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Overview
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Overview

FF_FORMULAS is a date-effective view owned by the APPS schema within the Oracle E-Business Suite FastFormula (FF) product. Its documented status is VALID, and it is classified as a view rather than a base table or synonym. The view exposes FastFormula definitions as they are valid for the current application session's effective date, which makes it the standard read interface for reporting and integration scenarios that must respect date-tracked formula versions. In the ETRM metadata for release 12.1.1 / 12.2.2, the object is titled "View: FF_FORMULAS" and is described simply as a "Date-effective view." Applications and custom reports query it to retrieve formula text, formula type, legislation, business group, and audit columns without having to duplicate the date-range logic that Oracle implements inside the view definition.

Underlying Base Objects

The documented referenced base objects are FF_FORMULAS_F and FND_SESSIONS, both accessed through synonyms. FF_FORMULAS_F is the underlying date-effective (date-tracked) table that physically stores every version of each formula, including the EFFECTIVE_START_DATE and EFFECTIVE_END_DATE columns that delimit validity. The view's WHERE clause filters FF_FORMULAS_F against the session effective date obtained from FND_SESSIONS:

  • EFFECTIVE_START_DATE <= the EFFECTIVE_DATE from FND_SESSIONS for the current SESSION_ID
  • EFFECTIVE_END_DATE >= the EFFECTIVE_DATE from FND_SESSIONS for the current SESSION_ID

The session identifier is resolved through USERENV('SESSIONID'). Because the filter is tied to the FND_SESSIONS row, the same query can return different formula versions depending on the effective date configured for the user's session, which is central to FastFormula's date-effectiveness behavior. Records that are created through the date-tracked table are not deleted; instead, their effective end dates are adjusted so that only the row spanning the current session date qualifies.

Key Columns

The view projects the following columns from FF_FORMULAS_F: FORMULA_ID, EFFECTIVE_START_DATE, EFFECTIVE_END_DATE, BUSINESS_GROUP_ID, LEGISLATION_CODE, FORMULA_TYPE_ID, FORMULA_NAME, DESCRIPTION, FORMULA_TEXT, STICKY_FLAG, COMPILE_FLAG, LAST_UPDATE_DATE, LAST_UPDATED_BY, LAST_UPDATE_LOGIN, CREATED_BY, and CREATION_DATE. FORMULA_ID is the primary key and the join key to related FastFormula objects. FORMULA_NAME and DESCRIPTION provide the user-facing identifiers. FORMULA_TEXT holds the actual FastFormula source code. BUSINESS_GROUP_ID and LEGISLATION_CODE determine ownership and the legislative context in which the formula applies. FORMULA_TYPE_ID links the formula to its type definition (such as Oracle Payroll or Oracle HRMS formula types). STICKY_FLAG and COMPILE_FLAG carry the formula's persistence and compilation indicators, while the audit columns track who created and last updated each version and when.

Common Use Cases and Queries

Typical use cases include auditing formula definitions, extracting formula text for documentation or migration, and joining formulas to formula types and business groups for reporting. Because the view is date-effective, it is particularly useful when the same formula name exists in multiple versions over time.

Example — list currently effective formulas for a business group:

  • SELECT FORMULA_ID, FORMULA_NAME, FORMULA_TYPE_ID, LEGISLATION_CODE, EFFECTIVE_START_DATE, EFFECTIVE_END_DATE FROM APPS.FF_FORMULAS WHERE BUSINESS_GROUP_ID = :p_business_group_id ORDER BY FORMULA_NAME;

Example — retrieve the source text of a single formula by name:

  • SELECT FORMULA_NAME, FORMULA_TEXT FROM APPS.FF_FORMULAS WHERE FORMULA_NAME = :p_formula_name;

Example — inspect compilation and sticky attributes for active formulas:

  • SELECT FORMULA_NAME, COMPILE_FLAG, STICKY_FLAG, LAST_UPDATE_DATE FROM APPS.FF_FORMULAS WHERE LEGISLATION_CODE = :p_legislation;

These queries rely on the date-effective filter built into the view, so results reflect only the formula versions valid for the session effective date. For historical comparisons across all versions, the underlying date-tracked table FF_FORMULAS_F must be queried directly, since the view intentionally hides superseded and future-dated rows.