Query Parameter Handling

Report queries may require parameters. Parameters are defined in queries to retrieve user input at runtime. In addition to the parameters defined in the queries, data sources used by queries may also require parameters to establish connections to the source. For example, an RDBMS data source may require a user ID and password to login to a database.

Query parameters are handled in the same way as replet parameters. A list of all variables used in queries in a template is returned as the replet parameter. All integral parameters are mapped to a simple replet parameter with an integer constraint and all real number parameters are mapped to a simple replet parameter with a double value constraint.

Mapping of Query Parameters to Replet Parameters

Query Parameter Type	Map to Replet Parameter
String	Simple parameter or password (if hidden)
Boolean	Boolean
Float, Double	Simple parameter with NumberFormat
Byte, Short, Integer, Long	Simple parameter with integer only NumberFormat
Time_Instant	DateTime
Date	Date
Time	Time
Enum, Char	Simple parameter

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The parameter variable alias is used as the replet parameter alias if it is defined. After the user enters parameter values, the values are converted back to the query parameter type before they are passed to the query engine.

The query parameters can be both creation parameters and customization parameters. If a template based replet has creation parameters, then these serve the same purpose as customization parameters. Users can regenerate the report anytime by entering different parameter values.

All query parameters in a template are mapped to replet parameters. The names of the replet parameters are constructed by appending the query parameter name to the query name, separated by a dot. For example, if a query named 'query1' in a template has one parameter, 'param1', a replet parameter is created with the name 'query1.param1'. This name should be used when defining the default replet parameters in the Enterprise Manager. It is also possible to define report parameters in the Data Modeler. See the Advanced Toolbar Buttons section of the Data Modeler.

Select Edit → Parameters in the Report Designer to launch the 'Parameter Definition' dialog box. For more details on how to define report parameters, see the Parameterization section of the Report Designer.