Problem with Database Portlets

Question

I have installed the database provider starter examples. I have added two more database portlets to the starter provider. Some users can see them in the portlet repository and some cannot.
The following function is in the code:
function is_runnable
p_provider_id in integer
,p_reference_path in varchar2
return boolean
is
begin
If p_reference_path is null the caller may be the provider
framework (i.e. the Refresh operation of the Portlet
Repository).
if (p_reference_path is null) then
The following if statement is the security mechanism that
the portlet implements. It does not have any other semantic
meaning. Any portlet is expected to implement their own
security mechanism.
This security mechanism checks if the current user is logged
on or just accessing the portal through the public account.
if (wwctx_api.is_logged_on) then
return true;
else
return false;
end if;
else
If p_reference_path is not null the caller makes this call as
a security check against the portlet instance.
The security mechanism implemented by this portlet for portlet
instances is null so true is returned. Returning this value
indicates that all users have access to this portlet instance.
return true;
end if;
end is_runnable;
How do I know if the p_reference_path is null? What is the p_reference_path? In this code which I used from the starter examples, it looks like if the p_reference_path is not null the portlet won't be runnable.
Does anyone know what and where the p_reference_path is?
Thanks....JS

Answer 1

Hi Julie,
The reference_path is the unique identifier of the portlet instance. The reference path is assigned to the portlet when it's added to the portal page.
The code above simply checks whether the reference path exists to eliminate error messages. The reference path is undefined for instance in preview mode, when the portlet is displayed on a "non-portal-page".
If you want to learn more about the topic you may find useful the Guidelines for Parameter Passing in Portlets PDK article.
Regards,
Peter