Search Results purge_comparison

Overview

SYS.DBMS_COMPARISON is an Oracle Database-supplied PL/SQL package that provides a framework for detecting, reporting, and reconciling data differences between two physically similar database objects. In the Oracle E-Business Suite 12.1.1 and 12.2.2 environments, the package is owned by the SYS schema and is exposed to the applications tier through the PUBLIC synonym DBMS_COMPARISON, which allows APPS-tier code and database sessions to invoke it without fully qualifying the schema.

Within an EBS context, the package is primarily relevant to data validation and remediation activities rather than to standard application transaction processing. It is used by DBAs and technical consultants to confirm that a pair of tables, views, or synonyms — for example a source and target in a cloned, replicated, or migrated EBS instance — contain logically equivalent rows, and to optionally synchronize the divergent rows once they have been confirmed as exceptions. The ETRM record classifies this API as OTHER and confirms a status of VALID in the documented 12.2.2 environment.

Key Procedures and Functions

The ETRM metadata documents six procedures or functions within DBMS_COMPARISON. Each serves a distinct stage of the comparison lifecycle:

• CREATE_COMPARISON — Establishes and persists a named comparison definition. This definition binds together the two objects to be compared, identifies the columns involved, and stores the configuration used by subsequent operations.
• COMPARE — Executes the comparison against an existing definition and records the set of rows found to differ. It is the core scan operation and forms the basis for all downstream reporting and reconciliation.
• RECHECK — Re-evaluates rows previously identified as divergent, allowing an operator to determine whether outstanding differences persist.
• CONVERGE — Applies changes to reconcile the divergent rows so that the compared objects return to a consistent state.
• PURGE_COMPARISON — Removes the historical comparison results and transient data associated with a comparison definition, without necessarily removing the definition itself.
• DROP_COMPARISON — Deletes a comparison definition and its associated runtime artifacts.

The metadata does not expose parameter lists or signature details; these should be obtained from the database dictionary or Oracle-supplied documentation rather than assumed.

Tables Accessed

The ETRM extraction for this object does not enumerate any tables referenced through APPS synonyms, and the package likewise reports no downstream EBS packages referencing it. DBMS_COMPARISON operates against dictionary-owned repository structures that hold comparison definitions and result sets, and it reads the user-specified objects targeted by each definition. Because the package is owned by SYS and classified as OTHER, it is not integrated into EBS application schema dependencies; no EBS business tables are directly identified as inputs or outputs in the documented metadata.

Usage Notes

The package is typically invoked from SQL*Plus or another database client by a DBA or technical consultant, rather than from an EBS form or concurrent program. Its dependencies are limited to SYS and STANDARD, and it is referenced only by itself and by its PUBLIC synonym, confirming that no EBS product code calls it. Typical scenarios include validating a clone or replicated EBS database against its source, verifying data migration results, and diagnosing discrepancies following an upgrade. Because comparison and convergence operations can be resource-intensive and, in the case of CONVERGE, can modify data, they should be scheduled during low-activity windows with appropriate privileges and validated results.