38
Building a Paper Report with Ref Cursors

Figure 38-1 Ref cursor report output

Text description of the illustration orbrref_66.gif

Reports Builder enables you to easily manage your queries by use of ref cursors. By using a ref cursor, which is a PL/SQL cursor datatype, you can reference a cursor from within a PL/SQL query. For example, if you already have numerous queries built and you want to reuse those queries in your reports, you can simply use a ref cursor in your report data model to access those queries.

In this chapter, you will learn how to use Reports Builder's features for using ref cursors. To build this paper report, you will use the Data Model view to create a multiquery data model, and then use the Report Wizard to create the report layout. You will make fairly extensive manual refinements in the Data Model view.

About ref cursor queries

A ref cursor is a PL/SQL datatype that you can use in a query to fetch data. Each ref cursor query is associated with a PL/SQL function that returns a strongly typed ref cursor. The PL/SQL function must ensure that the ref cursor is opened and associated with a SELECT statement that has a SELECT list that matches the ref cursor type. You base a query on a ref cursor when you want to:

• more easily administer SQL.

• avoid the use of lexical parameters in your reports.

• share data sources with other applications.

• increase control and security.

• encapsulate logic within a subprogram.

Furthermore, if you use a stored program unit to implement ref cursors, you receive the added benefits that go along with storing program units in the Oracle database.

The following figure shows that you create a report with the SELECT statement in the ref cursor query of the report. It also shows that you can store the SELECT statement in a package in the database. Then, from the report, you can call the package from the database allowing you to reuse the package in many reports.

Figure 38-2 Overview of the ref cursor example

Text description of the illustration refcurs.gif

Example Scenario

In this example, you will create a detailed report showing information about employees and the job position they hold in each department.

Table 38-1 Features demonstrated in this example

Feature	Location
Create package specs that define ref cursors.	Section 38.2, "Define a ref cursor type"
Create ref cursor queries that will use the ref cursors.	Section 38.3, "Create a ref cursor query"
Rename objects in the data model so that they have more meaningful names.	Section 38.4, "Refine the data model"
Create group-to-group data links between ref cursor queries to create relationships between them.	Section 38.5, "Create links between ref cursor queries"
Create summaries that better describe the data.	Section 38.6, "Add summary columns"
Use the Report Wizard to create a report layout.	Section 38.7, "Create a layout"
Move the SELECT statements used by the ref cursor queries from the report and into packages that define the ref cursor types.	Section 38.8, "Move the SELECT statement into a package"
Move the packages into a PL/SQL library so that other reports can share the code.	Section 38.9, "Move the packages into a library"

38.1 Prerequisites for this example

To build the examples in this manual, you must have the example files we've provided. If you haven't already done so, you can download the files you'll need to complete this example from the Oracle Technology network and install them on your machine.

To download and install the example files:

1. Go to the Oracle Technology Network Web site (http://otn.oracle.com/product/reports/).

2. Click Getting Started with Oracle Reports.

3. Click Index, then find the "Building a Paper Report with Ref Cursors" example.

4. Download the file refcursor.zip into a temporary directory on your machine (e.g., d:\temp).

5. Unzip the contents of the file, maintaining the directory structure, into an examples directory on your machine (e.g., d:\orawin90\examples).

   This zip file contains the following files:

   Table 38-2 Files necessary for building this sample report using ref cursors

   File	Description
   Examples\RefCursor\result\ref_emp*.rdf	The different stages of the RDF. You can refer to these files as you complete each section of this chapter. The file ref_emp68.rdf is the final report.
   Examples\RefCursor\scripts\refcursor_code.txt	The PL/SQL code you will write in this chapter. You can use this file as a reference point to make sure your code is accurate, or you can simply cut and paste from this file into Reports Builder.

38.1.1 Access to the sample Human Resources schema

If you don't know if you have access to the sample Human Resources schema provided with the Oracle9i database, contact your database administrator.

38.2 Define a ref cursor type

To create a ref cursor query, you first create a package spec that defines the ref cursor. Then you create a query that uses the ref cursor. The steps in this section will help you create package specs that define ref cursors.

To define a ref cursor type:

1. Launch Reports Builder (or, if already open, choose File > New > Report)

2. In the Welcome or New Report dialog box, select Build a new report manually, then click OK.

3. In the Object Navigator, click the Program Units node under your UNTITLED report node.

4. Click the Create button in the toolbar to display the New Program Unit dialog box.

5. In the New Program Unit dialog box, type concl_cv in the Name field.

6. Select Package Spec, then click OK to display the PL/SQL Editor.

7. In the PL/SQL Editor, use the template to enter the following PL/SQL code:

   PACKAGE concl_cv IS
       type conclass_rec is RECORD 
          (EMPLOYEE_ID NUMBER(6),
        FIRST_NAME VARCHAR2(20),
        LAST_NAME VARCHAR2(25),
        e-mail VARCHAR2(25),
        PHONE_NUMBER VARCHAR2(20),
        HIRE_DATE DATE,
        JOB_ID VARCHAR2(10),
        SALARY NUMBER(8,2),
        DEPARTMENT_ID NUMBER(4));
       type conclass_refcur is REF CURSOR return conclass_rec;
   END;
   

This package spec does two things:

• defines a record (conclass_rec) that describes the data you want to select from the database.

• defines a ref cursor that returns the data in the format described by the record.

  Note: You can open the file Examples/RefCursor/scripts/refcursor_code.txt to copy and paste the code into the PL/SQL Editor.

8. Click Compile.

9. If any compilation errors occur, check the code for syntax errors and recompile as needed.

10. Click Close.

11. Repeat steps 2 through 8 to create two more package specs:
    • Package Spec Name: cont_cv

      PACKAGE cont_cv IS
          type container_rec is RECORD 
             (EMPLOYEE_ID NUMBER(6),
              START_DATE DATE,
              END_DATE DATE,
              JOB_ID VARCHAR2(10),
              DEPARTMENT_ID NUMBER(4));
          type container_refcur is REF CURSOR return container_rec;
      END;
      

    • Package Spec Name: port_cv

      PACKAGE port_cv IS
        type portdesc_rec is RECORD 
             (DEPARTMENT_ID NUMBER(4),
              DEPARTMENT_NAME VARCHAR2(30));
        type portdesc_refcur is REF CURSOR return portdesc_rec;
      END;
      
      

      Note: You can open the file Examples/RefCursor/scripts/refcursor_code.txt to copy and paste the code into the PL/SQL Editor.:

    12. Choose File > Save As. Save the report in the directory of your choice, and name the report ref61_<your initials>.rdf.

        Note: It is good practice when you are designing your report to save it frequently under a different file name. If you generate an error or if you don't like some of the changes you made, you easily can go back to the previously saved file and make revisions from that point.

    38.3 Create a ref cursor query

    After creating package specs that define the ref cursors, you are ready to define the queries, as described in this section.

    To create a ref cursor query:

    1. In the Object Navigator, double-click the view icon next to the Data Model node to display the Data Model view.

    2. In the Data Model view, click the Ref Cursor Query tool in the tool palette.

    3. Click in an open area of the Data Model view to display the PL/SQL Editor for the new ref cursor query.

    4. In the PL/SQL Editor, use the template to enter the following PL/SQL code:

    function q_portdescRefCurDS return port_cv.portdesc_refcur istemp_portdesc port_cv.portdesc_refcur;begin open temp_portdesc for select department_id, department_name from departments; return temp_portdesc;end;

    Note: You can open the file Examples/RefCursor/scripts/refcursor_code.txt to copy and paste the code into the PL/SQL Editor.

    5. Click Compile.

    6. If any compilation errors occur, check the code for syntax errors and recompile as needed.

    7. Click Close.

    8. In the Data Model view, select the new ref cursor query object (QR_1), then press F4 to display the Property Inspector.
       • Under General Information, set the Name property to q_portdesc.

         Tip: It is usually a good idea to give objects meaningful names, particularly when building a report with many objects. Later when building the layout, it is helpful to have queries and groups with meaningful names.

    9. Repeat the steps above to create two more queries:
       • Query name: q_container

         function q_containerRefCurDS return cont_cv.container_refcur is
         temp_container cont_cv.container_refcur;
         begin
             open temp_container for 
              select employee_id, 
                  start_date,
                  end_date,
                  job_id,
                  department_id
               from job_history;
             return temp_container;
         		end;
         

       • Query name: q_conclass

         function q_conclassRefCurDS return concl_cv.conclass_refcur is
         temp_concl concl_cv.conclass_refcur;
         begin
           open temp_concl for
            select employee_id,
                 first_name,
                 last_name,
                 e-mail,
                 phone_number,
                 hire_date,
                 job_id,
                 salary,
                 department_id
            from employees;
           return temp_concl;
         end;
         

         Note: You can open the file Examples/RefCursor/scripts/refcursor_code.txt to copy and paste the code into Reports Builder.

       The Data Model should look similar to the following:

       Figure 38-3 Data model with three queries

       

       Text description of the illustration orbrref_62.gif

       10. Save the report as ref_62_<your initials>.rdf.

           Note: You can open the provided file Examples/RefCursor/result/ref_emp62.rdf and display the Data Model to compare your results.

       38.4 Refine the data model

       In this section, you will rename some of the objects in the data model so that they have more meaningful names. You will also create a break group.

       To refine the data model:

       1. In the Data Model view, drag the title bar of the group G_EMPLOYEE_ID down a few inches to move the entire group.

       2. Click and drag the column named JOB_ID out of and above G_EMPLOYEE_ID to create a new break group, as shown in the following figure:

       Figure 38-4 Query with group

       

       Text description of the illustration orbrref_gp.gif

       3. Double-click the title bar of the new group that contains JOB_ID to display the Property Inspector, and set properties:
          • Under the General Information node, set the Name property to G_conlabel.

       4. In the Data Model view, your data model should look similar to the following:

       Figure 38-5 Data model with group

       

       Text description of the illustration orbrref_63.gif

       Note: You can open the provided file Examples/RefCursor/result/ref_emp63.rdf and display the Data Model to compare your results.

       5. Save the report as ref_63_<yourinitials>.rdf.

       38.5 Create links between ref cursor queries

       Currently, the queries that you have created are unrelated. To create relationships between them, you need to create group-to-group data links. The steps in this section will help you create the links.

       To create links between ref cursor queries:

       1. In the Data Model view, click the Data Link tool in the tool palette.

       2. Click the title bar of G_DEPARTMENT_ID, and drag a link to the title bar of G_EMPLOYEE_ID.

       3. Double-click q_container to display the PL/SQL Editor.

       4. In the PL/SQL Editor, append code to the WHERE clause of the SELECT statement to specify which columns are being used as primary and foreign keys:

          After from job_history, add the following code:

          where:department_id = department_id;
          
          

          Be sure that the semicolon (;) now follows the WHERE clause.

          Note that :department_id is a bind variable referring to the DEPARTMENT_ID in G_DEPARTMENT_ID.

       5. Click Compile.

       6. If any compilation errors occur, check the code for syntax errors and recompile as needed.

       7. Click Close.

       8. In the Data Model view, click the Data Link tool in the tool palette.

       9. Click the title bar of G_EMPLOYEE_ID and drag a link to the title bar of G_EMPLOYEE_ID1.

       10. Double-click q_conclass to display the PL/SQL Editor.

       11. In the PL/SQL Editor, add a WHERE clause to the SELECT statement:

           Insert your cursor between FROM EMPLOYEES and the semicolon (;), and press ENTER or RETURN to create a new line, then add the following code:

           where :employee_id = employee_id;
           
           

           Be sure that the semicolon (;) now follows the WHERE clause.

           Note that :employee_id is a bind variable referring to the EMPLOYEE_ID column in G_employee_id.

       12. Click Compile.

       13. If any compilation errors occur, check the code for syntax errors and recompile as needed.

       14. Click Close.

       15. Your data model should look similar to the following:

       Figure 38-6 Data model with links

       

       Text description of the illustration orbrref_64.gif

       Note: You can open the provided file Examples/RefCursor/result/ref_emp64.rdf and display the Data Model to compare your results.

       16. Save the report as ref_64_<your initials>.rdf.

       38.6 Add summary columns

       Now that your queries are complete and linked, the steps in this section will help you to create columns to summarize the data.

       To add summary columns:

       1. In the Data Model view, click the Summary Column tool in the tool palette.

       2. Click inside the G_EMPLOYEE_ID group to create a summary column.

       3. Double-click the new summary column object (CS_1) to display the Property Inspector, and set properties:
          • Under General Information, set the Name property to CS_classcount.

          • Under Summary, set the Function property to Count, set the Source property to employee_id, and set the Reset At property to G_department_id.

          You have now created a summary that counts up the number of employees. You will not use the summary in this report's layout, but you will use it as the source for other, more interesting summaries later.

       4. Repeat the steps above to create summaries with the following characteristics:

          Table 38-3 Summary Characteristics

          Create in Group	Name	Function	Source	Reset At
          G_conlabel	CS_conlabel_classcount	Sum	CS_classcount	G_conlabel
          G_department_id	CS_port_count	Sum	CS_conlabel_classcount	G_DEPARTMENT_ID

          You may not understand these summaries now. Their purpose will become clearer when you create the report layout and preview the live data.

          Your data model should look similar to the following:

       Figure 38-7 Data model with summary columns

       

       Text description of the illustration orbrref_65.gif

       Note: You can also compare your results to the file we've provided, called ref_emp65.rdf.

       5. Save the report as ref_65_<your initials>.rdf.

       38.7 Create a layout

       Now that you have a working data model, the steps in this section will help you to create a layout.

       To create a paper layout:

       1. In the Object Navigator, right-click the report name and choose Report Wizard.

       2. In the Report Wizard, on the Report Type page, select Create Paper Layout Only.

       3. On the Style page, type My Employees in the Title field, select Group Above.

       4. On the Groups page, click the following fields in the Available Fields list and click Down to specify the Print Direction and move them to the Group Fields list:
          • G_conlabel

          • G_DEPARTMENT_ID

          • G_EMPLOYEE_ID

       5. On the Fields page, click the following fields and click the right arrow (>) to move them to the Displayed Fields list:
          • DEPARTMENT_NAME

          • EMPLOYEE_ID

          • START_DATE

          • END_DATE

          • JOB_ID

          • CS_port_count

       6. On the Labels page, change the labels and field widths as follows:

          Table 38-4 Field description of Labels page

          Fields	Labels	Width
          DEPARTMENT_NAME	Department	30
          EMPLOYEE_ID1	Employee ID	8
          START_DATE	Start Date	9
          END_DATE	End Date	9
          JOB_ID	Job ID	10
          CS_port_count	Total:	12

       7. On the Template page, choose Predefined template and click Beige, then click Finish to display your report output in the Paper Design view. It should look something like this:

       Figure 38-8 Paper Design view for the ref cursor report

       

       Text description of the illustration orbrref_66.gif

       Note: You can open the provided file Examples/RefCursor/result/ref_emp66.rdf and display the Paper Design view to compare your results.

       8. Save the report as ref_66_<your initials>.rdf.

       38.8 Move the SELECT statement into a package

       In your current report configuration, the SELECT statements used by the ref cursor queries reside within the report itself. In many cases, it is advantageous to have SELECT statements reside in the packages that define the ref cursor types. Then, you can simply reference the packages, rather than typing the same SELECT statement directly into every report that uses it. If you need to change the SELECT statement (for example, to modify or add clauses), you simply update it once in the package, rather than in every report that uses it.

       The steps in this section will help you to move the SELECT statements to the packages that define the ref cursor types.

       To move the SELECT statement into a package:

       1. In the Object Navigator, click the Program Units node for your report.

       2. Click the Create button in the toolbar to display the New Program Unit dialog box.

       3. In the New Program Unit dialog box, type cont_cv as in the Name field.

       4. Select Package Body, and click OK to display the PL/SQL Editor for the new program unit.

       5. In the PL/SQL Editor, use the template to enter the following PL/SQL code:

       PACKAGE BODY cont_cv IS function query_container (p_department_id number) return container_refcur is tempcv_container cont_cv.container_refcur; begin

       open tempcv_container for
       

       select employee_id,
       start_date,
       end_date,
       job_id,
       department_id
       from   job_history
       where  :department_id=department_id;
       

       return tempcv_container;
       

       end; END;

       Note: You can open the provided file Examples/RefCursor/scripts/refcursor_code.txt to copy and paste the code into Reports Builder.

       6. Click Compile.

       7. If any compilation errors occur, check the code for syntax errors and recompile as needed.

       8. Click Close.

       9. Now that the function is defined, you must add it to the package spec so that it can be referenced. Other program units will know about the function in the package body only if it is described in the package spec.

       10. In the Object Navigator, double-click the CONT_CV(Package Spec) object to display the PL/SQL Editor.

       11. In the PL/SQL Editor, type the following line above the END; statement:

           function query_container (p_department_id number) return container_refcur;
           
           

       12. Click Close.

       13. Choose Program > Compile > All.

       14. Click OK when done.

       15. In the Object Navigator, under the Program Units node, double-click Q_CONTAINERREFCURDS to display the PL/SQL Editor.

       16. In the PL/SQL Editor, edit the code to look as follows:

           function Q_containerRefCurDS return cont_cv.container_refcur is
               temp_container cont_cv.container_refcur;
           begin
                temp_container:=cont_cv.query_container (:department_id);
                  return temp_container;
           end;
           

       When you are done, all of the query's logic will reside in the function named query_container. From now on, when you change query_container, you will change this and any other queries that reference it.

       Note: You can open the file Examples/RefCursor/scripts/refcursor_code.txt to copy and paste the code into Reports Builder.

       17. Click Compile.

       18. If any compilation errors occur, check the code for syntax errors and recompile as needed.

       19. Click Close.

       20. Click the Paper Design button in the toolbar to view the report in the Paper Design view.

       21. Save the report as ref_67_<your initials>.rdf.

       Optional Exercise:

       Repeat the above steps for the other two queries in the report.

       38.9 Move the packages into a library

       If you have many reports that use these same ref cursor types and SELECT statements, you can move the program units that you created into a PL/SQL library stored in a file or the database, so that other reports can easily share the code. The steps in this section will help you to move the program units to a PL/SQL library.

       To move the packages into a library:

       1. In the Object Navigator, click the PL/SQL Libraries node, then click the Create button in the toolbar to add a new library.

       2. Choose File > Save As.

       3. Type DEPT_CONTAINER as the Library.

       4. Click File System.

       5. Click OK.

       6. Drag and drop the following program units from your report to the Program Units node under the newly created DEPT_CONTAINER library:
          • CONCL_CV(Package Spec)

          • CONT_CV(Package Spec)

          • CONT_CV(Package Body)

          • PORT_CV(Package Spec)

       7. Save DEPT_CONTAINER.

       8. If the Paper Design view is open, close it.

       9. In the Object Navigator, under the Program Units node for your report, delete CONCL_CV(Package Spec), CONT_CV(Package Spec), CONT_CV(Package Body), and PORT_CV(Package Spec).

          Note: If the Paper Design view is open when you delete the packages from the report, you may get some errors.

       10. Click the Attached Libraries node for your report, then click the Create button in the toolbar to add a new attached library.

       11. In the Attach Library dialog box, click File System.

       12. Click Browse to find the DEPT_CONTAINER library. It will have a .PLL file extension. After you have found and selected DEPT_CONTAINER, click Open.

       13. Click Attach.

       14. Choose Program > Compile > All.

       15. Click OK to close the Compile window.

       16. Click the Paper Design button in the toolbar to run the report and view it in the Paper Design view.

           Note: If you get an error when you attempt to view the report, repeat steps 16 through 18.

       17. Save the report as ref_68_<your initials>.rdf.

       Optional Exercise:

       Store the PL/SQL library in the database rather than in a file. Note that you will need "create" privileges on the database to complete this optional exercise.

       38.10 Summary

       Congratulations! You have finished the Ref Cursor Query sample report. You now know how to:

       • create package specs that define ref cursors.

       • create ref cursor queries.

       • create data links between ref cursor queries.

       • create summaries to describe data.

       • create a report layout.

       • move SELECT statements into packages.

       • move packages into a PL/SQL library.

       For more information on any of the wizards, views, or properties used in this example, refer to the Reports Builder Online Help, which you can access in two ways:

       • From the Oracle Technology Network (http://otn.oracle.com/products/reports/), click Documentation and navigate to the Reports Builder Online Help for the most recent, hosted online help.

       • From Reports Builder, choose Help > Help Contents.

         Note: You can replace your Reports Builder online help with the most recent update by downloading the latest online help set available on the Oracle Technology Network (http://otn.oracle.com/docs/products/reports/). Instructions for replacing your help file are included in the readme.txt in the download file.