Search Results fnd_flex_upd_fmt

Overview

FND_FLEX_UPD_FMT is a low-level Oracle E-Business Suite utility package owned by APPS and classified under the generic API category OTHER. Its purpose is to assist in the migration and reformatting of date data stored within Oracle EBS key flexfield structures. As the name suggests, the package updates the format of date values held in flexfield-related tables, converting legacy or nonstandard date representations into the format expected by the current release of the application.

The package header carries the RCS identifier $Header: AFFFUPFS.pls 115.0 99/07/16 23:20:08 porting ship $, indicating an origin in the earliest porting wave of Oracle Applications and a lineage that predates the 11i and Release 12 architecture. It is declared AUTHID CURRENT_USER, so it executes with the privileges of the invoking schema rather than as a definer-rights package. In Oracle EBS 12.1.1 and 12.2.2 the package is retained primarily for backward compatibility with upgrade and patching routines; it is not an end-user API and exposes no documented public documentation beyond the single procedure described below.

Key Procedures and Functions

The ETRM metadata documents exactly one public procedure: CONVERT_DATE. Its purpose is to reformat date values held in a specific column of a specific table, moving them from an identified source format to a target format. The procedure operates on caller-supplied schema objects rather than on a fixed, hard-coded table, giving it a generic, utility character.

The declared parameter list includes a table_name, a column_name, a new_format_type, and an optional old_format that defaults to NULL. Conceptually, the caller names the table and column to be converted, specifies the desired target format, and optionally supplies the pre-existing format so that the procedure can parse the stored values correctly. It does not return a value; conversion is performed as a side effect on the underlying data.

No other procedures or functions are documented in the ETRM metadata. Claims of additional overloads or helper routines should not be relied upon, as the documented interface comprises only CONVERT_DATE.

Tables Accessed

The documented table references for this package are the built-in PL/SQL packages DBMS_OUTPUT and DBMS_SQL. These are not business tables but Oracle-supplied server packages. Their presence is significant: DBMS_SQL indicates the procedure builds and executes dynamic SQL at runtime, which explains how CONVERT_DATE can operate against arbitrary table and column names passed in as strings. DBMS_OUTPUT indicates that the routine emits diagnostic or progress messages that can be observed when server output is enabled.

Consequently, the actual business tables touched are determined at runtime by the caller and are not statically declared in the package body. The ETRM registry therefore records no fixed APPS synonym tables. Operators invoking the procedure must understand precisely which flexfield column they are targeting, because the scope of the data change is defined entirely by those runtime arguments.

Usage Notes

FND_FLEX_UPD_FMT is a maintenance-time utility. It is most appropriately invoked from PL/SQL scripts or custom code during upgrades, data migrations, or targeted corrections of flexfield date-format inconsistencies, and it may be called from concurrent programs or forms-based customizations where such a conversion is required. It is not referenced by any other package in the ETRM registry (zero dependents), which reinforces its role as a standalone script-driven tool.

• Always enable SERVEROUTPUT before execution so DBMS_OUTPUT messages are visible.
• Because the procedure issues dynamic SQL, verify the target table and column carefully and run the conversion first in a non-production environment.
• Confirm that the supplied old_format matches the values actually stored; NULL leaves format detection to the implementation and may not succeed for all data.
• Take a backup or use a controlled transaction, since the reformatting is applied in place to stored flexfield data.
• Given the AUTHID CURRENT_USER declaration, ensure the invoking schema has the required privileges on the target table.

In summary, FND_FLEX_UPD_FMT provides a narrowly scoped, dynamic-SQL date reformatting capability for flexfield columns, with CONVERT_DATE as its only documented entry point, and it should be treated as an administrative utility rather than part of the supported application integration surface.