C.1 Path-Based URLs

A path-based URL is formed by identifying the path taken through the portal to get to a particular object. This uses object names in the URL and thus, if the name of an object within the path is changed, the URL will no longer be valid. Path-based URLs can be formed for these types of objects:

  • Pages

  • Tabs

  • Items

  • Portal Templates

  • Navigation pages

  • Category pages

  • Perspective pages

This section parses the format used for path-based URLs and provides examples of how they are formed when targeting portal objects. It includes the following subsections:

C.1.1 Forming Path-Based URLs

The format of a path-based URL that is used to render an item is:

http://<host>:<port>/portal/page/<dad>[/lang-<language>][/ver-<version>]/
<page_path>/<item_name>

Note:

In URLs, page names, object names, "/portal/page/" and GUIDs are case sensitive. All other parts of the URL are not case sensitive.

Where:

  • host is the machine on which Oracle Portal is installed.

  • port is the port number used to access Oracle Portal.

  • portal is a static element of an Oracle Portal URL.

  • dad is the Database Access Descriptor (DAD) that is used for your Oracle Portal installation. The DAD contains information on how to connect to the database.

  • language is the language in which you will display the object. Language is an optional path element. For examples of the lang parameter in action, see Section C.3.3, "The Language Parameter in Path-Based and Durable URLs".

    Should users request a language for which there is no translation, an error message displays:

    The language specified in the URL is not currently supported by this Portal. (WWC-57383)
    
  • version is the version of the item. Version is optional and is used only with items. The value is a number or STAGE, DRAFT, or REJECTED. For example:

    ­…/ver-2/…
    …/ver-STAGE/…
    …/ver-DRAFT/…
    …/ver-REJECTED/…
    

    Note:

    If the URL specifies a version of an item that does not exist, the current version of the item is displayed, except as noted in the following paragraph.

    When the STAGE, DRAFT, or REJECTED version is specified in a path-based URL, the item is rendered according to the following rules:

    • STAGE—First the pending version of the item is rendered; then, if there is no pending version, the current version of the item is rendered.

    • DRAFT—First the draft version of the item is rendered; then, if there is no draft version (or it is not available), the pending version of the item is rendered; finally, if there is no pending version, the current version of the item is rendered.

    • REJECTED—First the rejected version of the item is rendered; then, if there is no rejected version, the current version of the item is rendered.

    For a discussion of which users can view items in what state, see Section 17.9.3, "Item URL Security".

  • page_path is the path taken to get to the object.

  • item_name is the name of the item.

C.1.2 Examples of Path-Based URLs

Path-Based URLs for Pages

Path-based URLs for pages take the following format:

http://<host>:<port>/portal/page/<dad>[/lang-<language>]/<page_path>

For example, To access the root page of the page group MyPageGroup:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/MyPageGroup

To access a top-level page (sample_page) of the page group MyPageGroup:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/sample_page

To access a sub-page (page1a) of sample_page:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/
sample_page/page1a

To access a category page:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/mycategory

To access a perspective page:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/myperspective

To access a navigation page:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/mynavpage

To access a Portal Template:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/mytemplate

Path-Based URLs for Tabs

The format of path-based URLs for tabs is very similar to that used for pages. The difference is that the active tab list is added to the end of the host page URL. The active tab list indicates the hierarchy of tabs. Tabs are divided from their sub-tabs by colons; tab sets are divided from additional tab sets by commas:

http://<host>:<port>/portal/page/<dad>[/lang-<language>]/
<page_path>/<tab1_name>:<tab1's_sub-tab_name>,<tab2_name>:
<tab2's_sub-tab_name>

Note:

When the URL targets a tab, the path uses colons to separate a tab from its sub-tab; when the URL traverses a tab to get to an item on a sub-tab, the path uses a slash (/) in lieu of a comma. See "Path-Based URLs for Items" for an example.

For example to access tab1 on page1:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/MyPageGroup/page1/
tab1

To access a nested tab (tab1a) on tab1:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/MyPageGroup/page1/
tab1:tab1a

To render page1a with the tabs Sales:Divisions and Manufacturing:Schedules foremost, that is, as the active tabs (note that these tabs do not exist on the same tab set, that is they do not have a parent/child relationship to each other), use the URL:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/
sample_page/page1a/Sales:Divisions,Manufacturing:Schedules

Path-Based URLs for Items

To access an item, use the following format:

http://<host>:<port>/portal/page/<dad>[/lang-<language>][/ver-<version>]/
<page_path>/<item_name>

If the item is placed on a tab:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/MyPageGroup/page1/
tab1/tab1a/myDocument.htm

Note:

When the URL targets tabs, the path uses a colon (:) to separate a tab from its sub-tab; when the URL traverses a tab to get to an item on a sub-tab, the path uses a slash (/) in lieu of a comma. See "Path-Based URLs for Tabs" for examples.

If a name was not explicitly specified when the item was created, it is defaulted to be the same as the item's file name (for file-based items) or display name.

For example to access the current English version of myDocument.htm on page1a:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/MyPageGroup/
page1/page1a/myDocument.htm

To access the third English version of myDocument.htm:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/ver-3/MyPageGroup/
page1/page1a/myDocument.htm

To access a draft or pending version of myDocument.htm:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/ver-STAGE/
MyPageGroup/page1/page1a/myDocument.htm