DataLoad User Guide

Please read and apply the relevant section on this page before using forms playback.

This page is regularly updated, please check the web site version for latest changes.

Oracle Forms Playback - Setup

Before Oracle sessions can be recorded or the DataLoad file played back, some setup is required. The setup varies between different versions of Oracle E-Business and Oracle Forms. Follow the appropriate links below for instructions to setup your system. To identify the version of Oracle E-Business and Oracle Forms select "About Oracle Applications" from the Oracle E-Business "Help" menu or ask your Oracle DBA.

Hint Oracle Forms can record and playback at the same time. This can be useful for validating what a load has done. For instance, if you record into a new file while playing back from a DataLoad produced file, when the load completes you could open the recorded file in DataLoad to see what the playback did. Doing so means you can leave a forms playback unattended and still be able to verify what was loaded at a later date.

Hint Recording while playing can also make playback more stable, preventing certain Oracle Forms issues. Just by turning recording on various stability issues are resolved. DataLoad Support recommends that recording is always turned on while a file is being played back.

Hint The name of the files you record to and playback from can be anything of your choice. DataLoad uses the file extension ".fld" for forms playback files (Form LoadD) so it is a good idea to use that extension with your files.

Oracle E-Business 11i & R12

Oracle E-Business 10.7/11.0.x

Oracle E-Business 11i & R12 Setup

These instructions assume you access Oracle E-Business using the "Personal Home Page"/"E-Business Suite Home page". That is the method most users are familiar with for launching Applications and also makes controlling record and playback easier. If you do access Oracle Forms directly, i.e. by-passing the Personal Home Page, the URL you use to launch forms must be changed to start a recording or playback session. That method of launching Applications is described here. Accessing forms directly is also useful for scheduling a playback or launching it from a batch file.

The easiest way to control the recording or playback of a Forms Playback load is with a standard Applications Profile option called 'ICX: Forms launcher'. By default, this profile only has a value at Site level and that value does not enable recording or playback. The profile option value is changed to turn on either recording or playback.

The profile option could be changed at Site level but then all sessions will record to or playback from the same file, which is probably not what is wanted. The best approach is to set this profile at User level so the forms playback activity can be easily controlled. A user can record, playback or do neither in their session depending on how this profile is set for that user. The value for a user could be changed as required, however if a user will regularly record to and playback from files then it may be worth setting up extra logins specifically for recording and playback and leaving the profile option set appropriately for those users. That means the profile option does not need to be changed when the user wants to playback, record or do neither.

For example, the user 'John Smith', whose login name is 'jsmith', may want to regularly run record or playback sessions. To achieve this the following logins could be used:-

jsmith - Normal login with no recording or playback. Profile option should not be changed from the current, default value.
jsmithrec - Login that will cause a file to be recorded. Set the profile option at user level to to record a file.
jsmithplay - Login that will cause playback to occur. Set the profile option at user level for forms playback.

Now whenever John Smith wants to record a file or play one back he can make this happen by logging in to Oracle with the appropriate sign-on.

This is just one method for controlling record and playback; alternative options for controlling record and playback are documented on the advanced setup page.

Setup Details

The setup requirements differ between different versions of Oracle E-Business and Oracle Forms so there are separate instructions for different versions. Please select the link below which is appropriate for your system (to identify the version of Oracle E-Business and Oracle Forms select "About Oracle Applications " from the Oracle E-Business "Help" menu or ask your Oracle DBA.). If your Oracle system uses load balanced application servers you should review the load balanced section on the advanced setup page in addition to the setup instructions specific to your system.

Oracle E-Business 11.5.1 to 11.5.8 with Oracle Forms prior to 6.0.8.25.2

Oracle E-Business 11.5.1 to 11.5.8 with Oracle Forms 6.0.8.25.2 or higher

Oracle E-Business 11.5.9 with Oracle Forms prior to 6.0.8.25.2

Oracle E-Business 11.5.9 with Oracle Forms 6.0.8.25.2 or higher

Oracle E-Business 11.5.10

Oracle E-Business R12

Oracle E-Business 11.5.1 to 11.5.8 with Oracle Forms prior to 6.0.8.25.2

The ICX: Forms launcher profile option will already contain an entry similar to one of the following at Site level on your system:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi (UNIX application servers)
http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe (Windows application servers, note the difference after the final "/")

If you are setting up recording or playback for a particular user then copy this value from Site level to User level of this profile option. Now edit the profile option to turn on either recording or playback.

To record a Forms Playback file the following should be added to the end of the user's profile option value:

?record=[filename]

where [filename] is replaced with the full directory path and file name where you want to record to.

For example, to record to '/tmp/record.fld' on your UNIX server change the value to be as follows:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi?record=/tmp/record.fld

If your application server is on Windows and you want to record to 'c:\temp\record.fld' then change the value to be as follows:

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe?record=c:\\temp\\record.fld

Hint On Windows a double backslash must be used for the backslash character in the directory path.

To playback a file add the following to the end of the profile value:

?record=[filename]%20play=[filename]&code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

Again, [filename] must be replaced by the file names and full directory paths of the files to record the log to and playback from.

For example, on UNIX (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...f60cgi?record=/tmp/reclog.fld%20play=/tmp/play.fld&code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

On Windows your entry would look similar to the following (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...ifcgi60.exe?record=c:\\temp\\reclog.fld%20play=c:\\temp\\play.fld&code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

In both these examples you would playback from play.fld and the playback session would be recorded to reclog.fld.

Hint The order of the parameters in the playback profile value is critical, ie "record=" must be used and it must appear before "play=". Furthermore, these two parameters must be separated by "%20" and nothing else.

Hint The record= and play= file names in the playback profile option must be different otherwise the playback file is overwritten with the log file when the load starts and the load immediately stops.

Hint In the playback examples above the 'record=' parameter is still used. This is essential for playback to work without having to change some of the server based setup files. However, it also has two other benefits. First, a log of what was loaded will be recorded and that can be validated by opening the recorded file in DataLoad after the load. Second, the Oracle Forms have been found to be more reliable and stable during playback if they record at the same time as playing a session back.

Oracle E-Business 11.5.1 to 11.5.8 with Oracle Forms 6.0.8.25.2 or Higher

Oracle E-Business systems at this software level will only record/play FLD files in a single directory and by default that is the following location:

$ORACLE_HOME/forms60/log

That is the 8.0.6 Oracle Home on the application server. When you record a file it will be created in that location and your playback file must be copied to that directory. It is possible to use an alternative directory for your record and playback files - please click here for more details.

The ICX: Forms launcher profile option will already contain an entry similar to one of the following at Site level on your system:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi (UNIX application servers)
http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe (Windows application servers, note the difference after the final "/")

To record a Forms Playback file the following should be added to the end of the user's profile option value:

?record=[filename]

where [filename] is replaced with the file name (just the file name, a directory path must not be included) to be used for the recorded file.

For example, to record to 'record.fld' on your UNIX server change the value to be as follows:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi?record=record.fld

The profile option value for a Windows application server would be:

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe?record=record.fld

To playback a file add the following to the end of the profile value:

?record=[filename]%20play=[filename]&code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

Again, [filename] must be replaced by the file names (just the file names, directory paths must not be included) of the files to record the log to and playback from.

For example, on UNIX (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...f60cgi?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld&code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

For a Windows application server your entry would look similar to the following (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...ifcgi60.exe?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld&code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

In both these examples you would playback from play.fld and the playback session would be recorded to reclog.fld.

Hint Directory paths must not be included in the record= and play= parameters. In this version of Oracle the files can only be located in one directory ($ORACLE_HOME/forms60/log) and specifying a directory path can stop record and playback from working.

Oracle E-Business 11.5.9 with Oracle Forms prior to 6.0.8.25.2

First, the file $OA_HTML/bin/appsweb.cfg (or appsweb_[ORACLE_SID]_[HOSTNAME].cfg if present) must be edited. At the very end of the file insert the highlighted lines before the "End customizations" message as shown below:

[playback]
code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

;# ********************
;#
;# End customizations
;#
;# ********************

Next the ICX: Forms Launcher profile option must be edited. The ICX: Forms launcher profile option will already contain an entry similar to one of the following at Site level on your system:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi (UNIX application servers)
http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe (Windows application servers, note the difference after the final "/")

To record a Forms Playback file the following should be added to the end of the user's profile option value:

?record=[filename]

where [filename] is replaced with the full directory path and file name where you want to record to.

For example, to record to '/tmp/record.fld' on your UNIX server change the value to be as follows:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi?record=/tmp/record.fld

If your application server is on Windows and you want to record to 'c:\temp\record.fld' then change the value to be as follows:

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe?record=c:\\temp\\record.fld

Hint On Windows a double backslash must be used for the backslash character in the directory path.

To playback a file add the following to the end of the profile value:

?record=[filename]%20play=[filename]&config=playback

Again, [filename] must be replaced by the file names and full directory paths of the files to record the log to and playback from.

For example, on UNIX (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...f60cgi?record=/tmp/reclog.fld%20play=/tmp/play.fld&config=playback

On Windows your entry would look similar to the following (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...ifcgi60.exe?record=c:\\temp\\reclog.fld%20play=c:\\temp\\play.fld&config=playback

In both these examples you would playback from play.fld and the playback session would be recorded to reclog.fld.

Oracle E-Business 11.5.9 with Oracle Forms 6.0.8.25.2 or Higher

Oracle E-Business systems at this software level will only record/play FLD files in a single directory and by default that is the following location:

$ORACLE_HOME/forms60/log

The file $OA_HTML/bin/appsweb.cfg (or appsweb_[ORACLE_SID]_[HOSTNAME].cfg if present) must be edited. At the very end of the file insert the highlighted lines before the "End customizations" message as shown below:

[playback]
code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

;# ********************
;#
;# End customizations
;#
;# ********************

Next the ICX: Forms Launcher profile option must be edited. The ICX: Forms launcher profile option will already contain an entry similar to one of the following at Site level on your system:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi (UNIX application servers)
http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe (Windows application servers, note the difference after the final "/")

To record a Forms Playback file the following should be added to the end of the user's profile option value:

?record=[filename]

where [filename] is replaced with the file name (just the file name, a directory path must not be included) to be used for the recorded file.

For example, to record to 'record.fld' on your UNIX server change the value to be as follows:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi?record=record.fld

The profile option value for a Windows application server would be:

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe?record=record.fld

To playback a file add the following to the end of the profile value:

?record=[filename]%20play=[filename]&config=playback

Again, [filename] must be replaced by the file names (just the file names, directory paths must not be included) and full directory paths of the files to record the log to and playback from.

For example, on UNIX (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...f60cgi?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld&config=playback

For a Windows application server your entry would look similar to the following (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...ifcgi60.exe?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld&config=playback

In both these examples you would playback from play.fld and the playback session would be recorded to reclog.fld.

Oracle E-Business 11.5.10

Oracle E-Business systems at this software level will only record/play FLD files in a single directory and by default that is the following location on the application server:

$COMMON_TOP/admin/log/[Context Name]

When you record a file it will be created in that location and your playback file must be copied to that directory. It is possible to use an alternative directory for your record and playback files - please click here for more details.

[playback]
code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

;# ********************
;#
;# End customizations
;#
;# ********************

Next the ICX: Forms Launcher profile option must be edited. The ICX: Forms launcher profile option will already contain an entry similar to one of the following at Site level on your system:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi (UNIX application servers)
http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe (Windows application servers, note the difference after the final "/")

To record a Forms Playback file the following should be added to the end of the user's profile option value:

?record=[filename]

where [filename] is replaced with the file name (just the file name, a directory path must not be included) to be used for the recorded file.

For example, to record to 'record.fld' on your UNIX server change the value to be as follows:-

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/f60cgi?record=record.fld

The profile option value for a Windows application server would be:

http://host.domain:port/dev60cgi/ifcgi60.exe?record=record.fld

To playback a file add the following to the end of the profile value:

?record=[filename]%20play=[filename]&config=playback

Again, [filename] must be replaced by the file names (just the file names, directory paths must not be included) of the files to record the log to and playback from.

For example, on UNIX (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...f60cgi?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld&config=playback

For a Windows application server your entry would look similar to the following (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...ifcgi60.exe?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld&config=playback

In both these examples you would playback from play.fld and the playback session would be recorded to reclog.fld.

Hint Directory paths must not be included in the record= and play= parameters. In this version of Oracle the files can only be located in one directory (default is $COMMON_TOP/admin/log/[Context Name] although this can be changed) and specifying a directory path can stop record and playback from working.

Oracle E-Business R12

DataLoad Professional's Forms Playback loads have been tested with R12 forms working in both Socket and Servlet (HTTP) mode and both are certified for use with DataLoad. The default setup detailed below limits the number of screen updates shown during the load to maximise performance and stability. Full screen updates can be turned on by following the instructions in the section "Enabling Full Screen Updates" below, however these are currently (August 2007) far more likely to cause the Oracle Forms client to hang (this is an Oracle issue) although the load continues to run in the background.

R12 Oracle E-Business systems will only record and play files in a single directory. By default that is the following location on the application server:

$INST_TOP/logs/ora/[Oracle Forms Version]/forms

For example:

$INST_TOP/logs/ora/10.1.2/forms

When you record a file it will be created in that location and your playback file must later be copied to that directory. It is possible to use an alternative directory for your record and playback files - please click here for more details.

The standard E-Business profile option called "ICX: Forms Launcher" must be set for your record and playback users at user level. The ICX: Forms launcher profile option will already contain an entry similar to the following at Site level on your system:-

http://server.domain:port/forms/frmservlet

This value should be copied from Site level to User level for the user you are configuring. Next, edit the profile option to switch on either recording or playback.

To record a Forms Playback file the following should be added to the end of the user's profile option value:

?record=[filename]%20play=noplay.fld

where [filename] is replaced with the file name to be used for the recorded file (just the file name, a directory path must not be included). A dummy playback file must also be included for recording because Oracle Forms in R12 will not record a file without a playback file also existing.

For example, to record to 'record.fld' change the value to be as follows (beginning of value removed for clarity):-

...frmservlet?record=record.fld%20play=noplay.fld

To playback a file add the following to the end of the playback user's profile value at user level:

?record=[filename]%20play=[filename]

Again, [filename] must be replaced by the file names (just the file names, directory paths must not be included) of the files to record the log to and playback from.

For example (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...frmservlet?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld

In this example you would playback from play.fld and an audit log of the playback session would be recorded to reclog.fld.

Finally, create a file called "noplay.fld" in the server directory used for record and playback files, which by default is:

$INST_TOP/logs/ora/[Oracle Forms Version]/forms

Edit that file in any text editor and add the following line:

WINDOW FNDSCSGN SIGNON_WINDOW ACTIVATE 1

(That final step overcomes an issue when Oracle Forms is working in HTTP mode where the Oracle session crashes as soon as it is started if the form is launched from the Self Service E-Business Suite Home Page.)

Enabling Full Screen Updates

The default R12 setup described above limits the screen updates that are displayed during playback, however the main Oracle window and status bar are displayed and updated during the load; all screen updates work as normal after the load. This approach improves Oracle's performance and stability. However, full screen updates can be enabled using these steps.

The following file must be edited on the application server:

$INST_TOP/ora/10.1.2/forms/server/appsweb.cfg

Add the following lines to the end of this file:

[playback]
code=oracle.forms.engine.MainRT

Finally, to use that configuration during playback the text "&config=playback" must be added to the end of the ICX: Forms Launcher profile option value at user level for the playback user. That profile option value will now look similar to the following (beginning of value removed for clarity):

...frmservlet?record=reclog.fld%20play=play.fld&config=playback

R12 Hints

Hint The order of the parameters in the profile values is critical, ie "record=" must be used and it must appear before "play=". Furthermore, these two parameters must be separated by "%20" and nothing else.

Hint Directory paths must not be included in the record= and play= parameters. In this version of Oracle the files can only be located in one directory and specifying a directory path can stop record and playback from working.

Oracle Applications 10.7/11.0.x (Forms 4.5) Setup

For Oracle Forms 4.5, the setup required is effectively the same whether the system is NCA or SmartClient . To enable Forms 4.5 recording the following parameter must be added to the Forms command line:

record=[PATH FILENAME]

An example of a possible parameter on Windows NT is

record=c:\dataload\record.fld

or, on UNIX this may be:

record=/home/dataload/record.fld

For NCA, a new HTM file must be created for recording and another for playback. The HTM file should edited and the following line found:

<PARAM name=serverArgs" value="module=... userid=... fndnam=apps">

The record parameter should then be added to the end of this line, between the "fndnam=apps" parameter and the closing double quote. For instance:

<PARAM name=serverArgs" value="module=... userid=... fndnam=apps record=c:\temp\record.fld">

To get Oracle Forms to replay your forms playback file another HTM file must be created. To this you add a parameter in the same way as before but it is called "play", as in the following example:

<PARAM name=serverArgs" value="module=... userid=... fndnam=apps play=c:\temp\record.fld">

NCA users will require different URLs to access the different HTM files, whereas Smart Client users should add these parameters to their end of their F45RUN32.exe command line(s).