B Globalization Considerations

This appendix discusses these topics:

B.1 National Language Setting Considerations

This section discusses National Language Settings Considerations for the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne preconfigured implementation that is delivered through an Oracle Virtual Machine (OVM). The OVM database image includes:

  • Oracle Enterprise Linux 2.6.18-8.1.15.3.1.el5xen

  • Oracle 11g R1 (11.1.0.7.0) database

Both the operating system and database are configured as Western European. The Oracle Unicode database is configured to use national character set AL16UTF16 with a database character set of WE8MSWIN1252. This preconfigured OVM image is available for global use as a certified J.D. Edwards EnterpriseOne environment and includes full customer support.

Many NLS database parameters can be configured to meet specific customer business needs. Certain NLS parameters cannot be changed or may only be altered with some additional effort. Changes to database parameters should only be made by an Oracle DBA who can weigh the specific implications and considerations of each modified parameter.

Use the SQL query that follows to determine the current database NLS settings:

"SELECT * FROM NLS_DATABASE_PARAMETERS;"

The following table describes NLS character set values

Parameter Description OVM Value Notes
NLS_CHARACTERSET Database Character Set WE8MSWIN1252 The Database Character Set value is set during database creation. This value can be altered post database installation with certain limitations. Review the Oracle® Database Globalization Support Guide 11g Release 1 (11.1) B28298-02, "Character Set Migration" chapter for more information.

Use of the WE8MSWIN1252 value for non-Western European users is possible. In such a case the database is treated as multilingual.

NLS_NCHAR_CHARACTERSET National Character Set AL16UTF16 The National Character Set value is set during database creation. This database value cannot be altered post database installation. Only an AL16UTF16 setting is supported for the Oracle J.D.Edwards EnterpriseOne database.

Refer to the JD Edwards Installation Guide entitled:

JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Applications Release 9.0 Installation Guide for Oracle on UNIX. This guide is available on My Oracle Support as Document ID: 705521.1, JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Applications Release 9.0 Upgrade Guides.

The referenced installation guide lists recommendations that are different than those delivered with this OVM image. Values for non-Western European language NLS_CHARACTERSET are shown in Figure C-1. Note this figure is for reference only and does not imply that a modification needs to be made to the OVM image to correctly function with J.D. Edwards EnterpriseOne.

The following image shows an excerpt from the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 9.0 Installation Guide for Unix:

This image is described in surrounding text.

For non-Western European users the disparity in the NLS_CHARACTERSET parameter value of the OVM database from the above listed table is supported by JD Edwards EnterpriseOne. That is, the database is simply treated as multilingual. You should be certain to follow all of the other language configuration recommendations found in the referenceed guide (JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Applications Release 9.0 Installation Guide for Oracle on UNIX). For example, you should use the specified settings for configuration of NLS_LANG and the JDE.INI LocalCodeSet.

The following information is included to provide a better understanding of how the NLS Parameters are defined and how each value is used with the Oracle Database and Oracle Clients when used with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne.

The table shown directly below (which spans three pages) is an excerpt (Table 3-2 NLS Parameters) from the Oracle Database Globalization Support Guide 11g Release 1 (11.1) B28298-02. The NLS database parameters cited here can be altered to meet your specific business needs. Again, changes to database parameters should only be made by an Oracle DBA who can weigh the specific implications and considerations of each modified parameter.

This table describes NLS Parameters (excerpt Table: "Oracle Database Globalization Support Guide 11g"):

Parameter Description Default Scope:I = Initialization Parameter File E = Environment Variable A = ALTER SESSION
NLS_CALENDAR Calendar system Gregorian I, E, A
NLS_COMP SQL, PL/SQL operator comparison BINARY I, E, A
NLS_CREDIT Credit accounting symbol Derived from NLS_TERRITORY E
NLS_CURRENCY Local currency symbol Derived from NLS_TERRITORY I, E, A
NLS_DATE_FORMAT Date format Derived from NLS_TERRITORY I, E, A
NLS_DATE_LANGUAGE Language for day and month names Derived from NLS_LANGUAGE I, E, A
NLS_DEBIT Debit accounting symbol Derived from NLS_TERRITORY E
NLS_ISO_CURRENCY ISO international currency symbol Derived from NLS_TERRITORY I, E, A
NLS_LANG

See Also: "Choosing a Locale with the NLS_LANG Environment Variable"

Language, territory, character set AMERICAN_AMERICA. US7ASCII E
NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS How strings are treated BYTE I, E, A
NLS_LIST_SEPARATOR Character that separates items in a list Derived from NLS_TERRITORY E
NLS_MONETARY_CHARACTERS Monetary symbol for dollar and cents (or their equivalents) Derived from NLS_TERRITORY E
NLS_NCHAR_CONV_EXCP Reports data loss during a character type conversion FALSE I, A
NLS_NUMERIC_CHARACTERS Decimal character and group separator Derived from NLS_TERRITORY I, E, A
NLS_SORT ** Character sort sequence Derived from NLS_LANGUAGE I, E, A
NLS_TERRITORY Territory Derived from NLS_LANG I, A
NLS_TIMESTAMP_FORMAT Timestamp Derived from NLS_TERRITORY I, E, A
NLS_TIMESTAMP_TZ_FORMAT Timestamp with time zone Derived from NLS_TERRITORY I, E, A
NLS_DUAL_CURRENCY Dual currency symbol Derived from NLS_TERRITORY I, E, A

Caution:

Rebuilding JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Indexes. Changes to the NLS_SORT parameter from the 'as delivered' BINARY value require that you rebuild JD Edwards EnterpriseOne indexes. That is, you must drop indexes and primary keys and then use UBE R9698713 to rebuild the indexes.

B.2 NLS Considerations for Non Western European Users

All Oracle client configurations should be configured to use the appropriate NLS_SORT and NLS_LANG (host environment) parameters. Oracle client machines would include each of the following:

  • Enterprise Server

  • HTML (Web) Server

  • Deployment Server

  • WIN32 developer workstations

  • Any bolt-on server which connects to the EnterpriseOne database (for example, an AIA server)

Start SQL*Plus from each Oracle client machine. To view your active NLS_SORT parameter, use this SQL statement:

"SELECT * FROM NLS_SESSION_PARAMETERS WHERE PARAMETER = 'NLS_SORT';"

Ensure that the NLS_SORT parameter is consistent between all machines and equivalent to the value on the database machine. In cases where the value differs from the database machine set the NLS_SORT database value as a host environment variable.

The NLS_LANG host environment variable should be set for the language you are using. For example, if your primary language is Japanese the NLS_LANG host environment variable should be set to JAPANESE_JAPAN.JA16SJIS on all Oracle client machines. As before this change should be performed on the Enterprise Server, OAS (Web) Server, Deployment Server, and WIN32 Developer workstations.

B.2.1 Non-Western European Database Language Considerations

The NLS_LANGUAGE parameter on the Oracle client is used to display Oracle database client error messages. While the NLS_LANGUAGE value on the server declares the language used for server error messages in the alert.log and trace files. Aside from defining this setting, one must install the appropriate Oracle database language translations.

For information about configuring and adding language translations to the current database, see "Configuring Oracle Database Globalization Support" in the Oracle Database Installation Guide 11g Release 1 (11.1) for Linux Guide.