Search Results prepare_parameter

Overview

HR_UTIL_WEB is a utility package in the APPS schema that supports Oracle EBS HTML and web-based functionality, particularly within the Oracle HRMS (Human Resources Management System) module. The package is defined with AUTHID CURRENT_USER and carries a header dated 2007, reflecting its role as a long-standing foundation utility in the E-Business Suite codebase. Its primary business function is to assist in the construction of URLs and web parameters used across HRMS self-service pages, workflow notifications, and other web-enabled components of Oracle EBS 12.1.1 and 12.2.2.

The package is classified as OTHER in the ETRM documentation, indicating it is not a public API or business logic package but rather a low-level helper. The header comment highlights a specific operational concern: relative URL paths normally function without host and agent specification, but workflow scenarios that launch HTML from email attachments require explicit host configuration through hr_offer_custom.g_owa2. This reveals the package's connection to the iRecruitment and offer-letter functionality within HRMS.

Key Procedures and Functions

Two documented functions are exposed by HR_UTIL_WEB:

• PREPARE_PARAMETER — This function accepts a parameter name and value and returns a URL-ready string. It converts spaces within the value to '+' characters (the standard URL encoding for spaces) and, when a prefix flag is enabled, prepends an '&' character to the parameter name. The prefix flag allows callers to control concatenation, ensuring the first parameter in a query string does not begin with an ampersand while subsequent parameters do. According to the header comments, the function should never fail, making it safe for unconditional invocation.
• PROXYFORURL — Documented alongside PREPARE_PARAMETER, this function supports URL proxying, likely generating a proxy-qualified URL for use in environments where direct access requires redirection through an application-tier proxy. Its inclusion reflects the package's broader purpose of URL construction.

Both functions are intended for internal consumption rather than direct customer calling, though they remain accessible to any APPS-schema code.

Tables Accessed

No base tables are documented as being accessed by HR_UTIL_WEB through APPS synonyms. The package operates purely as a string and URL manipulation utility, relying on PL/SQL variables and PL/SQL table types (such as the g_varchar2_tab_type indexed by binary integer) rather than querying database tables. This stateless, table-free design is consistent with its classification as a general-purpose web helper and supports its documented guarantee that functions such as PREPARE_PARAMETER "should never fail."

Usage Notes

HR_UTIL_WEB is invoked internally by a substantial footprint of dependent code: the ETRM metadata records that 29 other packages reference it. This extensive reuse confirms its role as a shared infrastructure utility rather than module-specific logic. Typical invocation scenarios include HRMS self-service web pages that build query strings or hyperlinks dynamically, workflow notification templates that embed URLs, and any custom code requiring consistent parameter encoding.

The defined exception g_error_handled and the global variable g_owa suggest that calling code may set shared state or intercept handled errors when composing web output. Developers extending or troubleshooting HRMS web features in 12.1.1 or 12.2.2 should be aware that modifying this package carries broad impact, given its 29 dependents. Customizations should prefer calling PREPARE_PARAMETER rather than replicating URL-encoding logic, ensuring consistent handling of spaces, ampersand prefixes, and relative-path behavior across the application.