Error with Links if using x3 primary keys

Question

Hi Folks:
Here is the error code I'm receiving:
ORA-01422: exact fetch returns more than requested number of rows
Unable to fetch row.
Background: I am using Application Express 3.2
All of the pages I have created that rely on x2 primary keys (first_name, last_name) work fine.
I have a table that has x3 primary keys: Table is called "time_off_awards". The x3 primary keys are: last_name, first_name, approval_date.
I created a report that works properly and lists the awards for each person (each person can receive more than one award-on different dates).
I also created an edit link that works properly IF *(only if)* each individual has only one award. If the individual has more than one award then I get the error above. When I set up the link I used all three keys. The x3 PK's should uniquely identify each row, but if the same last name/first name appear more than once (that is if the person has more than one award) I get the error. I thought at first maybe it was just not reading the 3rd key/part of the link (approval_date), but it shows properly if you move your cursor over the edit link.
Here is a link to a screen pic of how I have my link set in Apex:
[http://www.wczone.com/link_settings.gif]
Here is a link to a pic of the report with some info:
[http://www.wczone.com/report_link.gif]
If needed, here is my table info:
CREATE TABLE PERSONNEL.TIME_OFF_AWARDS (
LAST_NAME VARCHAR2(40) NOT NULL,
FIRST_NAME VARCHAR2(25) NOT NULL,
APPROVAL_DATE DATE NOT NULL,
HOURS_OFF NUMBER(3),
CITATION VARCHAR2(1500),
/* Keys */
PRIMARY KEY (LAST_NAME, FIRST_NAME, APPROVAL_DATE),
/* Foreign keys */
CONSTRAINT TOA_PERSONNEL
FOREIGN KEY (LAST_NAME, FIRST_NAME)
REFERENCES PERSONNEL.MARC_PERSONNEL(LAST_NAME, FIRST_NAME)
TABLESPACE PERSONNEL;
Thanks for any help, I've tried looking at a couple of Apex books, but they didn't help much.
Matt
Edited by: user10495310 on Mar 4, 2009 8:21 AM

Answer 1

Thank you everyone for the help and information you gave to me.
Your ideas and advice helped me to think through the issues involved.
The way i actually found to work around this issue was a little different.
What I did was the following (which may only be usable with empty tables. If its possible to create a new column with a sequence and trigger on a table that already contains data it should work also):
1. I removed the current PK's that were currently set.
2. I added a single, unique PK (that used a sequence and trigger to automatically increment) to the table as was suggested in this thread and other APEX forum threads.
3. I changed the link on the report so that it used the new PK, and also changed the PK used on the forms (under Processes - both the page rendering and page processing processes).
The Difference:
4. Next I changed the table (not by using APEX, but directly) from using the automatically generated ID as the PK, back to using the compound PK (x3 keys). I then added an constraint to make sure that the automatically generated column was unique. So now I have the compound PK that my supervisor wants us to use, and I'm able to use a unique, automatically generated key for APEX to use.
I found also that if you already have a column that uses a unique/auto-generated key you can still use it with APEX without switching keys around.
1. I added the new column to the sql in the reports source section so that the new column was searched (and then used 'hidden' so it wouldn't be displayed on the report users would see).
2. You can still add the unique key under the processes on the form that is being linked too under the Primary key tabs. If its not a PK it won't show up in the pop up which is to the right of "Item Containing Primary Key Column Value" but it can be entered manually (i.e. p23_AUTO_ID) and it will work fine. You would also need to edit your form so that the auto ID that is being passed from the report is part of the form - but hidden if desired).