Search Results jai_df_drop




Overview
Explore in AI Chat

Overview

JAI_DF_DROP is a PL/SQL package owned by the APPS schema in Oracle E-Business Suite, classified under the "OTHER" API category within the ETRM (E-Business Suite Technical Reference Manual) repository. The package name resolves from the abbreviation "DF" (Descriptive Flexfield) and "DROP," reflecting its singular purpose: the removal of descriptive flexfield context definitions from the Oracle EBS application dictionary. In the context of a user searching for "what is dropex," JAI_DF_DROP is frequently the underlying database object that drives descriptive flexfield cleanup operations, particularly in environments where global or regional flexfield customizations must be programmatically retired.

The package is declared with AUTHID CURRENT_USER, meaning that all SQL statements execute with the privileges of the invoking schema rather than the package owner. This design choice is significant: it delegates privilege enforcement to the calling session, allowing administrators or custom concurrent programs to control access tightly. The package header carries the source control marker $Header: jai_df_drop.pls 120.0 2006/10/06, indicating the last shipped revision dates to October 2006 — predating the 12.1.1 release — and remains stable through EBS 12.2.2. The suffix "noship" in the header comment indicates the package is not shipped as a seeded, supported customer-facing API, which aligns with its ETRM classification as OTHER rather than a public API.

Key Procedures and Functions

The ETRM metadata documents exactly one procedure: REMOVE_CONTEXT. This procedure is declared with two OUT parameters following Oracle concurrent program conventions — an error buffer (errbuf) and a return code (retcode) — both marked NOCOPY for performance. This signature is the standard contract used by concurrent program executables registered in FND_CONCURRENT_PROGRAMS, indicating REMOVE_CONTEXT is designed to be executed as a concurrent program rather than called interactively.

The procedure's functional role is to remove a descriptive flexfield context — that is, to delete the context definition and its associated column usages from the flexfield metadata tables. No other procedures or functions are documented in the package specification.

Tables Accessed

The ETRM documentation lists four tables accessed through APPS synonyms:

  • FND_APPLICATION — resolves the application owning the target descriptive flexfield, validating the application short name supplied at invocation.
  • FND_DESCRIPTIVE_FLEXS — the core flexfield definition table; the procedure locates the flexfield by application and descriptive flexfield name to confirm existence prior to removal.
  • FND_DESCR_FLEX_COLUMN_USAGES — stores the mapping of flexfield segments to underlying database columns; the procedure deletes the column usage rows tied to the context being removed.
  • FND_FLEX_VALUE_SETS — references the value sets attached to flexfield segments, used to identify and validate the value set associations belonging to the context before deletion.

Collectively, these tables form the standard descriptive flexfield metadata footprint in EBS: application registry, flexfield header, column usages, and value set definitions.

Usage Notes

Given the concurrent-program parameter signature of REMOVE_CONTEXT, the package is normally invoked through a registered concurrent program rather than from a form. The typical pattern is: a system administrator defines a concurrent program whose executable calls the procedure, supplies the application and flexfield identifiers, and submits the request. The "DF" prefix and "DROP" verb suggest the package historically supported a "drop flexfield" utility referenced informally as "dropex."

Because the package is AUTHID CURRENT_USER and flagged noship, it is not part of the supported public API surface; Oracle does not seed it for customer use. Consequently, custom code should not depend on it without testing across 12.1.1 and 12.2.2, and any invocation should be preceded by a full backup of the flexfield metadata tables. The absence of reverse dependencies (referenced by zero other packages) confirms it sits at the leaf of the call graph — a terminal utility rather than a shared building block.