Oracle Application Express (APEX)

Amazon RDS supports Oracle Application Express (APEX) through the use of the APEX and APEX-DEV options. You can deploy Oracle APEX as a run-time environment or as a full development environment for web-based applications. Using Oracle APEX, you can build applications entirely within the web browser. For more information, see Oracle application Express in the Oracle documentation.

APEX components

Oracle APEX consists of the following main components:

• A repository that stores the metadata for APEX applications and components. The repository consists of tables, indexes, and other objects that are installed in your Amazon RDS DB instance.

• A listener that manages HTTP communications with Oracle APEX clients. The listener resides on a separate host such as an Amazon EC2 instance, an on-premises server at your company, or your desktop computer. The listener accepts incoming connections from web browsers, forwards them to the Amazon RDS DB instance for processing, and then sends results from the repository back to the browsers. RDS for Oracle supports the following types of listeners:

  • For APEX version 5.0 and later, use Oracle Rest Data Services (ORDS) version 19.1 and higher. We recommend that you use the latest supported version of Oracle APEX and ORDS. This documentation describes older versions for backwards compatibility only.

  • For APEX version 4.1.1, you can use Oracle APEX Listener version 1.1.4.

  • You can use Oracle HTTP Server and mod_plsql listeners.

    Note

    Amazon RDS doesn't support the Oracle XML DB HTTP server with the embedded PL/SQL gateway; you can't use this as a listener for APEX. In general, Oracle recommends against using the embedded PL/SQL gateway for applications that run on the internet.

  For more information about these listener types, see About choosing a web listener in the Oracle documentation.

When you add the Amazon RDS APEX options to your RDS for Oracle DB instance, Amazon RDS installs the Oracle APEX repository only. Install your listener on a separate host.

APEX version requirements

The APEX option uses storage on the DB instance class for your DB instance. Following are the supported versions and approximate storage requirements for Oracle APEX.

APEX version	Storage requirements	Supported Oracle Database versions	Notes
Oracle APEX version 23.1.v1	106 MiB	19c and higher	This version includes patch 35283657: PSE BUNDLE FOR APEX 23.1 (PSES ON TOP OF 23.1.0), PATCH_VERSION 2.
Oracle APEX version 22.2.v1	106 MiB	All	This version includes patch 34628174: PSE BUNDLE FOR APEX 22.2 (PSES ON TOP OF 22.2.0), PATCH_VERSION 4.
Oracle APEX version 22.1.v1	124 MiB	All	This version includes patch 34020981: PSE BUNDLE FOR APEX 22.1 (PSES ON TOP OF 22.1.0), PATCH_VERSION 6.
Oracle APEX version 21.2.v1	125 MiB	All	This version includes patch 33420059: PSE BUNDLE FOR APEX 21.2 (PSES ON TOP OF 21.2.0), PATCH_VERSION 8.
Oracle APEX version 21.1.v1	125 MiB	All	This version includes patch 32598392: PSE BUNDLE FOR APEX 21.1, PATCH_VERSION 3.
Oracle APEX version 20.2.v1	148 MiB	All except 21c	This version includes patch 32006852: PSE BUNDLE FOR APEX 20.2, PATCH_VERSION 2020.11.12. You can see the patch number and date by running the following query: SELECT PATCH_VERSION, PATCH_NUMBER FROM APEX_PATCHES;
Oracle APEX version 20.1.v1	173 MiB	All except 21c	This version includes patch 30990551: PSE BUNDLE FOR APEX 20.1, PATCH_VERSION 2020.07.15.
Oracle APEX version 19.2.v1	149 MiB	All except 21c
Oracle APEX version 19.1.v1	148 MiB	All except 21c
Oracle APEX version 18.2.v1	146 MiB	12.1 and 12.2 only
Oracle APEX version 18.1.v1	145 MiB	12.1 and 12.2 only
Oracle APEX version 5.1.4.v1	220 MiB	12.1 and 12.2 only
Oracle APEX version 5.1.2.v1	150 MiB	12.1 and 12.2 only
Oracle APEX version 5.0.4.v1	140 MiB	12.1 and 12.2 only
Oracle APEX version 4.2.6.v1	160 MiB	12.1 only

For downloadable APEX .zip files, see Oracle APEX Prior Release Archives on the Oracle website.

Oracle APEX and ORDS requirements and limitations

Note the following requirements for APEX and ORDS:

• You must use the Java Runtime Environment (JRE).

• Your Oracle client installation must include the following:

  • SQL*Plus or SQL Developer for administration tasks

  • Oracle Net Services for configuring connections to your RDS for Oracle DB instance

You can't use an RDS for Oracle CDB with ORDS v22 and higher. As a workaround, you can either use a lower version of ORDS or use an Oracle Database 19c non-CDB.

Adding the APEX and APEX-DEV options

To add the APEX and APEX-DEV options to a DB instance, do the following:

1. Create a new option group, or copy or modify an existing option group.

2. Add the APEX and APEX-DEV options to the option group.

3. Associate the option group with the DB instance.

When you add the Amazon RDS APEX options, a brief outage occurs while your DB instance is automatically restarted.

Note

APEX_MAIL is available when the APEX option is installed. The execute privilege for the APEX_MAIL package is granted to PUBLIC so you don't need the APEX administrative account to use it.

To add the APEX options to a DB instance

1. Determine the option group you want to use. You can create a new option group or use an existing option group. If you want to use an existing option group, skip to the next step. Otherwise, create a custom DB option group with the following settings:

   1. For Engine, choose the Oracle edition that you want to use. The APEX options are supported on all editions.

   2. For Major engine version, choose the version of your DB instance.

   For more information, see Creating an option group.

2. Add the options to the option group. If you want to deploy only the Oracle APEX run-time environment, add only the APEX option. If you want to deploy the full development environment, add both the APEX and APEX-DEV options. For Oracle Database 12c, add the APEX and APEX-DEV options.

   For Version, choose the version of APEX that you want to use. If you don't choose a version, version 4.2.6.v1 is the default for Oracle Database 12c.

   Important

   If you add the APEX options to an existing option group that is already attached to one or more DB instances, a brief outage occurs. During this outage, all the DB instances are automatically restarted.

   For more information about adding options, see Adding an option to an option group.

3. Apply the option group to a new or existing DB instance:

   • For a new DB instance, you apply the option group when you launch the instance. For more information, see Creating an Amazon RDS DB instance.

   • For an existing DB instance, you apply the option group by modifying the instance and attaching the new option group. When you add the APEX options to an existing DB instance, a brief outage occurs while your DB instance is automatically restarted. For more information, see Modifying an Amazon RDS DB instance.

Unlocking the public user account

After the Amazon RDS APEX options are installed, make sure to do the following:

1. Change the password for the APEX public user account.

2. Unlock the account.

You can do this by using the Oracle SQL*Plus command line utility. Connect to your DB instance as the master user, and issue the following commands. Replace new_password with a password of your choice.

ALTER USER APEX_PUBLIC_USER IDENTIFIED BY new_password;
ALTER USER APEX_PUBLIC_USER ACCOUNT UNLOCK;

Configuring RESTful services for Oracle APEX

To configure RESTful services in APEX (not needed for APEX 4.1.1.V1), use SQL*Plus to connect to your DB instance as the master user. After you do this, run the rdsadmin.rdsadmin_run_apex_rest_config stored procedure. When you run the stored procedure, you provide passwords for the following users:

• APEX_LISTENER

• APEX_REST_PUBLIC_USER

The stored procedure runs the apex_rest_config.sql script, which creates new database accounts for these users.

Note

Configuration isn't required for Oracle APEX version 4.1.1.v1. For this Oracle APEX version only, you don't need to run the stored procedure.

The following command runs the stored procedure.

EXEC rdsadmin.rdsadmin_run_apex_rest_config('apex_listener_password', 'apex_rest_public_user_password');

Setting up ORDS for Oracle APEX

You are now ready to install and configure Oracle Rest Data Services (ORDS) for use with Oracle APEX. For APEX version 5.0 and later, use Oracle Rest Data Services (ORDS) version 19.1 and higher.

Install the listener on a separate host such as an Amazon EC2 instance, an on-premises server at your company, or your desktop computer. For the examples in this section, we assume that the name of your host is myapexhost.example.com, and that your host is running Linux.

Preparing to install ORDS

Before you can install ORDS, you need to create a nonprivileged OS user, and then download and unzip the APEX installation file.

To prepare for ORDS installation

1. Log in to myapexhost.example.com as root.

2. Create a nonprivileged OS user to own the listener installation. The following command creates a new user named apexuser.

   useradd -d /home/apexuser apexuser

   The following command assigns a password to the new user.

   passwd apexuser;

3. Log in to myapexhost.example.com as apexuser, and download the APEX installation file from Oracle to your /home/apexuser directory:

   • http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/developer-tools/apex/downloads/index.html

   • Oracle application Express prior release archives

4. Unzip the file in the /home/apexuser directory.

   unzip apex_<version>.zip

   After you unzip the file, there is an apex directory in the /home/apexuser directory.

5. While you are still logged into myapexhost.example.com as apexuser, download the Oracle REST Data Services file from Oracle to your /home/apexuser directory: http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/developer-tools/apex-listener/downloads/index.html.

Installing and configuring ORDS

Before you can use APEX, you need to download the ords.war file, use Java to install ORDS, and then start the listener.

To install and configure ORDS for use with Oracle APEX

1. Create a new directory based on ORDS, and then unzip the listener file.

   mkdir /home/apexuser/ORDS
   cd /home/apexuser/ORDS

2. Download the file ords.version.number.zip from Oracle REST data services.

3. Unzip the file into the /home/apexuser/ORDS directory.

4. If you're installing ORDS in a multitenant database, add the following line to the file /home/apexuser/ORDS/params/ords_params.properties:

   pdb.disable.lockdown=false

5. Grant the master user the required privileges to install ORDS.

   After the Amazon RDS APEX option is installed, give the master user the required privileges to install the ORDS schema. You can do this by connecting to the database and running the following commands. Replace MASTER_USER with the uppercase name of your master user.

   Important

   When you enter the user name, use uppercase unless you created the user with a case-sensitive identifier. For example, if you run CREATE USER myuser or CREATE USER MYUSER, the data dictionary stores MYUSER. However, if you use double quotes in CREATE USER "MyUser", the data dictionary stores MyUser. For more information, see Granting SELECT or EXECUTE privileges to SYS objects.

   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('DBA_OBJECTS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('DBA_ROLE_PRIVS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('DBA_TAB_COLUMNS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('USER_CONS_COLUMNS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('USER_CONSTRAINTS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('USER_OBJECTS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('USER_PROCEDURES', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('USER_TAB_COLUMNS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('USER_TABLES', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('USER_VIEWS', 'MASTER_USER', 'SELECT', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('WPIUTL', 'MASTER_USER', 'EXECUTE', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('DBMS_SESSION', 'MASTER_USER', 'EXECUTE', true);
   exec rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_sys_object('DBMS_UTILITY', 'MASTER_USER', 'EXECUTE', true);

   Note

   These commands apply to ORDS version 19.1 and later.

6. Install the ORDS schema using the downloaded ords.war file.

   java -jar ords.war install advanced

   The program prompts you for the following information. The default values are in brackets. For more information, see Introduction to Oracle REST data services in the Oracle documentation.

   • Enter the location to store configuration data:

     Enter /home/apexuser/ORDS. This is the location of the ORDS configuration files.

   • Specify the database connection type to use. Enter number for [1] Basic [2] TNS [3] Custom URL [1]:

     Choose the desired connection type.

   • Enter the name of the database server [localhost]: DB_instance_endpoint

     Choose the default or enter the correct value.

   • Enter the database listener port [1521]: DB_instance_port

     Choose the default or enter the correct value.

   • Enter 1 to specify the database service name, or 2 to specify the database SID [1]:

     Choose 2 to specify the database SID.

   • Database SID [xe]

     Choose the default or enter the correct value.

   • Enter 1 if you want to verify/install Oracle REST Data Services schema or 2 to skip this step [1]:

     Choose 1. This step creates the Oracle REST Data Services proxy user named ORDS_PUBLIC_USER.

   • Enter the database password for ORDS_PUBLIC_USER:

     Enter the password, and then confirm it.

   • Requires to login with administrator privileges to verify Oracle REST Data Services schema.

     Enter the administrator user name: master_user

     Enter the database password for master_user: master_user_password

     Confirm the password: master_user_password

     Note

     Specify a password other than the prompt shown here as a security best practice.

   • Enter the default tablespace for ORDS_METADATA [SYSAUX].

     Enter the temporary tablespace for ORDS_METADATA [TEMP].

     Enter the default tablespace for ORDS_PUBLIC_USER [USERS].

     Enter the temporary tablespace for ORDS_PUBLIC_USER [TEMP].

   • Enter 1 if you want to use PL/SQL Gateway or 2 to skip this step. If you're using Oracle Application Express or migrating from mod_plsql, you must enter 1 [1].

     Choose the default.

   • Enter the PL/SQL Gateway database user name [APEX_PUBLIC_USER]

     Choose the default.

   • Enter the database password for APEX_PUBLIC_USER:

     Enter the password, and then confirm it.

   • Enter 1 to specify passwords for Application Express RESTful Services database users (APEX_LISTENER, APEX_REST_PUBLIC_USER) or 2 to skip this step [1]:

     Choose 2 for APEX 4.1.1.V1; choose 1 for all other APEX versions.

   • [Not needed for APEX 4.1.1.v1] Database password for APEX_LISTENER

     Enter the password (if required), and then confirm it.

   • [Not needed for APEX 4.1.1.v1] Database password for APEX_REST_PUBLIC_USER

     Enter the password (if required), and then confirm it.

   • Enter a number to select a feature to enable:

     Enter 1 to enable all features: SQL Developer Web, REST Enabled SQL, and Database API.

   • Enter 1 if you wish to start in standalone mode or 2 to exit [1]:

     Enter 1.

   • Enter the APEX static resources location:

     If you unzipped APEX installation files into /home/apexuser, enter /home/apexuser/apex/images. Otherwise, enter unzip_path/apex/images, where unzip_path is the directory where you unzipped the file.

   • Enter 1 if using HTTP or 2 if using HTTPS [1]:

     If you enter 1, specify the HTTP port. If you enter 2, specify the HTTPS port and the SSL host name. The HTTPS option prompts you to specify how you will provide the certificate:

     • Enter 1 to use the self-signed certificate.

     • Enter 2 to provide your own certificate. If you enter 2, specify the path for the SSL certificate and the path for the SSL certificate private key.

7. Set a password for the APEX admin user. To do this, use SQL*Plus to connect to your DB instance as the master user, and then run the following commands.

   EXEC rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_apex_admin_role;
   grant APEX_ADMINISTRATOR_ROLE to master;
   @/home/apexuser/apex/apxchpwd.sql

   Replace master with your master user name. When the apxchpwd.sql script prompts you, enter a new admin password.

8. Start the ORDS listener. Run the following code.

   java -jar ords.war

   The first time you start ORDS, you are prompted to provide the location of the APEX Static resources. This images folder is located in the /apex/images directory in the installation directory for APEX.

9. Return to the APEX administration window in your browser and choose Administration. Next, choose Application Express Internal Administration. When you are prompted for credentials, enter the following information:

   • User name – admin

   • Password – the password you set using the apxchpwd.sql script

   Choose Login, and then set a new password for the admin user.

Your listener is now ready for use.

Setting up Oracle APEX listener

Note

Oracle APEX Listener is deprecated.

Amazon RDS for Oracle continues to support APEX version 4.1.1 and Oracle APEX Listener version 1.1.4. We recommend that you use the latest supported versions of Oracle APEX and ORDS.

Install Oracle APEX Listener on a separate host such as an Amazon EC2 instance, an on-premises server at your company, or your desktop computer. We assume that the name of your host is myapexhost.example.com, and that your host is running Linux.

Preparing to install Oracle APEX listener

Before you can install Oracle APEX Listener, you need to create a nonprivileged OS user, and then download and unzip the APEX installation file.

To prepare for Oracle APEX listener installation

1. Log in to myapexhost.example.com as root.

2. Create a nonprivileged OS user to own the listener installation. The following command creates a new user named apexuser.

   useradd -d /home/apexuser apexuser

   The following command assigns a password to the new user.

   passwd apexuser;

3. Log in to myapexhost.example.com as apexuser, and download the APEX installation file from Oracle to your /home/apexuser directory:

   • http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/developer-tools/apex/downloads/index.html

   • Oracle application Express prior release archives

4. Unzip the file in the /home/apexuser directory.

   unzip apex_<version>.zip                

   After you unzip the file, there is an apex directory in the /home/apexuser directory.

5. While you are still logged into myapexhost.example.com as apexuser, download the Oracle APEX Listener file from Oracle to your /home/apexuser directory.

Installing and configuring Oracle APEX listener

Before you can use APEX, you need to download the apex.war file, use Java to install Oracle APEX Listener, and then start the listener.

To install and configure Oracle APEX listener

1. Create a new directory based on Oracle APEX Listener and open the listener file.

   Run the following code:

   mkdir /home/apexuser/apexlistener
   cd /home/apexuser/apexlistener 
   unzip ../apex_listener.version.zip

2. Run the following code.

   java -Dapex.home=./apex -Dapex.images=/home/apexuser/apex/images -Dapex.erase -jar ./apex.war

3. Enter information for the program prompts following:

   • The APEX Listener Administrator user name. The default is adminlistener.

   • A password for the APEX Listener Administrator.

   • The APEX Listener Manager user name. The default is managerlistener.

   • A password for the APEX Listener Administrator.

   The program prints a URL that you need to complete the configuration, as follows.

   INFO: Please complete configuration at: http://localhost:8080/apex/listenerConfigure
   Database is not yet configured 

4. Leave Oracle APEX Listener running so that you can use Oracle Application Express. When you have finished this configuration procedure, you can run the listener in the background.

5. From your web browser, go to the URL provided by the APEX Listener program. The Oracle Application Express Listener administration window appears. Enter the following information:

   • Username – APEX_PUBLIC_USER

   • Password – the password for APEX_PUBLIC_USER. This password is the one that you specified earlier when you configured the APEX repository. For more information, see Unlocking the public user account.

   • Connection type – Basic

   • Hostname – the endpoint of your Amazon RDS DB instance, such as mydb.f9rbfa893tft.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com.

   • Port – 1521

   • SID – the name of the database on your Amazon RDS DB instance, such as mydb.

6. Choose Apply. The APEX administration window appears.

7. Set a password for the APEX admin user. To do this, use SQL*Plus to connect to your DB instance as the master user, and then run the following commands.

   EXEC rdsadmin.rdsadmin_util.grant_apex_admin_role;
   grant APEX_ADMINISTRATOR_ROLE to master;
   @/home/apexuser/apex/apxchpwd.sql

   Replace master with your master user name. When the apxchpwd.sql script prompts you, enter a new admin password.

8. Return to the APEX administration window in your browser and choose Administration. Next, choose Application Express Internal Administration. When you are prompted for credentials, enter the following information:

   • User name – admin

   • Password – the password you set using the apxchpwd.sql script

   Choose Login, and then set a new password for the admin user.

Your listener is now ready for use.

Upgrading the APEX version

Important

Back up your DB instance before you upgrade APEX. For more information, see Creating a DB snapshot and Testing an Oracle DB upgrade.

To upgrade APEX with your DB instance, do the following:

• Create a new option group for the upgraded version of your DB instance.

• Add the upgraded versions of APEX and APEX-DEV to the new option group. Be sure to include any other options that your DB instance uses. For more information, see Option group considerations.

• When you upgrade your DB instance, specify the new option group for your upgraded DB instance.

After you upgrade your version of APEX, the APEX schema for the previous version might still exist in your database. If you don't need it anymore, you can drop the old APEX schema from your database after you upgrade.

If you upgrade the APEX version and RESTful services were not configured in the previous APEX version, we recommend that you configure RESTful services. For more information, see Configuring RESTful services for Oracle APEX.

In some cases when you plan to do a major version upgrade of your DB instance, you might find that you're using an APEX version that isn't compatible with your target database version. In these cases, you can upgrade your version of APEX before you upgrade your DB instance. Upgrading APEX first can reduce the amount of time that it takes to upgrade your DB instance.

Note

After upgrading APEX, install and configure a listener for use with the upgraded version. For instructions, see Setting up Oracle APEX listener.

Removing the APEX option

You can remove the Amazon RDS APEX options from a DB instance. To remove the APEX options from a DB instance, do one of the following:

• To remove the APEX options from multiple DB instances, remove the APEX options from the option group they belong to. This change affects all DB instances that use the option group. When you remove the APEX options from an option group that is attached to multiple DB instances, a brief outage occurs while all the DB instances are restarted.

  For more information, see Removing an option from an option group.

• To remove the APEX options from a single DB instance, modify the DB instance and specify a different option group that doesn't include the APEX options. You can specify the default (empty) option group, or a different custom option group. When you remove the APEX options, a brief outage occurs while your DB instance is automatically restarted.

  For more information, see Modifying an Amazon RDS DB instance.

When you remove the APEX options from a DB instance, the APEX schema is removed from your database.