expiration

            Answer: D

Which is not a component of a request set?

A. Stage

B. Group

C. Request

D. Parameter

            Answer: B

Which of the following is the overriding level for profile option values?

A. Site

B. Application

C. Responsibility

D. User

            Answer: A

Which of the following determines the subdirectory for an executable?

A. Application name

B. Execution method

C. Subroutine

D. Execution filename

            Answer: A

For what is the Token field used?

A. Default value

B. Profile option value

C. Oracle Reports parameter

D. Value set        

            Answer: C