Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4 Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

Upgrading Oracle Application Express creates new database objects in a new schema and migrates the application metadata to the new release.

If you have Oracle Application Express release 20.x or earlier, following any of the installation scenarios in this guide upgrades your Oracle Application Express instance to release 21, creates Oracle Application Express 21.1 database objects in a new schema, and migrates the application metadata to the new release.

About Release Numbering Conventions
New releases of Oracle Application Express correlate to the calendar year.
Sample Upgrade Scenarios
Common upgrade scenarios include upgrading from prior release and installing an Oracle Database release which include Oracle Application Express.
Viewing the Oracle Application Express Release Number
View your Oracle Application Express release number on the Workspace home page or on the About Application Express page.
Viewing the Oracle REST Data Services Release Number
View the Oracle REST Data Services release number on the About Application Express page.
About Installing the Oracle Application Express Release Included with the Oracle Database
Learn about the Oracle Application Express release included with Oracle Database releases.
About Upgrading Existing Applications
Installing a new release of Oracle Application Express, updates existing applications to the latest release, but does not alter application user interface or application components.
About Testing Requirements
Determining the appropriate amount of regression testing when upgrading Oracle Application Express depends upon the complexity, size, and number of applications you are upgrading.
About Cleaning Up Your Environment
Following the successful upgrade of all of the environments to the latest release of Oracle Application Express, you should clean-up the environments.
About Reverting to a Previous Release
You can revert to a previous release of Oracle Application Express.

4.1 About Release Numbering Conventions

New releases of Oracle Application Express correlate to the calendar year.

In 2018 and starting with release 18.1 and 18.2, Oracle Application Express introduced correlating the release number to the calendar year.

In addition, Application Express now only offers full releases and no longer provides patch set releases (such as 5.1.1). Eliminating patch set releases reduces downtime when updating existing installations. Application Express architecture also enables developers to revert releases if necessary.

Patch set exceptions (PSEs) may still be delivered for major defects. To learn more about PSEs, visit the Oracle APEX 21.1 Known Issues page or the Prior Release Archives for earlier releases.

Parent topic: Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4.2 Sample Upgrade Scenarios

Common upgrade scenarios include upgrading from prior release and installing an Oracle Database release which include Oracle Application Express.

Table 4-1 lists common upgrade scenarios.

Table 4-1 Sample Upgrade Scenarios

Upgrade Scenarios	Action
Upgrade from a prior Oracle Application Express release	Download the latest files from the Downloads page.
You install Oracle Database which include Oracle Application Express.	Download the latest files from the Downloads page.

Parent topic: Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4.3 Viewing the Oracle Application Express Release Number

View your Oracle Application Express release number on the Workspace home page or on the About Application Express page.

You can view the Oracle Application Express release number on the Workspace home page or on the About Application Express page:

Workspace home page:
- Sign in to Oracle Application Express.
  
  On the Workspace home page, the current release number displays in the bottom right corner.
About Application Express page:
- Sign in to Oracle Application Express.
- Click the Help menu in the upper right and select About.
  
  On the About Application Express pag, the release number appears next to Product Build.

Parent topic: Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4.4 Viewing the Oracle REST Data Services Release Number

View the Oracle REST Data Services release number on the About Application Express page.

Oracle Application Express requires access to the Web listener, Oracle REST Data Services (ORDS) 19.x or later.

To view the Oracle REST Data Services release number:

Sign in to Oracle Application Express.
Click the Help menu in the upper right and select About.
Under the CGI Environment section, find APEX_LISTENER_VERSION.

Parent topic: Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4.5 About Installing the Oracle Application Express Release Included with the Oracle Database

Learn about the Oracle Application Express release included with Oracle Database releases.

Note:

Starting with Oracle Database 12c Release 2 (12.2), Oracle Application Express is included in the Oracle Home on disk and is no longer installed by default in the database.

Oracle Application Express is included with the following Oracle Database releases:

Oracle Database 19c - Oracle Application Express Release 18.1.
Oracle Database 18c - Oracle Application Express Release 5.1.
Oracle Database 12c Release 2 (12.2)- Oracle Application Express Release 5.0.
Oracle Database 12c Release 1 (12.1) - Oracle Application Express Release 4.2.
Oracle Database 11g Release 2 (11.2) - Oracle Application Express Release 3.2.
Oracle Database 11g Release 1 (11.1) - Oracle Application Express Release 3.0.

The Oracle Database releases less frequently than Oracle Application Express. Therefore, Oracle recommends updating to the latest Oracle Application Express release available on Oracle Technology Network. To learn more, see the installation instructions for the appropriate Web Listener in your environment.

Note:

If upgrading Oracle Application Express from a release that ships with the database, do not alter any Oracle Application Express files in the Oracle home directory (for example, /u01/app/oracle/product/18.0.0/dbhome_1/apex) .

Parent topic: Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4.6 About Upgrading Existing Applications

Installing a new release of Oracle Application Express, updates existing applications to the latest release, but does not alter application user interface or application components.

Once you upgrade an Oracle Application Express instance from a previous release, existing applications will work without modification. However, to keep applications maintainable, up-to-date, and to leverage new functionality, developers should perform the steps outlined in Oracle Application Express App Builder User’s Guide.

4.7 About Testing Requirements

Determining the appropriate amount of regression testing when upgrading Oracle Application Express depends upon the complexity, size, and number of applications you are upgrading.

You should include the majority of complex pages, particularly those that incorporate significant JavaScript or extensive PL/SQL computations or processes. Developers should ensure pages which they manually update based on the Upgrade Application or Advisor are also included in regression tests. Not all remaining pages have to be included in regression testing. Oracle recommends you include a good representation of different page types includes reports, charts, and forms. An application should always be included in regression testing if its compatibility mode was modified post-upgrade.

While regression testing of upgraded applications is imperative to minimize risk of disrupting the end users, it is important that testing is not drawn out for an extended period. As a general rule:

Step 1: Upgrade your development environment first. Allow developers to review the applications and make initial updates as needed.
Step 2: Upgrade your QA/Test environment.
Step 3: Upgrade applications from development are built into this environment.
Step 4: Upgrade your production environment.
Step 5: Build upgraded applications into this environment.

Parent topic: Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4.8 About Cleaning Up Your Environment

Following the successful upgrade of all of the environments to the latest release of Oracle Application Express, you should clean-up the environments.

Once you start developing with the newer release, the Oracle Application Express schema associated with the prior release can be deleted. If you installed the prior release into a separate tablespace, you can simply drop the specific tablespace. Oracle recommends leaving the older Oracle Application Express schema(s) for a few weeks and then remove them from the development, test, and production environments. This cleanup process releases disk space and ensures that no one accesses an outdated schema using tools such as SQL Developer or SQL*Plus.

Parent topic: Upgrading from a Previous Oracle Application Express Release

4.9 About Reverting to a Previous Release

You can revert to a previous release of Oracle Application Express.

Because Oracle Application Express creates a new schema for each major release, reverting back to a prior release is a relatively simple process. If you revert to a prior release, any modifications made in the current Oracle Application Express instance are lost. The main task is to switch the public synonyms and grants to point at the previous schema instead of the new schema.