A user profile is a set of changeable options that affects the way your applications run. Oracle Application Object Library establishes a value for each option in a user's profile when the user logs on or changes responsibility. Your user can change the value of profile options at any time. Oracle Application Object Library provides many options that your users can set to alter the user interface of your applications to satisfy their individual preferences.
You, as a developer, can define even more profile options that affect your Oracle Application Object Library-based applications. And, because you may not want your users to be able to override values for each of your options, you can define options at one or more of four levels: Site, Application, Responsibility and User. You can choose at which of these levels you want your system administrator to be able to see and update option values. You also decide which profile options defined at the User level you want your users to be able to see and update.
For example, you can define a user profile option to determine which subset of the organization's data your end user sees. From the point of view of a system administrator or end user, user profile options you define are indistinguishable from those Oracle Application Object Library provides.
For more information on profile options, see the Oracle Applications System Administrator's Guide.
User profile options typically exist at Site, Application, Responsibility and User levels. Oracle Application Object Library treats user profile levels as a hierarchy, where User is the highest level of the hierarchy, followed by Responsibility, Application and at the lowest level, Site. Higher-level option values override lower-level option values.
Each user profile option ordinarily exists at each level. For example, Oracle Application Object Library provides a site-level Printer option, an application-level Printer option, and so on. Oracle Application Object Library enforces the level hierarchy to ensure that higher-level option values override lower-level values. As a result, if your Site-level Printer value is "New York", but your User-level Printer value is "Boston", your reports print on the Boston printer.
Site is the lowest user profile level. Site-level option values affect the way all applications run at a given installation.
Application is the user profile level immediately above Site. Application-level option values affect the way a particular application runs.
Responsibility is the user profile level immediately above Application. Responsibility-level option values affect the way applications run for all users of a responsibility.
User is the highest user profile level and is immediately above Responsibility. User-level option values affect the way applications run for an application user.
When you develop a new application, you can define user profile options that affect the way your application runs. For example, you might define a user profile option to determine which subset of the organization's data your end user sees. When you define a new option, you specify criteria to describe valid values for that option. You can also specify whether your end users can change the value of an option.
You can obtain the value of a user profile option using Oracle Application Object Library routines. You can construct your application to react to the value of a profile option as you choose.
A system administrator can set values for user profile options at each profile level. You can set default values for your new profile options by using the System Administrator responsibility. Typically, a system administrator sets site-level option values after installing Oracle Application Object Library-based applications at a site. These site-level option values then work as the defaults until the system administrator or end user sets them at higher levels.
Oracle Application Object Library derives run-time values for each user's profile options based on values the system administrator sets at each level. An option's run-time value is the highest-level setting for that option. For example, for a given end user, assume the Printer option is set only at the Site and Responsibility levels. When the end user logs on, the Printer option assumes the value set at the Responsibility level, since it is the highest-level setting for the option.
If the default value of a user profile option at any level is inappropriate, the system administrator can change it at any time. This change takes effect as soon as end users log on again or change responsibilities.
Oracle Application Object Library establishes values for user profile options when you log on or change responsibilities. You can change the value of your own user-changeable options at any time.
You change an option value using the Update Personal Profile Options form. Using this form, you can display all your options and review the values your system administrator has set for them. You can also change those that are updatable if you like. Any change you make to a User-level profile option has an immediate effect on the way your applications run for that session. And, when you log on again, changes you made to your User-level options in a previous session are still in force.
If you never set your own User-level option values, your user profile options assume the Site-, Application-, Responsibility-, or User-level values your system administrator has set for them. Only the system administrator can set some profile options.