Differnt Data Types in Oracle

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Oracle C++ Call Interface Programmer's Guide

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4 DatatypesThis chapter is a reference for Oracle datatypes used by Oracle C++ Interface applications. This

information will help you understand the conversions between internal and external

representations of data that occur when you transfer data between your application and thedatabase server.

This chapter contains these topics

Overview of Oracle !atatypes

Internal !atatypes

"xternal !atatypes

!ata Conversions

Overview of Oracle Datatyes

#ccurate communication between your C++ pro$ram and the Oracle database server is critical.

OCCI applications can retrieve data from database tables by usin$ S%& 'ueries or they can

modify existin$ data throu$h the use of S%& INSERT( UPDATE( and DELETEfunctions. To

facilitate communication between the host lan$ua$e C++ and the database server( you must be

aware of how C++ datatypes are converted to Oracle datatypes and back a$ain.

In the Oracle database( values are stored in columns in tables. Internally( Oracle represents data

in particular formats called internal datatypes. NUMBER( VARCHAR2( and DATEare examples of

Oracle internal datatypes.

Previo!s "ext
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OCCI applications work with host lan$ua$e datatypes( or external datatypes( predefined by the

host lan$ua$e. )hen data is transferred between an OCCI application and the database server(

the data from the database is converted from internal datatypes to external datatypes.

OCCI Type and Data Conversion

OCCI defines an enumerator called Typethat lists the possible data representation formats

available in an OCCI application. These representation formats are called external datatypes.

)hen data is sent to the database server from the OCCI application( the external datatype

indicates to the database server what format to expect the data. )hen data is re'uested from the

database server by the OCCI application( the external datatype indicates the format of the data to

be returned.

*or example( on retrievin$ a value from a NUMBERcolumn( the pro$ram may be set to retrieve it

in OCCIINTformat a si$ned inte$er format into an inte$er variable,. Or( the client mi$ht be set to

send data in OCCIFLOATformat floatin$-point format, stored in a C++ float variable to be

inserted in a column of NUMBERtype.

#n OCCI application binds input parameters to a Statement( by callin$ a setxxx()method the

externa "atatypeis implicitly specified by the method name,( or by callin$ the

re#$sterO%tParam()( setDataB%&&er()( or setDataB%&&erArray()method the external

datatype is explicitly specified in the method call,. Similarly( when data values are fetched

throu$h a Res%tSetobect( the external representation of the retrieved data must be specified.

This is done by callin$ a #etxxx()method the externa "atatypeis implicitly specified by

the method name, or by callin$ the setDataB%&&er()method the external datatype is explicitly

specified in the method call,.

Note:

#$ere are more external datatyes t$an internal datatyes% In

some cases& a sin'le external datatye mas to a sin'le internal

datatye( in ot$er cases& many external datatyes ma to a sin'le

internal datatye% #$e many)to)one main' rovides yo! wit$

added *exibility%

See Also:


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+xternal Datatyes

Internal Datatyes

The internal built-in, datatypes provided by Oracle are listed in this section. # brief summary of

internal Oracle datatypes( includin$ description( code( and maximum si/e( appears in Table 0-1.

Table 4-1 Summary of Oracle Internal Datatypes

Internal Datatype Maximum Size

BFILE , 'i'abytes

BINAR'DOUBLE - bytes

BINAR'FLOAT , bytes

CHAR .&/// bytes

DATE 0 bytes

INTERVAL DA' TO SECOND REF 11 bytes

INTERVAL 'EAR TO MONTH REF 2 bytes

LON . 'i'abytes 3.451)1

bytes6

LON RA* . 'i'abytes 3.451)1

bytes6

NCHAR .&/// bytes

NUMBER .1 bytes

NVARCHAR2 ,&/// bytes

RA* .&/// bytes

REF
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Internal Datatype Maximum Size

BLOB , 'i'abytes

CLOB , 'i'abytes

NCLOB , 'i'abytes

RO*ID 1/ bytes

TIMESTAMP 11 bytes

TIMESTAMP *ITH LOCAL TIME +ONE 0 bytes

TIMESTAMP *ITH TIME +ONE 15 bytes

URO*ID ,/// bytes

7ser)de8ned tye 3ob9ect tye& VARRA'& nested table6

VARCHAR2 ,&/// bytes

See Also:

Oracle Database SQL Reference

Oracle Database Concepts

Character Strings and Byte Arrays

2ou can use five Oracle internal datatypes to specify columns that contain either characters or

arrays of bytes CHAR( VARCHAR2( RA*( LON( and LONRA*.

CHAR( VARCHAR2( and LONcolumns normally hold character data. RA*and LONRA*hold bytes

that are not interpreted as characters( for example( pixel values in a bitmapped $raphics ima$e.

Character data can be transformed when passed throu$h a $ateway between networks. *or

example( character data passed between machines by usin$ different lan$ua$es where sin$le
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characters may be represented by differin$ numbers of bytes, can be si$nificantly chan$ed in

len$th. 3aw data is never converted in this way.

The database desi$ner is responsible for choosin$ the appropriate Oracle internal datatype for

each column in a table. 2ou must be aware of the many possible ways that character and byte-

array data can be represented and converted between variables in the OCCI pro$ram and Oracle

database tables.

Universal Rowid (UROWID

The universal rowid URO*ID, is a datatype that can store both the lo$ical and the physical rowid

of rows in Oracle tables and in forei$n tables( such as !45 tables accessed throu$h a $ateway.

&o$ical r,-$"values are primary key-based lo$ical identifiers for the rows of index or$ani/ed

tables.

To use columns of the URO*IDdatatype( the value of the COMPATIBLEinitiali/ation parameter

must be set to ./0or hi$her.

The followin$ OCCIS1LTtypes can be bound to universal r,-$"s

OCCIS1LTCHRVARCHAR2,

OCCIS1LTVCSVARCHAR,

OCCIS1LTSTRNULLterminated strin$,

OCCIS1LTLVClon$ VARCHAR,

OCCIS1LTAFCCHAR)

OCCIS1LTAVCCHAR+,

OCCIS1LTVSTstrin$,

OCCIS1LTRDDRO*IDdescriptor,

+xternal Datatyes

Communication between the host OCCI application and the Oracle database server is throu$h the

use of external datatypes. Specifically( external datatypes are mapped to C++ datatypes.

Table 0-5lists the Oracle external datatypes( the C++ e'uivalent what the Oracle internal

datatype is usually converted to,( and the correspondin$ OCCI type. In C++ !atatype column( n
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External Datatype C++ Type OCCI Type

DATE; 4ar697 OCCIS1LTDAT

DATE;; Date OCCIDATE

DOUBLE;; ",%5e OCCIDOUBLE

FLOAT; &,at3 ",%5e OCCIFLOAT

FLOAT;; &,at OCCIFLOAT

INT;; $nt OCCIINT

INTERVAL DA' TO

SECOND;

4ar6007 OCCIS1LTINTERVALDS

INTERVAL 'EAR TO

MONTH;

4ar6:7 OCCIS1LTINTERVAL'M

INTERVALDS;; Inter;aDS OCCIINTERVALDS

INTERVAL'M;; Inter;a'M OCCIINTERVAL'M

LON; 4ar6n7 OCCIS1LTLN

LON RA*; %ns$#ne" 4ar6n7 OCCIS1LTLBI

LON VARCHAR; 4ar6n8s$e


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NATIVE FLOAT;; &,at OCCIBFLOAT

n!ll terminated STRIN

;

4ar6n807 OCCIS1LTSTR

NUMBER; %ns$#ne" 4ar6207 OCCIS1LTNUM

NUMBER;; N%m5er OCCINUMBER

POB=ECT;; 7ser de8ned tyes 'enerated by

O## !tility%

OCCIPOB=ECT

RA*; %ns$#ne" 4ar6n7 OCCIS1LTBIN

REF; LNOCIRe& OCCIS1LTREF

REF;; Re& OCCIREF

REFAN';; Re&Any OCCIREFAN'

RO*ID; LNOCIR,-$" OCCIS1LTRID

RO*ID;; Bytes OCCIRO*ID

RO*IDdescritor ; LNOCIR,-$" OCCIS1LTRDD

STRIN;; STL str$n# OCCISTRIN

TIMESTAMP; 4ar6007 OCCIS1LTTIMESTAMP

TIMESTAMP;; T$mestamp OCCITIMESTAMP

TIMESTAMP *ITH LOCAL

TIME +ONE;

4ar697 OCCIS1LTTIMESTAMPLT

+

TIMESTAMP *ITH TIME

+ONE;

4ar60>7 OCCIS1LTTIMESTAMPT+

UNSINED INT; %ns$#ne" $nt OCCIUNSINEDINT


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UNSINED INT;; %ns$#ne" $nt OCCIUNSINEDINT

VARCHAR; 4ar6n8s$


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BFILE

The external datatype BFILEallows read-only byte stream access to lar$e files on the file system

of the database server. # BFILEis a lar$e binary data obect stored in operatin$ system files

outside database tablespaces. These files use reference semantics. The Oracle server can access a

BFILEprovided the underlyin$ server operatin$ system supports stream-mode access to theseoperatin$ system files.

BDOBLE

The BD,%5einterface in OCCI encapsulates the native double data and the NULLinformation of

a column or obect attribute of the type 5$nary",%5e. The OCCI methods in #ny!ata Class(

3esultSet Classand Statement Class( and the $lobal methods that take these class obects as

parameters( use the followin$ definition for the BDOUBLEdatatype

Example 4-1 Definition of t!e "DO#"$E Datatype

str%4t BD,%5e?",%5e ;a%e@5,, $sN%@

BD,%5e()?

$sN% &ase@;a%e /@

@

BFLOAT

The BF,atinterface in OCCI encapsulates the native float data and the NULLinformation of a

column or obect attribute of the type 5$nary&,at. The OCCI methods in #ny!ata Class(

3esultSet Classand Statement Class( and the $lobal methods that take these class obects as

parameters( use the followin$ definition for the BFLOATdatatype

Example 4-2 Definition of t!e "%$O&T Datatype

str%4t BF,at?

&,at ;a%e@5,, $sN%@

BF,at()?

$sN% &ase@;a%e /@

@
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BLOB

The external datatype BLOBstores unstructured binary lar$e obects. # BLOBcan be thou$ht of as

a bitstream with no character set semantics. BLOBs can store up to $i$abytes of binary data.

BLOBdatatypes have full transactional support. Chan$es made throu$h OCCI participate fully in

the transaction. BLOBvalue manipulations can be committed or rolled back. 2ou cannot save a

BLOBlocator in a variable in one transaction and then use it in another transaction or session.

C!A"

The external datatype CHARis a strin$ of characters( with a maximum len$th of 2characters.

Character strin$s are compared by usin$ blank-padded comparison semantics.

C!A"#

The external datatype CHAR+is similar to the CHARdatatype( except that the strin$ must be null

terminated on input( and Oracle places a null terminator character at the end of the strin$ on

output. The null terminator serves only to delimit the strin$ on input or output. It is not part of

the data in the table.

CLOB

The external datatype CLOBstores fixed-width or varyin$-width character data. # CLOBcan store

up to $i$abytes of character data. CLOBs have full transactional support. Chan$es made throu$h

OCCI participate fully in the transaction. CLOBvalue manipulations can be committed or rolled

back. 2ou cannot save a CLOBlocator in a variable in one transaction and then use it in another

transaction or session.

DATE

The external datatype DATEcan update( insert( or retrieve a date value usin$ the Oracle internal

seven byte date binary format( as listed in Table 0-8

Table 4-' %ormat of t!e D&TE Datatype

Example

Byte

$Century

Byte

%&ear

Byte

'Mont(

Byte

)Day

Byte

*!our

Byte

Minute

Byte

,Se-on.

$% /1)


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Example

Byte

$Century

Byte

%&ear

Byte

'Mont(

Byte

)Day

Byte

*!our

Byte

Minute

Byte

,Se-on.

,01. BC+

+xamle 1& /1)


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Notes:

If no time is specified for a date( the time defaults to

midni$ht and bytes > throu$h ? are set to 0 0( 0( 0.

)hen you enter a date in binary format by usin$ the external

datatype DATE( the database does not perform consistency or ran$e

checkin$. #ll data in this format must be validated before input.

There is little need for the external datatype DATE. It is more

convenient to convert DATEvalues to a character format( because

most pro$rams deal with dates in a character format( such as !!-

@O=-2222. Instead( you may use the Datedatatype.

)hen a DATEcolumn is converted to a character strin$ inyour pro$ram( it is returned in the default format mask for your

session( or as specified in the INIT/ORAfile.

This datatype is different from OCCI DATEwhich

corresponds to a C++ Datedatatype.

FLOATThe external datatype FLOATprocesses numbers with fractional parts. The number is represented

in the host systemAs floatin$-point format. =ormally( the len$th is 0 or B bytes.

The internal format of an Oracle number is decimal. @ost floatin$-point implementations are

binary. Oracle( therefore( represents numbers with $reater precision than floatin$-point

representations.

INTE/E"

The external datatype INTEERis used for convertin$ numbers. #n external inte$er is a si$nedbinary number. Its si/e is operatin$ system-dependent. If the number bein$ returned from Oracle

is not an inte$er( then the fractional part is discarded( and no error is returned. If the number

returned exceeds the capacity of a si$ned inte$er for the system( then Oracle returns an overflow

on conversion error.


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Note:

> ro!ndin' error may occ!r w$en convertin' between FLOATand

NUMBER% 7sin' a FLOATas a bind variable in a ?!ery may ret!rn an

error% @o! can work aro!nd t$is by convertin' t$e FLOATto a strin'

and !sin' t$e OCCI tye OCCIS1LTCHRor t$e OCCI tye

OCCIS1LTSTRfor t$e oeration%

INTE"0AL DA& TO SECOND

The external datatype INTERVALDA'TOSECONDstores the difference between two datetime

values in terms of days( hours( minutes( and seconds. Specify this datatype as follows

INTERVAL DA' 6(day_precision)7TO SECOND 6(fractional_seconds_precision)7

This example uses the followin$ placeholders

day_precision =umber of di$its in the DA'datetime field. #ccepted values are 0to .

The default is 2.

fractional_seconds_precision =umber of di$its in the fractional part of the SECOND

datetime field. #ccepted values are to . The default is .

To specify an INTERVALDA'TOSECONDliteral with nondefault day and second precisions( you

must specify the precisions in the literal. *or example( you mi$ht specify an interval of 0days(

0hours( 2minutes( 2seconds( and 22hundredths of a second as follows

INTERVAL K0 022/22K DA'(>) TO SECOND(2)

2ou can also use abbreviated forms of the INTERVALDA'TOSECONDliteral. *or example

INTERVAL KK MINUTEmaps to INTERVAL K /K DA' TO SECOND(2)

INTERVAL K>>K HOUR TO MINUTEmaps to INTERVAL K >>/K DA' TOSECOND(2)

INTERVAL K>K SECOND(232)maps to INTERVAL K >/K DA' TOSECOND(2)

INTE"0AL &EA" TO MONT!


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NCLOBs have full transactional support. Chan$es made throu$h OCCI participate fully in the

transaction. NCLOBvalue manipulations can be committed or rolled back. 2ou cannot save an

NCLOBlocator in a variable in one transaction and then use it in another transaction or session.

2ou cannot create an obect with NCLOBattributes( but you can specify NCLOBparameters in

methods.

NMBE"

2ou should not need to use NUMBERas an external datatype. If you do use it( Oracle returns

numeric values in its internal 20-byte binary format and will expect this format on input. The

followin$ discussion is included for completeness only.

Oracle stores values of the NUMBERdatatype in a variable-len$th format. The first byte is the

exponent and is followed by 0to 2mantissa bytes. The hi$h-order bit of the exponent byte is

the si$n bit it is set for positive numbers and it is cleared for ne$ative numbers. The lower 9bitsrepresent the exponent( which is a base-0di$it with an offset of :.

To calculate the decimal exponent( add :to the base-0exponent and add another 02.if the

number is positive. If the number is ne$ative( you do the same( but subse'uently the bits are

inverted. *or example( J:has a base-0exponent 2 (x>e). The decimal exponent is thus

(x>e)J02.J: x40J02.J: 0>J02.J: .

"ach mantissa byte is a base-0di$it( in the ran$e 0to 0. *or positive numbers( the di$it has

0added to it. So( the mantissa di$it for the value :is . *or ne$ative numbers( instead of addin$

1( the di$it is subtracted from 00. So( the mantissa di$it for the number J:is 00J: .

=e$ative numbers have a byte containin$ 02appended to the data bytes. However( ne$ative

numbers that have 2mantissa bytes do not have the trailin$ 02byte. 4ecause the mantissa

di$its are stored in base-03each byte can represent two decimal di$its. The mantissa is

normali/ed leadin$ /eroes are not stored.

Dp to 2data bytes can represent the mantissa. However( only 0are $uaranteed to be accurate.

The 0data bytes( each representin$ a base-0di$it( yield a maximum precision of >.di$its for

an internal datatype NUMBER.

=ote that this datatype is different from OCCI NUMBERwhich corresponds to a C++ N%m5er

datatype.

OCCI BFILE


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See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& B8leClass

OCCI BLOB

See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& Blob

Class

OCCI B&TES

See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& Bytes

Class

OCCI CLOB

See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& Clob

Class

OCCI DATE

See Also:
http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference004.htm#i1155597http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference005.htm#i1119032http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference005.htm#i1119032http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference006.htm#i1119060http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference006.htm#i1119060http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference007.htm#i1118691http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference007.htm#i1118691http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference004.htm#i1155597http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference005.htm#i1119032http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference005.htm#i1119032http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference006.htm#i1119060http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference006.htm#i1119060http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference007.htm#i1118691http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference007.htm#i1118691


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C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& Date

Class

OCCI INTE"0ALDS

See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA&

IntervalDClass

OCCI INTE"0AL&M

See Also:


Interval@M Class

OCCI NMBE"

See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& "!mber

Class

OCCI 2OB3ECT

See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& POb9ect
http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference011.htm#i1079044http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference011.htm#i1079044http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference013.htm#i1066767http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference014.htm#i1080017http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference020.htm#i1018892http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference020.htm#i1018892http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference021.htm#i1039640http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference011.htm#i1079044http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference011.htm#i1079044http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference013.htm#i1066767http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference014.htm#i1080017http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference020.htm#i1018892http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference020.htm#i1018892http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference021.htm#i1039640


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Class

OCCI "EF

See Also:

C$ater 1/& A OCCI >lication Pro'rammin' InterfaceA& ef Class

OCCI "EFAN&

See Also:


ef>nyClass

OCCI ST"IN/

The external datatype OCCI STRINcorresponds to an STL str$n#.

OCCI TIMESTAM2

See Also:


#imestam Class

OCCI 0ECTO"

The external datatype OCCI VECTORis used to represent collections( for example( a nested table

or VARRA'. CREATE T'PE n%mtype as VARRA' OF NUMBER(0)can be represented in a C++

application as ;e4t,r$nt( ;e4t,rN%m5er( and so on.
http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference021.htm#i1039640http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference023.htm#i1079048http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference024.htm#i1109327http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference031.htm#i1118557http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference021.htm#i1039640http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference023.htm#i1079048http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference024.htm#i1109327http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference.htm#g1316297http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/reference031.htm#i1118557


20/29

"A1

The external datatype RA*is used for binary data or byte strin$s that are not to be interpreted or

processed by Oracle. RA*could be used( for example( for $raphics character se'uences. The

maximum len$th of a RA*column is 5999 bytes.

)hen RA*data in an Oracle table is converted to a character strin$( the data is represented in

hexadecimal code. "ach byte of RA*data is represented as two characters that indicate the value

of the byte( ran$in$ from 99 to **. If you input a character strin$ by usin$ RA*( then you must

use hexadecimal codin$.

"EF

The external datatype REFis a reference to a named datatype. To allocate a REFfor use in an

application( declare a variable as a pointer to a REF.

"O1ID

The external datatype RO*IDidentifies a particular row in a database table. The RO*IDis often

returned from a 'uery by issuin$ a statement similar to the followin$ example

SELECT RO*ID3 ;ar03 ;ar2 FROM "5@

2ou can then use the returned RO*IDin further DELETEstatements.

If you are performin$ a SELECTfor an UPDATEoperation( then the RO*IDis implicitly returned.

ST"IN/The external datatype STRINbehaves like the external datatype VARCHAR2datatype code 1,(

except that the external datatype STRINmust be null-terminated.

=ote that this datatype is different from OCCI STRINwhich corresponds to a C++ ST& strin$

datatype.

TIMESTAM2

The external datatype TIMESTAMPis an extension of the DATEdatatype. It stores the year( month(

and day of the DATEdatatype( plus hour( minute( and second values. Specify the TIMESTAMP

datatype as follows

TIMESTAMP 6(fractional_seconds_precision)7

The placeholder fractional_seconds_precisionoptionally specifies the number of di$its in

the fractional part of the SECONDdatetime field and can be a number in the ran$e 9 to :. The

default is ?. *or example( you specify TIMESTAMP(2)as a literal as follows


21/29

TIMESTAMP K09J0J>0 2:/0K

=ote that this datatype is different from OCCI TIMESTAMP.

TIMESTAM2 1IT! LOCAL TIME #ONE

The external datatype TIMESTAMP*ITHTIME+ONETST+, is a variant of TIMESTAMPthat includes

an explicit time /one displacement in its value. The time /one displacement is the difference in

hours and minutes, between local time and Coordinated Dniversal Time DTC,( formerly

Ereenwich @ean Time. Specify the TIMESTAMP*ITHTIME+ONEdatatype as follows

TIMESTAMP(fractional_seconds_precision) *ITH TIME +ONE

The placeholder fractional_seconds_precisionoptionally specifies the number of di$its in

the fractional part of the SECONDdatetime field and can be a number in the ran$e to . The

default is .

Two TIMESTAMP*ITHTIME+ONEvalues are considered identical if they represent the same

instant in DTC( re$ardless of the TIME+ONEoffsets stored in the data.

TIMESTAM2 1IT! TIME #ONE

The external datatype TIMESTAMP*ITHTIME+ONEis a variant of TIMESTAMPthat includes a time

zone displacementin its value. The time /one displacement is the difference in hours and

minutes, between local time and Coordinated Dniversal Time DTC,( formerly Ereenwich @ean

Time. Specify the TIMESTAMP*ITHTIME+ONEdatatype as follows

TIMESTAMP 6(fractional_seconds_precision)7 *ITH TIME +ONE

The placeholder fractional_seconds_precisionoptionally specifies the number of di$its inthe fractional part of the S"CO=! datetime field and can be a number in the ran$e to . The

default is . *or example( you mi$ht specify TIMESTAMP()*ITHTIME+ONEas a literal as

follows

TIMESTAMP K09J0J>0 2:82/K

NSI/NED INT

The external datatype UNSINED INTis used for unsi$ned binary inte$ers. The si/e in bytes is

operatin$ system dependent. The host system architecture determines the order of the bytes in a

word. If the number bein$ output from Oracle is not an inte$er( the fractional part is discarded(and no error is returned. If the number to be returned exceeds the capacity of an unsi$ned inte$er

for the operatin$ system( Oracle returns an overflow on conversion error.

0A"C!A"

The external datatype VARCHARstore character strin$s of varyin$ len$th. The first two bytes

contain the len$th of the character strin$( and the remainin$ bytes contain the actual strin$. The


22/29

specified len$th of the strin$ in a bind or a define call must include the two len$th bytes(

meanin$ the lar$est VARCHARstrin$ is ::>>bytes lon$( not ::>:. *or convertin$ lon$er

strin$s( use the LONVARCHARexternal datatype.

0A"C!A"%

The external datatype VARCHAR2is a variable-len$th strin$ of characters up to bytes.

0A"NM

The external datatype VARNUMis similar to the external datatype NUMBER( except that the first byte

contains the len$th of the number representation. This len$th value does not include the len$th

byte itself. 3eserve 55 bytes to receive the lon$est possible VARNUM. 2ou must set the len$th byte

when you send a VARNUMvalue to the database.

Table 4-4 (&)*#+ Examples

De-imal 0alue Len4t( Byte Exponent Byte Mantissa Bytes Terminator Byte

0 02. "> ">

: 2 0> ">

J: > 2 02

299 > 0 2.3 . ">

J299 0 93 > 02

0 2 0: 00 ">

02>:9 : 0 23 23 3 . ">

0A""A1

The externaldatatype VARRA*is similar to the external datatype RA*( except that the first two

bytes contain the len$th of the data. The specified len$th of the strin$ in a bind or a define call

must include the two len$th bytes. So the lar$est VARRA*strin$ that can be received or sent is

::>>bytes( not ::>:. *or convertin$ lon$er strin$s( use the LONVARRA*datatype.

NATI0E DOBLE


23/29

This externaldatatype implements the I""" ;>0 standard double-precision floatin$ point

datatype. It is represented in the host systemAs native floatin$ point format. The datatype is stored

in the Oracle Server in a byte comparable canonical format( and re'uires B bytes for stora$e(

includin$ the len$th byte. It is an alternative to Oracle NUMBERand has the followin$ advanta$es

over NUMBER

*ewer bytes used in stora$e

@atches datatypes used by 3!4@S Clients

Supports a wider ran$e of values used in scientific calculations.

NATI0E FLOAT

This externaldatatype implements the I""" ;>0 sin$le-precision floatin$ point datatype. It is

represented in the host systemAs native floatin$ point format. The datatype is stored in the OracleServer in a byte comparable canonical format( and re'uires 0 bytes for stora$e( includin$ the

len$th byte. It is an alternative to Oracle NUMBERand has the followin$ advanta$es over NUMBER

*ewer bytes used in stora$e

@atches datatypes used by 3!4@S Clients

Supports a wider ran$e of values used in scientific calculations

Data Conversions

Table 0->lists the supported conversions from Oracle internal datatypes to external datatypes(

and from external datatypes to internal column representations. =ote the followin$ conditions

# REFstored in the database is converted to OCCIS1LTREFon output

OCCIS1LTREFis converted to the internal representation of a REFon input

# named datatype stored in the database is converted to OCCIS1LTNT'and represented

by a C structure in the application, on output

OCCIS1LTNT'represented by a C structure in an application, is converted to the

internal representation of the correspondin$ datatype on input

# LOBand a BFILEare represented by descriptors in OCCI applications( so there are no

input or output conversions
http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/types.htm#g1032563http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B14117_01/appdev.101/b10778/types.htm#g1032563


24/29

Table 4-, Data Conersions "et.een External and Internal datatypes

Internal Datatypes

External

Datatype

s

0A"C!A"

%

NMBE

"

LON

/

"O1I

D

DAT

E

"A

1

LON

/

"A1

C!A

"

BFLOA

T

BDOBL

E

CHAR IO IO IO IO1 IO. IO5 I5& 2 IO IO IO

CHAR+ IO IO IO IO1 IO. IO5 I5& 2 IO ) )

DATE IO ) I ) IO ) ) IO ) )

DECIMAL IO, IO I ) ) ) ) IO, ) )

FLOAT IO, IO I ) ) ) ) IO, IO IO

INTEER IO, IO I ) ) ) ) IO, IO IO

LON IO IO IO IO1 IO. IO5 IO5& 2 IO IO IIO

LON RA* O: ) I2& : ) ) IO IO O: ) )

LON

VARCHAR

IO IO IO IO1 IO. IO5 IO5& 2 IO IO IO

LON

VARRA*IO: ) I2& : ) ) IO IO IO: ) )

NUMBER IO, IO I ) ) ) ) IO, IO IO

OCCIBD,%5e

IO 1O I ) ) ) ) IO IO IO

OCCIBF,at

IO 1O I ) ) ) ) IO IO IO

OCCI

BytesIO: ) I2& : ) ) IO IO IO: ) )

OCCI

DateIO ) I ) IO ) ) IO ) )

OCCI IO, IO I ) ) ) ) IO, IO IO


25/29

Internal Datatypes

External

Datatype

s

0A"C!A"

%

NMBE

"

LON

/

"O1I

D

DAT

E

"A

1

LON

/

"A1

C!A

"

BFLOA

T

BDOBL

E

N%m5er

OCCI

T$mestam

p

) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

RA* IO: ) I2& : ) ) IO IO IO: ) )

RO*ID I ) I IO ) ) ) I ) )

STL

str$n#IO IO IO IO1 IO. IO5 IO5 ) IO, IO,

STRIN IO IO IO IO1 IO. IO5 IO5& 2 IO IO IO

UNSINED IO, IO I ) ) ) ) IO, IO IO

VARCHAR IO IO IO IO1 IO. IO5 IO5 ) IO IO

VARCHAR

. IO IO IO IO

1

IO

.

IO

5

IO

5& 2

IO IO IO

VARNUM IO, IO I ) ) ) ) IO, IO IO

VARRA* IO: ) I2& : ) ) IO IO IO: ) )

Note:

Conversions valid for I 3In!t only6& O 3O!t!t Only6& IO 3In!t or

O!t!t6

1. @ust be in Oracle 3O)I! format for input returned in Oracle


26/29


27/29

E5TE"NAL DATAT&2ES

INTE"NAL DATAT&2ES

CLOB BLOB

OCCI Bytes ) IO

Data Conversions !or Date Ti)esta)p and Interval Datatypes

2ou can also use one of the character data types for the host variable used in a fetch or insert

operation from or to a datetime or interval column. Oracle will do the conversion between the

character data type and datetimeFinterval data type for you.

Table 4-0 Data Conersions for Date Timestamp and Interal Datatypes

External Types Internal Types

0A"C!A"6

C!A" DATE TS

TST

# TSLT#

INTE"0AL

&EA" TO

MONT!

INTE"0AL

DA& TO

SECOND

VARCHAR23 CHAR IO IO I

O

IO IO IO IO

STL Str$n# IO IO I

O

IO IO IO IO

DATE IO IO I

O

IO IO ) )

OCCI Date IO IO I

O

IO IO ) )

ANSI DATE IO IO I

O

IO IO ) )

TIMESTAMP (TS) IO IO I

O

IO IO ) )

OCCI T$mestamp IO IO I

O

IO IO ) )


28/29

External Types Internal Types

0A"C!A"6

C!A" DATE TS

TST

# TSLT#

INTE"0AL

&EA" TO

MONT!

INTE"0AL

DA& TO

SECOND

TIMESTAMP *ITH

TIME +ONE (TST+)IO IO I

O

IO IO ) )

TIMESTAMP *ITH

LOCAL TIME +ONE

(TSLT+)

IO IO I

O

IO IO ) )

INTERVAL 'EAR TO

MONTHIO ) ) ) ) IO )

OCCI Inter;a'M IO ) ) ) ) IO )

INTERVAL DA' TO

SECONDIO ) ) ) ) ) IO

OCCI Inter;aDS IO ) ) ) ) ) IO

These consideration apply when convertin$ between !ate( Timestamp and Interval datatypes

)hen assi$nin$ a source with time /one to a tar$et without a time /one( the time /one

portion of the source is i$nored. On assi$nin$ a source without a time /one to a tar$et

with a time /one( the time /one of the tar$et is set to the sessionAs default time /one.

)hen assi$nin$ an Oracle DATEto a TIMESTAMP( the TIMEportion of the DATEis copied

over to the TIMESTAMP. )hen assi$nin$ a TIMESTAMPto Oracle DATE( the TIMEportion of

the result DATEis set to /ero. This is done to encoura$e mi$ration of Oracle DATEto ANSI

compliant DATETIMEdata types.

)hen assi$nin$ an ANSIDATEto an Oracle DATEor a TIMESTAMP( the TIMEportion ofthe Oracle DATEand the TIMESTAMPare set to /ero. )hen assi$nin$ an Oracle DATEor a

TIMESTAMPto an #=SI DATE( the TIMEportion is i$nored.

)hen assi$nin$ a DATETIMEto a character strin$( the DATETIMEis converted usin$ the

sessionAs default DATETIMEformat. )hen assi$nin$ a character strin$ to a DATETIME( the


29/29

strin$ must contain a valid DATETIMEvalue based on the sessionAs default DATETIME

format.

)hen assi$nin$ a character strin$ to an INTERVAL( the character strin$ must be a valid

INTERVALcharacter format.

)hen convertin$ from TSLT+to CHAR( DATE( TIMESTAMPand TST+( the value will be

adusted to the session time /one.

)hen convertin$ from CHAR( DATE( and TIMESTAMPto TSLT+( the session time /one will

be stored in memory.

)hen assi$nin$ TSLT+to ANSIDATE( the time portion will be .

)hen convertin$ from TST+( the time /one which the time stamp is in will be stored in

memory.

)hen assi$nin$ a character strin$ to an interval( the character strin$ must be a valid

interval character format.

Coyri'$t E 1& .//5 Oracle Cororation

>ll i'$ts eserved%

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Differnt Data Types in Oracle