Understanding Using Advanced ChartField Configuration

The following configuration actions can be performed using Advanced Configuration:

  • Add new ChartFields.

  • Delete ChartFields.

  • Resize ChartFields.

  • Rename ChartFields.

Use advanced configuration when the standard configuration and delivered ChartFields do not meet your requirements. Note that these configuration actions must be applied to new objects containing ChartFields received using an upgrade or by applying application fixes. Therefore, Oracle recommends that the standard configuration be used exclusively, if possible, to meet your ChartField requirements.

This list suggests ways to use the Standard Configuration in place of the Advanced Configuration:

  • Activate an inactive ChartField instead of adding a new ChartField.

  • Inactivate a ChartField instead of deleting it.

  • Change the display length rather than the field length when reducing the size of a ChartField.

  • Relabel a ChartField instead of renaming it.

PeopleSoft software enables you to have many ChartFields, each of which may be up to 30 characters in length. Due to platform-specific index length limitations, however, the combined field length of your ChartFields might cause this limit to be exceeded on a given table, although this is highly unlikely. These index limits are shown below and represent the total length of all key fields on a table excluding inactive ChartFields because inactive fields are not included in the index:

RDBMS Platform Max Index Length ANSI Max Index Length Unicode Max # of Columns in an Index Max # of Columns in a Table

MSSQLServerVersion 2000

900

450

16

1024

DB2/Unix Versions 7.0, 8.0

1024 *

1024 **

16

500 with 4K page.

1012 with 8, 16, 32K page.

DB2/OS390 Versions 6.1, 7.1

255 *

Unicode is not supported.

64

750

Oracle Versions 8i, 9i

40% of the database block size minus some overhead. Block size can be 4K or 8K.

40% of the database block size minus some overhead. Block size 8K is recommended.

32

1000

Sybase ASEVersion 12.5.03 ESD#4 for Unicode

600 for Page size 2K.

1250 for Page size 4K.

2600 for Page size 8K.

2600 for Page size 8K

31

1024 for DOL (Row level lock)

Informix Versions 9.2, 9.3

390

Unicode is not supported.

16

32K

* Subtract one byte for each key field defined as a Date, Time, Datetime, or Long Character field (key columns that allow NULL).

** Subtract one byte for each key field defined as Date, Time, Datetime or Long Character. Subtract four bytes for each key field defined as Character. When summing the field lengths of the key fields, double the field length of each key field defined as Character.

For example, if FLD1 is a character key field with length 3, during the index size calculation the length is doubled to 6. You must also add four bytes so that the final length is ten bytes for the index size calculation.