19 OCI Data Type Mapping and Manipulation Functions

This chapter describes the OCI data type mapping and manipulation functions. These functions are Oracle's external C language interface to Oracle Database predefined types.

Introduction to Data Type Mapping and Manipulation Functions

This chapter describes the OCI data type mapping and manipulation functions in detail.

Conventions for OCI Functions

See the "Conventions for OCI Functions" for the conventions used in describing each function. The entries for each function may also contain the following information:

Returns

A description of what value is returned by the function if the function returns something other than the standard return codes listed in "Function Return Values".

Data Type Mapping and Manipulation Function Return Values

The OCI data type mapping and manipulation functions typically return one of the values shown in Table 19-1.

Table 19-1 Function Return Values

Return Value	Meaning
`OCI_SUCCESS`	The operation succeeded.
`OCI_ERROR`	The operation failed. The specific error can be retrieved by calling `OCIErrorGet()` on the error handle passed to the function.
`OCI_INVALID_HANDLE`	The OCI handle passed to the function is invalid.

Functions Returning Other Values

Some functions return values other than those listed in Table 19-1. When you use the following functions, consider that they return a value directly from the function call, rather than through an OUT parameter.

Server Round-Trips for Data Type Mapping and Manipulation Functions

For a table showing the number of server round-trips required for individual OCI data type mapping and manipulation functions, see Table C-5.

Examples

For more information about these functions, including some code examples, see Chapter 12.