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Oracle® C++ Call Interface Programmer's Guide
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7 Object Type Translator Utility

This chapter discusses the Object Type Translator (OTT) utility, which is used to map database object types, LOB types, and named collection types to C++ class declarations for use in OCCI applications.

This chapter contains these topics:


See Also:

$ORACLE_HOME/rdbms/demo for a complete code listing of the demonstration program used in this chapter and the class and method implementation generated by the OTT utility.

Overview of the Object Type Translator Utility

The Object Type Translator (OTT) utility assists in the development of applications that make use of user-defined types in an Oracle database server.

Through the use of SQL CREATE TYPE statements, you can create object types. The definitions of these types are stored in the database and can be used in the creation of database tables. Once these tables are populated, an OCCI programmer can access objects stored in the tables.

An application that accesses object data must be able to represent the data in a host language format. This is accomplished by representing object types classes in C++.

You could code structures or classes manually to represent database object types, but this is time-consuming and error-prone. The OTT utility simplifies this step by automatically generating the appropriate classes for C++.

For OCCI, the application must include and link the following files:

Using the OTT Utility

To translate database types to C++ representation, you must explicitly invoke the OTT utility. OCCI programmers must register the mappings with the environment. This function is generated by the OTT utility.

On most operating systems, the OTT utility is invoked on the command line. It takes as input an INTYPE file, and generates an OUTTYPE file, one or more C++ header files that contain the prototype information, and additional C++ method files that register generated mappings.

Example 7-1 How to Use the OTT Utility

The following command invokes the OTT utility and generates C++ classes:

ott userid=scott/tiger intype=demoin.typ outtype=demoout.typ code=cpp
   hfile=demo.h cppfile=demo.cpp mapfile=RegisterMappings.cpp

This command causes the OTT utility to connect to the database as username scott with password tiger, and use the demoin.typ file as the INTYPE file, and the demoout.typ file as the OUTTYPE file. The resulting declarations are output to the file demo.h in C++, specified by the CODE=cpp parameter, the method implementations written to the file demo.cpp, and the functions to register mappings is written to RegisterMappings.cpp with its prototype written to RegisterMappings.h.


See Also:

Extending C++ Classes for a complete C++ example

Creating Types in the Database

The first step in using the OTT utility is to create object types or named collection types and store them in the database. This is accomplished through the use of the SQL CREATE TYPE statement.

Example 7-2 Object Creation Statements of the OTT Utility

CREATE TYPE FULL_NAME AS OBJECT (first_name CHAR(20), last_name CHAR(20));
CREATE TYPE ADDRESS AS OBJECT (state CHAR(20), zip CHAR(20));
CREATE TYPE ADDRESS_TAB AS VARRAY(3) OF REF ADDRESS;
CREATE TYPE PERSON AS OBJECT (id NUMBER, name FULL_NAME, curr_addr REF ADDRESS,
   prev_addr_1 ADDRESS_TAB) NOT FINAL;
CREATE TYPE STUDENT UNDER PERSON (school_name CHAR(20));

Invoking the OTT Utility

After creating types in the database, the next step is to invoke the OTT utility.

Specifying OTT Parameters

You can specify OTT parameters either on the command line or in a configuration file. Certain parameters can also be specified in the INTYPE file.

If you specify a parameter in more than one place, then its value on the command line takes precedence over its value in the INTYPE file. The value in the INTYPE file takes precedence over its value in a user-defined configuration file, which takes precedence over its value in the default configuration file.

Parameter precedence then is as follows:

  1. OTT command line

  2. Value in INTYPE file

  3. User-defined configuration file

  4. Default configuration file

For global options (that is, options on the command line or options at the beginning of the INTYPE file before any TYPE statements), the value on the command line overrides the value in the INTYPE file. (The options that can be specified globally in the INTYPE file are CASE, INITFILE, INITFUNC, MAPFILE and MAPFUNC, but not HFILE or CPPFILE.) Anything in the INTYPE file in a TYPE specification applies to a particular type only and overrides anything on the command line that would otherwise apply to the type. So if you enter TYPE person HFILE=p.h, then it applies to person only and overrides the HFILE on the command line. The statement is not considered a command line parameter.

Setting Parameters on the Command Line

Parameters (also called options) set on the command line override any parameters or option set elsewhere.

Setting Parameters in the INTYPE File

The INTYPE file gives a list of types for the OTT utility to translate.

The parameters CASE, CPPFILE, HFILE, INITFILE, INITFUNC, MAPFILE, and MAPFUNC can appear in the INTYPE file.

Setting Parameters in the Configuration File

A configuration file is a text file that contains OTT parameters. Each nonblank line in the file contains one parameter, with its associated value or values. If more than one parameter is put on a line, then only the first one will be used. No blank space is allowed on any nonblank line of a configuration file.

A configuration file can be named on the command line. In addition, a default configuration file is always read. This default configuration file must always exist, but can be empty. The name of the default configuration file is ottcfg.cfg, and the location of the file is operating system-specific.

See Also:

Your operating system-specific documentation for more information about the location of the default configuration file.

Invoking the OTT Utility on the Command Line

On most platforms, the OTT utility is invoked on the command line. You can specify the input and output files and the database connection information at the command line, among other things.

See Also:

Your operating system-specific documentation to see how to invoke the OTT utility on your operating system

Example 7-3 How to Invoke the OTT Utility to Generate C++ Classes

ott userid=scott/tiger intype=demoin.typ outtype=demoout.typ code=cpp
   hfile=demo.h cppfile=demo.cpp mapfile=RegisterMappings.cpp

Caution:

No spaces are permitted around the equals sign (=) on the OTT command line.

An OTT command line statement consists of the command OTT, followed by a list of OTT utility parameters.

The HFILE parameter is almost always used. If omitted, then HFILE must be specified individually for each type in the INTYPE file. If the OTT utility determines that a type not listed in the INTYPE file must be translated, then an error will be reported. Therefore, it is safe to omit the HFILE parameter only if the INTYPE file was previously generated as an OTT OUTTYPE file.

If the INTYPE file is omitted, then the entire schema will be translated. See the parameter descriptions in the following section for more information.

Elements Used on the OTT Command Line

Elements used on the OTT command line are:

  • OTT command that invokes the OTT utility. It must be the first item on the command line.

  • USERID parameter

  • INTYPE parameter

  • OUTTYPE parameter.

  • CODE parameter.

  • HFILE parameter.

  • CPPFILE parameter.

  • MAPFILE parameter.

OTT Utility Parameters

To generate C++ using the OTT utility, the CODE parameter must be set to CODE=CPP. Once CODE=CPP is specified, you are required to specify the CPPFILE and MAPFILE parameters to define the filenames for the method implementation file and the mappings registration function file. The name of the mapping function is derived by the OTT utility from the MAPFILE or you may specify the name with the MAPFUNC parameter. ATTRACCESS is also an optional parameter that can be specified to change the generated code. These parameters control the generation of C++ classes.

  • Enter parameters on the OTT command line where parameter is the literal parameter string and value is a valid parameter setting. The literal parameter string is not case sensitive:

    parameter=value
    
    
  • Separate command line parameters by using either spaces or tabs.

  • Parameters can also appear within a configuration file, but, in that case, no whitespace is permitted within a line, and each parameter must appear on a separate line. Additionally, the parameters CASE, CPPFILE, HFILE, INITFILE, INTFUNC, MAPFILE, and MAPFUNC can appear in the INTYPE file.

Table 7-1 lists all OTT Utility parameters:

Table 7-1 Summary of OTT Utility Parameters

Parameter Description

ATTRACCESS

Specifies whether the access to type attributes will be PROTECTED or PRIVATE.

CASE

Affects the letter case of generated C++ identifiers

CODE

Specifies the target language for the translation. Use CPP.

CONFIG

Specifies the name of the OTT configuration file that lists commonly used parameter specifications.

CPPFILE

Specifies the name of the C++ source file into which the method implementations are written.

ERRTYPE

Specifies the name of the error message output file.

HFILE

Specifies the name of the C++ header file to which the generated C++ classes are written.

INTYPE

Specifies the name of the INTYPE file.

MAPFILE

Specifies the name of the mapping file and the corresponding header file generated by the OTT utility.

MAPFUNC

Specifies the name of the function used to register generated mappings.

OUTTYPE

Specifies the name of the OUTTYPE file.

SCHEMA_NAMES

Controls the qualifying the database name of a type from the default schema

TRANSITIVE

Indicates whether to translate type dependency that are not explicitly listed in the INTYPE.

UNICODE

Indicates whether the application should provide UTF16 support generate UString types.

USE_MARKER

Indicates whether OTT markers should be supported to carry forward user added cod

USERID

Specifies the database connection information that the OTT utility will use.


ATTRACCESS

This parameter specifies access to type attributes:

  • PROTECTED is the default.

  • PRIVATE indicates that the OTT utility generates accessory and mutator methods for each type attribute, getXXX() and setXXX().

CASE

This parameter affects the letter case of generated C++ identifiers. The valid values of CASE are:

  • SAME is the case of letters remains unchanged when converting database type and attribute names to C++ identifiers.

  • LOWER indicates that all uppercase letters are converted to lowercase.

  • UPPER indicates that all lowercase letters are converted to uppercase.

  • OPPOSITE indicates that all uppercase letters are converted to lowercase, and all lowercase letters are converted to uppercase.

This parameter affects only those identifiers (attributes or types not explicitly listed) not mentioned in the INTYPE file. Case conversion takes place after a legal identifier has been generated.

Note:

Case insensitive SQL identifiers not mentioned in the INTYPE file will appear in uppercase if CASE=SAME, and in lowercase if CASE=OPPOSITE. A SQL identifier is case insensitive if it was not quoted when it was declared.

CODE

This parameter specifies the host language to be output by the OTT utility. CODE=CPP must be specified for the OTT utility to generate C++ code for OCCI applications.

CONFIG

This parameter specifies the name of the OTT configuration file that lists commonly used parameter specifications. Parameter specifications are also read from a system configuration file found in an operating system-dependent location. All remaining parameter specifications must appear either on the command line or in the INTYPE file.

Note:

The CONFIG parameter can only be specified on the OTT command line. It is not allowed in the CONFIG file.

CPPFILE

This parameter specifies the name of the C++ source file that will contain the method implementations generated by the OTT utility. The methods generated in this file are called by OCCI while instantiating the objects and are not to be called directly in the an application.

This parameter is required under the following conditions:

  • A type not mentioned in the INTYPE file must be generated and two or more CPPFILEs are being generated. In this case, the unmentioned type goes in the CPPFILE specified on the command line.

  • The INTYPE parameter is not specified, and you want the OTT utility to translate all the types in the schema.

This parameter is optional when the CPPFILE is specified for individual types in the INTYPE file.

ERRTYPE

This parameter specifies the name of the error message output file. Information and error messages are sent to the standard output whether or not the ERRTYPE parameter is specified. Essentially, the ERRTYPE file is a copy of the INTYPE file with error messages added. In most cases, an error message will include a pointer to the text that caused the error.

If the filename specified for the ERRTYPE parameter on the command line does not include an extension, a platform-specific extension such as .TLS or .tls is added automatically.

HFILE

This parameter specifies the name of the header (.h) file to be generated by the OTT utility. The HFILE specified on the command line contains the declarations of types that are mentioned in the INTYPE file but whose header files are not specified there.

This parameter is required unless the header file for each type is specified individually in the INTYPE file. This parameter is also required if a type not mentioned in the INTYPE file must be generated because other types require it, and these other types are declared in two or more different files.

If the filename specified for the HFILE parameter on the command line or in the INTYPE file does not include an extension, a platform-specific extension such as .H or .h is added automatically.

INTYPE

This parameter specifies the name of the file from which to read the list of object type specifications. The OTT utility translates each type in the list. If the INTYPE parameter is not specified, all types in the user's schema will be translated.

If the filename specified for the INTYPE parameter on the command line does not include an extension, a platform-specific extension such as .TYP or .typ is automatically added.

INTYPE= may be omitted if USERID and INTYPE are the first two parameters, in that order, and USERID= is omitted.

The INTYPE file can be thought of as a makefile for type declarations. It lists the types for which C++ classes are needed.

See Also:

"Structure of the INTYPE File" for more information about the format of the INTYPE file

MAPFILE

This parameter specifies the name of the mapping file (XXX.cpp) and corresponding header file (XXX.h) that are generated by the OTT utility. The XXX.cpp file contains the implementation of the functions to register the mappings, while the XXX.h file contains the prototype for the function.

This parameter may be specified either on the command line or in the INTYPE file.

MAPFUNC

This parameter specifies the name of the function to be used to register the mappings generated by the OTT utility.

If this parameter is omitted, then the name of the function to register the mappings is derived from the filename specified in the MAPFILE parameter.

This parameter may be specified either on the command line or in the INTYPE file.

OUTTYPE

This parameter specifies the name of the file into which the OTT utility writes type information for all the object datatypes it processes. This file includes all types explicitly named in the INTYPE file, and may include additional types that are translated because they are used in the declarations of other types that need to be translated. This file may be used as an INTYPE file in a future invocation of the OTT utility.

If the INTYPE and OUTTYPE parameters refer to the same file, then the new INTYPE information replaces the old information in the INTYPE file. This provides a convenient way for the same INTYPE file to be used repeatedly in the cycle of altering types, generating type declarations, editing source code, precompiling, compiling, and debugging.

If the filename specified for the OUTTYPE parameter on the command line or in the INTYPE file does not include an extension, a platform-specific extension such as .TYP or .typ is automatically added.

SCHEMA_NAMES

This parameter offers control in qualifying the database name of a type from the default schema that is named in the OUTTYPE file. The OUTTYPE file generated by the OTT utility contains information about the types processed by the OTT utility, including the type names. Valid values include:

  • ALWAYS (default) indicates that all type names in the OUTTYPE file are qualified with a schema name.

  • IF_NEEDED indicates that the type names in the OUTTYPE file that belong to the default schema are not qualified with a schema name. Type names belonging to other schemas are qualified with the schema name.

  • FROM_INTYPE indicates that a type mentioned in the INTYPE file is qualified with a schema name in the OUTTYPE file only if it was qualified with a schema name in the INTYPE file. A type in the default schema that is not mentioned in the INTYPE file but generated because of type dependency is written with a schema name only if the first type encountered by the OTT utility that depends on it is also written with a schema name. However, a type that is not in the default schema to which the OTT utility is connected is always written with an explicit schema name.

The name of a type from a schema other that the default schema is always qualified with a schema name in the OUTTYPE file.

The schema name, or its absence, determines in which schema the type is found during program execution.

Example 7-4 How to use the SCHEMA_NAMES Parameter in OTT Utility

Consider an example where the SCHEMA_NAMES parameter is set to FROM_INTYPE, and the INTYPE file contains the following:

TYPE Person
TYPE joe.Dept
TYPE sam.Company

If the OTT utility and the application both connect to schema joe, then the application uses the same type (joe.Person) that the OTT utility uses. If the OTT utility connects to schema joe but the application connects to schema mary, then the application uses the type mary.Person. This behavior is appropriate only if the same CREATE TYPE Person statement has been executed in schema joe and schema mary.

On the other hand, the application uses type joe.Dept regardless of which schema the application is connected to. If this is the behavior you want, then be sure to include schema names with your type names in the INTYPE file.

In some cases, the OTT utility translates a type that the user did not explicitly name. For example, consider the following SQL declarations:

CREATE TYPE Address AS OBJECT
(
   street    VARCHAR2(40),
   city      VARCHAR(30),
   state     CHAR(2),
   zip_code  CHAR(10)
);

CREATE TYPE Person AS OBJECT
(
   name      CHAR(20),
   age       NUMBER,
   addr      ADDRESS
);

Suppose that the OTT utility connects to schema joe, SCHEMA_NAMES=FROM_INTYPE is specified, and the user's INTYPE files include either TYPE Person or TYPE joe.Person. The INTYPE file does not mention the type joe.Address, which is used as a nested object type in type joe.Person.

  • If Type Person appears in the INTYPE file, then TYPE Person and TYPE Address appears in the OUTTYPE file.

  • If TYPE joe.Person appears in the INTYPE file, then TYPE joe.Person and TYPE joe.Address appear in the OUTTYPE file.

  • If the joe.Address type is embedded in several types translated by the OTT utility, but it is not explicitly mentioned in the INTYPE file, then the decision of whether to use a schema name is made the first time the OTT utility encounters the embedded joe.Address type. If, for some reason, the user wants type joe.Address to have a schema name but does not want type Person to have one, then you must explicitly request this in the INTYPE file: TYPE joe.Address.

In the usual case in which each type is declared in a single schema, it is safest for you to qualify all type names with schema names in the INTYPE file.

TRANSITIVE

This parameter indicates whether type dependencies not explicitly listed in the INTYPE file are to be translated. Valid values are:

  • TRUE (default): types needed by other types and not mentioned in the INTYPE file are generated

  • FALSE: types not mentioned in the INTYPE file are not generated, even if they are used as attribute types of other generated types.

UNICODE

This parameter specifies whether the application provides unicode (UTF16) support.

  • NONE (default) --

  • ALL -- All CHAR (CHAR/VARCHAR) and NCHAR (NCHAR/NVARCHAR2) type attributes are declared as UString type in the OTT generated C++ class files. The corresponding getXXX()/setXXX() return values or parameters are UString types. The generated persistent operator new would also take only UString arguments.


    Note:

    This setting should be used when both the client characterset and the national characterset is UTF16.

  • ONLYNCHAR -- Similar to the ALL option, but only NCHAR type attributes will be declared as UString.


    Note:

    This setting should be used when the application sets only the Environment's national characterset to UTF16.

Example 7-5 How to Define a Schema for Unicode Support in OTT

create type CitiesList as varray(100) of varchar2(100);
 
create type Country as object
(  CNo Number(10),
   CName Varchar2(100),
   CNationalName NVarchar2(100),
   MainCities CitiesList);

Example 7-6 How to Use UNICODE=ALL Parameter in OTT

class Country : public oracle::occi::PObject
{
   private:
      oracle::occi::Number CNO;
      oracle::occi::UString CNAME;
      oracle::occi::UString CNATIONALNAME;
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE:::vector< oracle::occi::UString > MAINCITIES;

   public:

      oracle::occi::Number getCno() const;
      void setCno(const oracle::occi::Number &value);

      oracle::occi::UString getCname() const;
      void setCname(const oracle::occi::UString &value);
 
      oracle::occi::UString getCnationalname() const;
      void setCnationalname(const oracle::occi::UString &value);
 
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< oracle::occi::UString >& getMaincities();
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< oracle::occi::UString >& 
          getMaincities() const;
     void setMaincities(const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< oracle::occi::UString
          > &value);
...
}

Example 7-7 How to Use UNICODE=ONLYCHAR Parameter in OTT

class Country : public oracle::occi::PObject
{
   private:
      oracle::occi::Number CNO;
      oracle::occi::string CNAME;
      oracle::occi::UString CNATIONALNAME;
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< std::string > MAINCITIES;

   public:

      oracle::occi::Number getCno() const;
      void setCno(const oracle::occi::Number &value);

      oracle::occi::string getCname() const;
      void setCname(const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &value);
 
      oracle::occi::UString getCnationalname() const;
      void setCnationalname(const oracle::occi::UString &value);
 
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string>& 
         getMaincities();
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string >&
         getMaincities() const;
     void setMaincities(const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector
         < OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string > &value);
...
}

USE_MARKER

This parameter indicates whether to support OTT markers for carrying forward user added code. Valid values are:

  • FALSE (default) -- user added code will not be carried forward, even if the code is added between OTT_USERCODE_START and OTT_USERCODE_END markers.

  • TRUE -- code added between the markers OTT_USER_CODESTART and OTT_USERCODE_END will be carried forward when the same file is generated again.

USERID

This parameter specifies the Oracle username, password, and optional database name (Oracle Net database specification string). If the database name is omitted, the default database is assumed.

USERID=username/password[@db_name]

If this is the first parameter, then USERID= may be omitted as shown:

OTT username/password ...

This parameter is optional. If omitted, the OTT utility automatically attempts to connect to the default database as user OPS$username, where username is the user's operating system username.

Where OTT Parameters Can Appear

Supply OTT parameters on the command line, in a CONFIG file named on the command line, or both. Some parameters are also allowed in the INTYPE file.

The OTT utility is invoked as follows:

OTT parameters

You can name a configuration file on the command line with the CONFIG parameter as follows:

CONFIG=filename

If you name this parameter on the command line, then additional parameters are read from the configuration file named filename.

In addition, parameters are also read from a default configuration file that resides in an operating system-dependent location. This file must exist, but can be empty. If you choose to enter data in the configuration file, note that no white space is allowed on a line and parameters must be entered one to a line.

If the OTT utility is executed without any arguments, then an online parameter reference is displayed.

The types for the OTT utility to translate are named in the file specified by the INTYPE parameter. The parameters CASE, CPPFILE, HFILE, INITFILE, INITFUNC, MAPFILE, and MAPFNC may also appear in the INTYPE file. OUTTYPE files generated by the OTT utility include the CASE parameter, and include the INITFILE, and INITFUNC parameters if an initialization file was generated or the MAPFILE and MAPFUNC parameters if C++ codes was generated. The OUTTYPE file, as well as the CPPFILE for C++, specifies the HFILE individually for each type.

The case of the OTT command is operating system-dependent.

File Name Comparison Restriction

Currently, the OTT utility determines if two files are the same by comparing the filenames provided by the user either on the command line or in the INTYPE file. But one potential problem can occur when the OTT utility needs to know if two filenames refer to the same file. For example, if the OTT-generated file foo.h requires a type declaration written to foo1.h, and another type declaration written to /private/smith/foo1.h, then the OTT utility should generate one #include if the two files are the same, and two #includes if the files are different. In practice, though, it concludes that the two files are different, and generates two #includes as follows:

#ifndef FOO1_ORACLE
#include "foo1.h"
#endif
#ifndef FOO1_ORACLE
#include "/private/smith/foo1.h"
#endif

If foo1.h and /private/smith/foo1.h are different files, then only the first one will be included. If foo1.h and /private/smith/foo1.h are the same file, then a redundant #include will be written.

Therefore, if a file is mentioned several times on the command line or in the INTYPE file, then each mention of the file should use exactly the same filename.

Using the INTYPE File

When you run the OTT utility, the INTYPE file tells the OTT utility which database types should be translated. The INTYPE file also controls the naming of the generated structures or classes. You can either create an INTYPE file or use the OUTTYPE file of a previous invocation of the OTT utility. If you do not use an INTYPE file, then all types in the schema to which the OTT utility connects are translated.

Overview of the INTYPE File

Example 7-8 How to Create a User Defined INTYPE File Using the OTT Utility

CASE=LOWER
TYPE employee
   TRANSLATE SALARY$ AS salary
             DEPTNO AS department
TYPE ADDRESS
TYPE item
TYPE "Person"
TYPE PURCHASE_ORDER AS p_o

  • In the first line, the CASE parameter indicates that generated C identifiers should be in lowercase. However, this CASE parameter is only applied to those identifiers that are not explicitly mentioned in the INTYPE file. Thus, employee and ADDRESS would always result in C structures employee and ADDRESS, respectively. The members of these structures are named in lowercase.

  • The lines that begin with the TYPE keyword specify which types in the database should be translated. In this case, the EMPLOYEE, ADDRESS, ITEM, PERSON, and PURCHASE_ORDER types are set to be translated.

  • The TRANSLATE ... AS keywords specify that the name of an object attribute should be changed when the type is translated into a C structure. In this case, the SALARY$ attribute of the employee type is translated to salary.

  • The AS keyword in the final line specifies that the name of an object type should be changed when it is translated into a structure. In this case, the purchase_order database type is translated into a structure called p_o.

The OTT utility may need to translate additional types that are not listed in the INTYPE file. This is because the OTT utility analyzes the types in the INTYPE file for type dependencies before performing the translation, and it translates other types as necessary. For example, if the ADDRESS type were not listed in the INTYPE file, but the Person type had an attribute of type ADDRESS, then the OTT utility would still translate ADDRESS because it is required to define the Person type.

Note:

To specify that the OTT utility should not generate required object types that are not specified in the INTYPE file, set TRANSITIVE=FALSE. The default is TRANSITIVE=TRUE.

A normal case insensitive SQL identifier can be spelled in any combination of uppercase and lowercase in the INTYPE file, and is not quoted.

Use quotation marks, such as TYPE "Person" to reference SQL identifiers that have been created in a case sensitive manner, for example, CREATE TYPE "Person". A SQL identifier is case sensitive if it was quoted when it was declared. Quotation marks can also be used to refer to a SQL identifier that is an OTT-reserved word, for example, TYPE "CASE". In this case, the quoted name must be in uppercase if the SQL identifier was created in a case insensitive manner, for example, CREATE TYPE Case. If an OTT-reserved word is used to refer to the name of a SQL identifier but is not quoted, then the OTT utility will report a syntax error in the INTYPE file.

See Also:

  • "Structure of the INTYPE File" for a more detailed specification of the structure of the INTYPE file and the available options.

  • "CASE" for further information regarding the CASE parameter

Structure of the INTYPE File

The INTYPE and OUTTYPE files list the types translated by the OTT utility and provide all the information needed to determine how a type or attribute name is translated to a legal C or C++ identifier. These files contain one or more type specifications, and may also contain specifications of CASE, CPPFILE, HFILE, INITFILE, INITFUNC, MAPFILE, or MAPFUNC.

If the CASE, INITFILE, INITFUNC, MAPFILE, or MAPFUNC options are present, then they must precede any type specifications. If these options appear both on the command line and in the INTYPE file, then the value on the command line is used.

See Also:

"Overview of the OUTTYPE File" for an example of a simple user-defined INTYPE file and of the full OUTTYPE file that the OTT utility generates from it

INTYPE File Type Specifications

A type specification in the INTYPE file names an object datatype that is to be translated. The following is an example of a user-created INTYPE file:

TYPE employee
   TRANSLATE SALARY$ AS salary
      DEPTNO AS department
TYPE ADDRESS
TYPE PURCHASE_ORDER AS p_o

The structure of a type specification is as follows:

TYPE type_name
[GENERATE type_identifier]
[AS type_identifier]
[VERSION [=] version_string]
[HFILE [=] hfile_name]
[CPPFILE [=] cppfile_name]
[TRANSLATE{member_name [AS identifier]}...]

The type_name syntax follows this form:

[schema_name.]type_name

In this syntax, schema_name is the name of the schema that owns the given object datatype, and type_name is the name of the type. The default schema, if one is not specified, is that of the userID invoking the OTT utility. To use a specific schema, you must use schema_name.

The components of the type specification are:

  • type_name: Name of the object datatype.

  • type_identifier: C / C++ identifier used to represent the class. The GENERATE clause is used to specify the name of the class that the OTT utility generates. The AS clause specifies the name of the class that you write. The GENERATE clause is typically used to extend a class. The AS clause, when optionally used without the GENERATE clause, specifies the name of the C structure or the C++ class that represents the user-defined type.

  • version_string: Version string of the type that was used when the code was generated by the previous invocation of the OTT utility. The version string is generated by the OTT utility and written to the OUTTYPE file, which can later be used as the INTYPE file in later invocations of the OTT utility. The version string does not affect how the OTT utility operates, but can be used to select which version of the object datatype is used in the running program.

  • hfile_name: Name of the header file into which the declarations of the corresponding class are written. If you omit the HFILE clause, then the file specified by the command line HFILE parameter is used.

  • cppfile_name: Name of the C++ source file into which the method implementations of the corresponding class is written. If you omit the CPPFILE clause, the file specified by the command line CPPFILE parameter is used.

  • member_name: Name of an attribute (data member) that is to be translated to the identifier.

  • identifier: C / C++ identifier used to represent the attribute in the program. You can specify identifiers in this way for any number of attributes. The default name mapping algorithm is used for the attributes not mentioned.

An object datatype may need to be translated for one of two reasons:

  • It appears in the INTYPE file.

  • It is required to declare another type that must be translated, and the TRANSITIVE parameter is set to TRUE.

If a type that is not mentioned explicitly is required by types declared in exactly one file, then the translation of the required type is written to the same files as the explicitly declared types that require it.

If a type that is not mentioned explicitly is required by types declared in two or more different files, then the translation of the required type is written to the global HFILE file.

Note:

You may indicate whether the OTT utility should generate required object types that are not specified in the INTYPE file. Set TRANSITIVE=FALSE so the OTT utility will not to generate required object types. The default is TRANSITIVE=TRUE.

Nested #include File Generation

HFILE files generated by the OTT utility #include other necessary files, and #define a symbol constructed from the name of the file. This symbol #defined can then be used to determine if the related HFILE file has already been #included. Consider, for example, a database with the following types:

create type px1 AS OBJECT (col1 number, col2 integer);
create type px2 AS OBJECT (col1 px1);
create type px3 AS OBJECT (col1 px1);

The INTYPE file contains the following information:

CASE=lower
type pxl
   hfile tott95a.h
type px3
   hfile tott95b.h

You invoke the OTT utility as follows:

ott scott/tiger intype=tott95i.typ outtype=tott95o.typ code=cpp

The OTT utility then generates the following two header files, named tott95a.h and tott95b.h. They are listed in

Example 7-9 Listing of ott95a.h

#ifndef TOTT95A_ORACLE
# define TOTT95A_ORACLE

#ifndef OCCI_ORACLE
# include <occi.h>
#endif

/************************************************************/
//  generated declarations for the PX1 object type.
/************************************************************/

class px1 : public oracle::occi::PObject {

protected:
   oracle::occi::Number col1;
   oracle::occi::Number col2;

public:
   void *operator new(size_t size);
   void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection * sess,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string& table);
   void *operator new(size_t, void *ctxOCCI_);
   void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection *sess,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &tableName, 
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &typeName,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &tableSchema, 
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &typeSchema);
   void getSQLTypeName(oracle::occi::Environment *env, void **schemaName,
      unsigned int &schemaNameLen, void **typeName,
      unsigned int &typeNameLen) const;
   px1();
   px1(void *ctxOCCI_) : oracle::occi::PObject (ctxOCCI_) { };
   static void *readSQL(void *ctxOCCI_);
   virtual void readSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
   static void writeSQL(void *objOCCI_, void *ctxOCCI_);
   virtual void writeSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
   ~px1();
};

#endif

Example 7-10 Listing of ott95b.h

#ifndef TOTT95B_ORACLE
# define TOTT95B_ORACLE

#ifndef OCCI_ORACLE
# include <occi.h>
#endif

#ifndef TOTT95A_ORACLE
# include "tott95a.h"
#endif

/************************************************************/
//  generated declarations for the PX3 object type.
/************************************************************/

class px3 : public oracle::occi::PObject {

protected:
   px1 * col1;

public:
   void *operator new(size_t size);
   void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection * sess,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string& table);
   void *operator new(size_t, void *ctxOCCI_);
   void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection *sess,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &tableName, 
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &typeName,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &tableSchema, 
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &typeSchema);
   void getSQLTypeName(oracle::occi::Environment *env, void **schemaName,
      unsigned int &schemaNameLen, void **typeName,
      unsigned int &typeNameLen) const;
   px3();
   px3(void *ctxOCCI_) : oracle::occi::PObject (ctxOCCI_) { };
   static void *readSQL(void *ctxOCCI_);
   virtual void readSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
   static void writeSQL(void *objOCCI_, void *ctxOCCI_);
   virtual void writeSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
   ~px3();
};
#endif

In the tott95b.h file, the symbol TOTT95B_ORACLE is #define d at the beginning of the file. This enables you to conditionally #include this header file in another file. To accomplish this, you would use the following construct:

#ifndef TOTT95B_ORACLE
#include "tott95b.h"
#endif

By using this technique, you can #include tott95b.h in, say foo.h, without having to know whether some other file #included in foo.h also #includes tott95b.h.

Next, the file tott95a.h is included because it contains the declaration of struct px1, that tott95b.h requires. When the INTYPE file requests that type declarations be written to more than one file, the OTT utility determines which other files each HFILE must #include, and generates each necessary #include.

Note that the OTT utility uses quotes in this #include. When a program including tott95b.h is compiled, the search for tott95a.h begins where the source program was found, and will thereafter follow an implementation-defined search rule. If tott95a.h cannot be found in this way, then a complete filename (for example, a UNIX absolute path name beginning with a slash character (/)) should be used in the INTYPE file to specify the location of tott95a.h.

OTT Utility Datatype Mappings

When the OTT utility generates a C++ class from a database type, the structure or class contains one element corresponding to each attribute of the object type. The datatypes of the attributes are mapped to types that are used in Oracle object data types. The datatypes found in Oracle include a set of predefined, primitive types and provide for the creation of user-defined types, like object types and collections.

The set of predefined types includes standard types that are familiar to most programmers, including number and character types. It also includes large object datatypes (for example, BLOB or CLOB).

Example 7-11 How to Represent Object Attributes Using the OTT Utility

Oracle also includes a set of predefined types that are used to represent object type attributes in C++ classes. Consider the following object type definition, and its corresponding OTT-generated structure declarations:

CREATE TYPE employee AS OBJECT
(  name       VARCHAR2(30),
   empno      NUMBER,
   deptno     NUMBER,
   hiredate   DATE,
   salary     NUMBER
);

The OTT utility, assuming that the CASE parameter is set to LOWER and there are no explicit mappings of type or attribute names, produces the following output:

#ifndef DATATYPES_ORACLE
# define DATATYPES_ORACLE

#ifndef OCCI_ORACLE
# include <occi.h>
#endif

/************************************************************/
//  generated declarations for the EMPLOYEE object type.
/************************************************************/

class employee : public oracle::occi::PObject {

protected:
   OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string NAME;
   oracle::occi::Number EMPNO;
   oracle::occi::Number DEPTNO;   oracle::occi::Date HIREDATE;
   oracle::occi::Number SALARY;

public:
   void *operator new(size_t size);
   void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection * sess,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string& table);
   void *operator new(size_t, void *ctxOCCI_);
   void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection *sess,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &tableName, 
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &typeName,
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &tableSchema, 
      const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string &typeSchema);
   void getSQLTypeName(oracle::occi::Environment *env, void **schemaName,
      unsigned int &schemaNameLen, void **typeName,
      unsigned int &typeNameLen) const;
   employee();
   employee(void *ctxOCCI_) : oracle::occi::PObject (ctxOCCI_) { };
   static void *readSQL(void *ctxOCCI_);
   virtual void readSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
   static void writeSQL(void *objOCCI_, void *ctxOCCI_);
   virtual void writeSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
   ~employee();

};

#endif

Table 7-2 lists the mappings from types that can be used as attributes to object datatypes that are generated by the OTT utility.

Table 7-2 C++ Object Datatype Mappings for Object Type Attributes

Object Attribute Types C++ Mapping

BFILE

Bfile

BLOB

Blob

BINARY_DOUBLE

BDouble

BINARY_FLOAT

BFloat

CHAR(n), CHARACTER(n)

string

CLOB

Clob

DATE

Date

DEC, DEC(n), DEC(n,n)

Number

DECIMAL, DECIMAL(n), DECIMAL(n,n)

Number

FLOAT, FLOAT(n), DOUBLE PRECISION

Number

INT, INTEGER, SMALLINT

Number

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

IntervalDS

INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH

IntervalYM

Nested Object Type

C++ name of the nested object type

NESTED TABLE

vector<attribute_type>

NUMBER, NUMBER(n), NUMBER(n,n)

Number

NUMERIC, NUMERIC(n), NUMERIC(n,n)

Number

RAW

Bytes

REAL

Number

REF

Ref<attribute_type>

TIMESTAMP,TIMESTAMP WITH TIME ZONE, TIMESTAMP WITH LOCAL TIME ZONE

Timestamp

VARCHAR(n)

string

VARCHAR2(n)

string

VARRAY

vector<attribute_type>


Example 7-12 How to Map Object Datatypes Using the OTT Utility

The example assumes that the following database types are created:

CREATE TYPE my_varray AS VARRAY(5) of integer;

CREATE TYPE object_type AS OBJECT
   (object_name VARCHAR2(20));

CREATE TYPE other_type AS OBJECT
   (object_number NUMBER);

CREATE TYPE my_table AS TABLE OF object_type;

CREATE TYPE many_types AS OBJECT
(
    the_varchar    VARCHAR2(30),
   the_char       CHAR(3),
   the_blob       BLOB,
   the_clob       CLOB,
   the_object     object_type,
   another_ref    REF other_type,
   the_ref        REF many_types,
   the_varray     my_varray,
   the_table      my_table,
   the_date       DATE,
   the_num        NUMBER,
   the_raw        RAW(255)
);

An INTYPE file should already exists, and include the following:

CASE = LOWER
TYPE many_types

The following is an example of the OTT type mappings for C++, given the types created in the example in the previous section, and an INTYPE file that includes the following:

CASE = LOWER
TYPE many_types

#ifndef MYFILENAME_ORACLE
#define MYFILENAME_ORACLE

#ifndef OCCI_ORACLE
#include <occi.h>
#endif

/************************************************************/
//  generated declarations for the OBJECT_TYPE object type.
/************************************************************/

class object_type : public oracle::occi::PObject 
{
   protected:
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string object_name;

   public:
      void *operator new(size_t size);
      void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection * sess,
         const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string& table);
      void getSQLTypeName(oracle::occi::Environment *env, void **schemaName,
                          unsigned int &schemaNameLen, void **typeName,
                          unsigned int &typeNameLen) const;
      object_type();
      object_type(void *ctxOCCI_) : oracle::occi::PObject (ctxOCCI_) { };
      static void *readSQL(void *ctxOCCI_);
      virtual void readSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
      static void writeSQL(void *objOCCI_, void *ctxOCCI_);
      virtual void writeSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
};

/************************************************************/
//  generated declarations for the OTHER_TYPE object type.
/************************************************************/

class other_type : public oracle::occi::PObject
{
   protected:
      oracle::occi::Number object_number;

   public:
      void *operator new(size_t size);
      void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection * sess,
         const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string& table);
      void getSQLTypeName(oracle::occi::Environment *env, void **schemaName,
                          unsigned int &schemaNameLen, void **typeName,
                          unsigned int &typeNameLen) const;
      other_type();
      other_type(void *ctxOCCI_) : oracle::occi::PObject (ctxOCCI_) { };
      static void *readSQL(void *ctxOCCI_);
      virtual void readSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
      static void writeSQL(void *objOCCI_, void *ctxOCCI_);
      virtual void writeSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
};

/************************************************************/
//  generated declarations for the MANY_TYPES object type.
/************************************************************/

class many_types : public oracle::occi::PObject 
{
   protected:
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string the_varchar;
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string the_char;
      oracle::occi::Blob the_blob;
      oracle::occi::Clob the_clob;
      object_type * the_object;
      oracle::occi::Ref< other_type > another_ref;
      oracle::occi::Ref< many_types > the_ref;
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< oracle::occi::Number > the_varray;
      OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::vector< object_type * > the_table;
      oracle::occi::Date the_date;
      oracle::occi::Number the_num;
      oracle::occi::Bytes the_raw;

   public:
      void *operator new(size_t size);
      void *operator new(size_t size, const oracle::occi::Connection * sess,
         const OCCI_STD_NAMESPACE::string& table);
      void getSQLTypeName(oracle::occi::Environment *env, void **schemaName,
                          unsigned int &schemaNameLen, void **typeName,
                          unsigned int &typeNameLen) const;
      many_types();
      many_types(void *ctxOCCI_) : oracle::occi::PObject (ctxOCCI_) { };
      static void *readSQL(void *ctxOCCI_);
      virtual void readSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
      static void writeSQL(void *objOCCI_, void *ctxOCCI_);
      virtual void writeSQL(oracle::occi::AnyData& streamOCCI_);
};

#endif

The OTT utility generates the following C++ class declarations (comments are not part of the OTT output, and are added only to clarify the example):

For C++, when TRANSITIVE=TRUE, the OTT utility automatically translates any types that are used as attributes of a type being translated, including types that are only being accessed by a pointer or REF in an object type attribute. Even though only the many_types object was specified in the INTYPE file for the C++ example, a class declaration was generated for all the object types, including the other_type object, which was only accessed by a REF in the many_types object.

Default Name Mapping

When the OTT utility creates a C or C++ identifier name for an object type or attribute, it translates the name from the database character set to a legal C or C++ identifier. First, the name is translated from the database character set to the character set used by the OTT utility. Next, if a translation of the resulting name is supplied in the INTYPE file, that translation is used. Otherwise, the OTT utility translates the name character-by-character to the compiler character set, applying the character case specified in the CASE parameter. The following text describes this in more detail.

When the OTT utility reads the name of a database entity, the name is automatically translated from the database character set to the character set used by the OTT utility. In order for the OTT utility to read the name of the database entity successfully, all the characters of the name must be found in the OTT character set, although a character may have different encodings in the two character sets.

The easiest way to guarantee that the character set used by the OTT utility contains all the necessary characters is to make it the same as the database character set. Note, however, that the OTT character set must be a superset of the compiler character set. That is, if the compiler character set is 7-bit ASCII, then the OTT character set must include 7-bit ASCII as a subset, and if the compiler character set is 7-bit EBCDIC, then the OTT character set must include 7-bit EBCDIC as a subset. The user specifies the character set that the OTT utility uses by setting the NLS_LANG environment variable, or by some other operating system-specific mechanism.

Once the OTT utility has read the name of a database entity, it translates the name from the character set used by the OTT utility to the compiler's character set. If a translation of the name appears in the INTYPE file, then the OTT utility uses that translation.

Otherwise, the OTT utility attempts to translate the name as follows:

  1. If the OTT character set is a multibyte character set, all multibyte characters in the name that have single-byte equivalents are converted to those single-byte equivalents.

  2. The name is converted from the OTT character set to the compiler character set. The compiler character set is a single-byte character set such as US7ASCII.

  3. The case of letters is set according to how the CASE parameter is defined, and any character that is not legal in a C or C++ identifier, or that has no translation in the compiler character set, is replaced by an underscore character (_). If at least one character is replaced by an underscore, then the OTT utility gives a warning message. If all the characters in a name are replaced by underscores, the OTT utility gives an error message.

Character-by-character name translation does not alter underscores, digits, or single-byte letters that appear in the compiler character set, so legal C or C++ identifiers are not altered.

Name translation may, for example, translate accented single-byte characters such as o with an umlaut or an a with an accent grave to o or a, with no accent, and may translate a multibyte letter to its single-byte equivalent. Name translation will typically fail if the name contains multibyte characters that lack single-byte equivalents. In this case, the user must specify name translations in the INTYPE file.

The OTT utility will not detect a naming clash caused by two or more database identifiers being mapped to the same C name, nor will it detect a naming problem where a database identifier is mapped to a C keyword.

Overview of the OUTTYPE File

The OUTTYPE file is named on the OTT command line. When the OTT utility generates a C++ header file, it also writes the results of the translation into the OUTTYPE file. This file contains an entry for each of the translated types, including its version string and the header file to which its C++ representation was written.

The OUTTYPE file from one OTT utility run can be used as the INTYPE file for a subsequent invocation of the OTT utility.

Example 7-13 OUTTYPE File Generated by the OTT Utility

In this INTYPE file, the programmer specifies the case for OTT-generated C++ identifiers, and provides a list of types that should be translated. In two of these types, naming conventions are specified. This is what the OUTTYPE file looks like after running the OTT utility:

The following example shows what t:

CASE = LOWER
TYPE EMPLOYEE AS employee
   VERSION = "$8.0"
   HFILE = demo.h
   TRANSLATE SALARY$ AS salary
             DEPTNO AS department
TYPE ADDRESS AS ADDRESS
   VERSION = "$8.0"
   HFILE = demo.h
TYPE ITEM AS item
   VERSION = "$8.0"
   HFILE = demo.h
TYPE "Person" AS Person
   VERSION = "$8.0"
   HFILE = demo.h
TYPE PURCHASE_ORDER AS p_o
   VERSION = "$8.0"
   HFILE = demo.h

When examining the contents of the OUTTYPE file, you might discover types listed that were not included in the INTYPE file specification. For example, consider the case where the INTYPE file only specified that the person type was to be translated:

CASE = LOWER
TYPE PERSON

If the definition of the person type includes an attribute of type address, then the OUTTYPE file includes entries for both PERSON and ADDRESS. The person type cannot be translated completely without first translating address.

The OTT utility analyzes the types in the INTYPE file for type dependencies before performing the translation, and translates other types as necessary.

Note:

To specify that the OTT utility should not generate required object types that are not specified in the INTYPE file, set TRANSITIVE=FALSE. The default is TRANSITIVE=TRUE.

The OTT Utility and OCCI Applications

The OTT utility generates objects and maps SQL datatypes to C++ classes. The OTT utility also implements a few methods called by OCCI when instantiating objects and a function that is called in the OCCI application to register the mappings with the environment. These declarations are stored in a header file that you include (#include) in your OCCI application. The prototype for the function that registers the mappings is written to a separate header file that you also include in your OCCI application.The method implementations are stored in a C++ source code file (with extension .cpp) that is linked with the OCCI application. The function that registers the mappings is stored in a separate C++ (xxx.cpp) file that is also linked with the application.

Figure 7-1 shows the steps involved in using the OTT utility with OCCI. These steps are described following the figure.

Figure 7-1 The OTT Utility with OCCI

Description of Figure 7-1 follows
Description of "Figure 7-1 The OTT Utility with OCCI"

  1. Create the type definitions in the database by using the SQL DLL.

  2. Create the INTYPE file that contains the database types to be translated by the OTT utility.

  3. Specify that C++ should be generated and invoke the OTT utility.

    The OTT utility then generates the following files:

    • A header file (with the extension .h) that contains C++ class representations of object types. The filename is specified on the OTT command line by the HFILE parameter.

    • A header file containing the prototype of the function (MAPFUNC) that registers the mappings.

    • A C++ source file (with the extension .cpp) that contains the static methods to be called by OCCI while instantiating the objects. Do not call these methods directly from your OCCI application. The filename is specified on the OTT command line by the CPPFILE parameter.

    • A file that contains the function used to register the mappings with the environment (with the extension .cpp). The filename is specified on the OTT command line by the MAPFILE parameter.

    • A file (the OUTTYPE file) that contains an entry for each of the translated types, including the version string and the file into which it is written. The filename is specified on the OTT command line by the OUTTYPE parameter.

  4. Write the OCCI application and include the header files created by the OTT utility in the OCCI source code file.

    The application declares an environment and calls the function MAPFUNC to register the mappings.

  5. Compile the OCCI application to create the OCCI object code, and link the object code with the OCCI libraries to create the program executable.

C++ Classes Generated by the OTT Utility

When the OTT utility generates a C++ class from a database object type, the class declaration contains one element corresponding to each attribute of the object type. The datatypes of the attribute are mapped to types that are used in Oracle object datatypes, as defined in Table 7-2.

For each class, two new operators, readSQL() and writeSQL() methods are generated. They are used by OCCI to marshall and unmarshall objects.

By default, the C++ classes generated by the OTT utility for an object type are derived from the PObject class, so the generated constructor in the class also derives from the PObject class. For inherited database types, the class is derived from the parent type class as is the generated constructor and only the elements corresponding to attributes not already in the parent class are included.

Class declarations that include the elements corresponding to the database type attributes and the method declarations are included in the header file generated by the OTT utility. The method implementations are included in the CPPFILE file generated by the OTT utility.

Example 7-14 How to Generate C++ Classes Using the OTT Utility

This example demonstrates how to generate C++ classes using the OTT utility:

  1. Define the types:

    CREATE TYPE FULL_NAME AS OBJECT (first_name CHAR(20), 
       last_name CHAR(20));
    CREATE TYPE ADDRESS AS OBJECT (state CHAR(20), zip CHAR(20));
    CREATE TYPE ADDRESS_TAB AS VARRAY(3) of REF ADDRESS;
    CREATE TYPE PERSON AS OBJECT (id NUMBER, name FULL_NAME, 
       curr_addr REF ADDRESS, prev_addr_l ADDRESS_TAB) NOT FINAL;
    CREATE TYPE STUDENT UNDER PERSON (school_name CHAR(20));
    
    
  2. Provide an INTYPE file:

    CASE = SAME
    MAPFILE = RegisterMappings_3.cpp
    TYPE FULL_NAME AS FullName
       TRANSLATE first_name as FirstName
                 last_name as LastName
    TYPE ADDRESS
    TYPE PERSON
    TYPE STUDENT
    
    
  3. Invoke the OTT utility:

    ott userid=scott/tiger intype=demoin_3.typ outype=demoout_3.typ 
       code=cpp hfile=demo_3.h cppfile=demo_3.cpp
    

Map Registry Function

One function to register the mappings with the environment is generated by the OTT utility. The function contains the mappings for all the types translated by the invocation of the OTT utility. The function name is either specified in the MAPFUNC parameter or, if that parameter is not specified, derived from MAPFILE parameter. The only argument to the function is the pointer to Environment.

The function uses the provided Environment to get Map and then registers the mapping of each translated type.

Extending C++ Classes

To enhance the functionality of a class generated by the OTT utility, you can derive new classes. You can also add methods to a class, but Oracle does not recommend doing so due to an inherent risk.

See Also:

"Carrying Forward User Added Code" for details on how to use OTT markers to retain code you want to add in OTT generated files

Assume that you want to generate the both CAddress and MyAddress classes from the SQL object type ADDRESS. MyAddress class can be derived from CAddress class. To do this, the OTT utility must alter the code it generates:

  • By using the MyAddress class instead of the CAddress class to represent attributes whose database type is ADDRESS

  • By using the MyAddress class instead of the CAddress class to represent vector and REF elements whose database type is ADDRESS

  • By using the MyAddress class instead of the CAddress class as the base class for database object types that are inherited from ADDRESS. Even though a derived class is a subtype of MyAddress, the readSQL() and writeSQL() methods called are those of the CAddress class.

Caution:

When a class is both extended and used as a base class for another generated class, the inheriting type class and the inherited type class must be generated in separate files.

Example 7-15 How to Extend C++ Classes Using the OTT Utility

To use the OTT utility to generate the CAddress class, which is derived from MyAddress class), the following clause must be specified in the TYPE statement:

TYPE ADDRESS GENERATE CAdress AS MyAddress

Given the database types FULL_NAME, ADDRESS, PERSON, and PFGRFDENT as they were created before and changing the INTYPE file to include the GENERATE ... AS clause:

CASE = SAME
MAPFILE = RegisterMappings_5.cpp

TYPE FULL_NAME GENERATE CFullName AS MyFullName
   TRANSLATE first_name as FirstName
             last_name as LastName

TYPE ADDRESS GENERATE CAddress AS MyAddress
TYPE PERSON GENERATE CPerson AS MyPerson
TYPE STUDENT GENERATE CStudent AS MyStudent

Carrying Forward User Added Code

To extend the functionality of OTT generated code, at times programmers may want to add code in the OTT generated file. The way OTT can distinguish between OTT generated code and code added by the user is by looking for some predefined markers (tags). OTT recognizes OTT_USERCODE_START as the "start of user code marker", and OTT_USERCODE_END as the "end of user code marker".

For OTT marker support, a user block is defined as

OTT_USERCODE_START + user added code + OTT_USERCODE_END

OTT marker support enables carrying forward the user added blocks in *.h and *.cpp files.

Properties of OTT Markers

These items describe the properties of OTT Markers Support:

  1. User must use the command line option USE_MARKER=TRUE from the very first time OTT is invoked to generate a file.

  2. User should treat markers like other C++ statements; a marker will be defined by OTT in the generated file as follows when the command line option USE_MARKER=TRUE is used:

    #ifndef OTT_USERCODE_START 
             #define OTT_USERCODE_START 
             #endif
             #ifndef OTT_USERCODE_END
             #define OTT_USERCODE_END
             #endif
    
    
  3. The markers, OTT_USERCODE_START and OTT_USERCODE_END, must be preceded and followed by white space.

  4. OTT will copy the text/code given within markers verbatim along with the markers while generating the code next time,

    User modified code:

    1  // --- modified generated code 
             2  OTT_USERCODE_START 
             3  // --- including "myfullname.h" 
             4  #ifndef MYFULLNAME_ORACLE 
             5  #include "myfullname.h" 
             6  #endif 
             7  OTT_USERCODE_END 
             8  // --- end of code addition 
    
    

    Carried forward code:

    1  OTT_USERCODE_START 
             2  // --- including "myfullname.h" 
             3  #ifndef MYFULLNAME_ORACLE 
             4  #include "myfullname.h" 
             5  #endif 
             6  OTT_USERCODE_END 
    
    
  5. OTT will not be able to carry forward user added code properly if the database TYPE or INTYPE file undergoes changes as shown in the following cases:

    • If user modifies the case of the type name, OTT will fail to find out the class name with which the code was associated earlier as the case of the class name got modified by the user in the INTYPE file.

      CASE=UPPER                               CASE=LOWER 
      TYPE employee                            TYPE employee 
      TRANSLATE SALARY$ AS salary              TRANSLATE SALARY$ AS salary 
         DEPTNO AS department                     DEPTNO AS department 
      TYPE ADDRESS                             TYPE ADDRESS 
      TYPE item                                TYPE item 
      TYPE "Person"                            TYPE "Person" 
      TYPE PURCHASE_ORDER AS p_o               TYPE PURCHASE_ORDER AS p_o
      
      
    • If user asks to generate the class with different name (GENERATE AS clause of INTYPE file), OTT will fail to find out the class name with which the code was associated earlier as the class name got modified by the user in the INTYPE file.

      CASE=LOWER                           CASE=LOWER 
      TYPE employee                        TYPE employee 
      TRANSLATE SALARY$ AS salary          TRANSLATE SALARY$ AS salary 
         DEPTNO AS department                 DEPTNO AS department 
      TYPE ADDRESS                         TYPE ADDRESS 
      TYPE item                            TYPE item 
      TYPE "Person"                        TYPE "Person" 
      TYPE PURCHASE_ORDER AS p_o           TYPE PURCHASE_ORDER AS
                                              purchase_order
      
      
  6. If OTT encounters an error while parsing an .h or .cpp file, it reports the error and leaves the file having error as it is so that the user can go back and correct the error reported, and rerun OTT.

  7. OTT will flag an error if:

    • it does not find a matching OTT_USERCODE_END for OTT_USERCODE_START encountered

    • markers are nested (OTT finds next OTT_USERCODE_START before OTT_USERCODE_END is found for the previous OTT_USERCODE_START)

    • OTT_USERCODE_END is encountered before OTT_USERCODE_START

Using OTT Markers

The user must use command line option USE_MARKER=TRUE to turn on marker support. There are two general ways in which OTT markers can carry forward user added code:

  1. User code added in .h file.

    • User code added in global scope. This is typically the case when user needs to include different header files, forward declaration, and so on. Refer to the code example provided later.

    • User code added in class declaration. At any point of time OTT generated class declaration will have private scope for data members and public scope for methods, or protected scope for data members and public scope for methods. User blocks can be added after all OTT generated declarations in either access specifiers.

    Example 7-16 How to Add User Code to a Header File Using OTT Utility

    ...                                                 
    #ifndef OTT_USERCODE_START                                  
    #define OTT_USERCODE_START 
    #endif
    #ifndef OTT_USERCODE_END
    #define OTT_USERCODE_END
    #endif           
    
    #ifndef OCCI_ORACLE
    #include <occi.h>
    #endif
    
    OTT_USERCODE_START     // user added code 
    ...
    OTT_USERCODE_END
    
    #ifndef ...            // OTT generated include
    #include " ... "
    #endif
    
    OTT_USERCODE_START     // user added code 
    ...
    OTT_USERCODE_END
    
    class <class_name_1> : public oracle::occi::PObject
    {  protected:
          ...             // OTT generated data members 
          OTT_USERCODE_START    // user added code  for data member / method
          ...                   //    declaration / inline method
          OTT_USERCODE_END
         
       public:
          void *operator new(size_t size);
          ...
          OTT_USERCODE_START   // user added code  for data member / method
          ...                  // declaration / inline method definition
          OTT_USERCODE_END
    };
      
    OTT_USERCODE_START     // user added code 
    ...
    OTT_USERCODE_END
    
    class <class_name_2> : public oracle::occi::PObject
    {
       ...
    };
    
    OTT_USERCODE_START     // user added code 
    ...                                                          
    OTT_USERCODE_END                                             
    ...                                                                  
    #endif                 // end of .h file                     
    
    
  2. User code added in .cpp file. OTT will support adding a new user defined method within OTT markers. The user block must be added at the beginning of the file, just after the includes and before the definition of OTT generated methods. If there are more than one OTT generated includes, user code can also be added between OTT generated includes. User code added in any other part of a xxx.cpp file will not be carried forward.

    Example 7-17 How to Add User Code to the Source File Using the OTT Utility

    #ifndef OTT_USERCODE_START                                   
    #define OTT_USERCODE_START                                  
    #endif                                                       
                                                                       
    #ifndef OTT_USERCODE_END
    #define OTT_USERCODE_END
    #endif
    ...
       OTT_USERCODE_START    // user added code 
          ...
       OTT_USERCODE_END
    ...
       OTT_USERCODE_START    // user added code 
          ...
       OTT_USERCODE_END
    
    /*************************************************************
    / generated method implementations for the ... object type.
    /*************************************************************/
    
    void *<class_name_1>::operator new(size_t size)
    {
       return oracle::occi::PObject::operator new(size);
    }
    ...                                                          
    // end of .cpp file