I want to pass a variable argument to external SQL file (PL/SQL with SQL*Plus)

Question

I have search this forum and via google for an answer for my question, but I can\'t find a specific answer for my challenge. That is why I am asking it here to hope to recei

Answer 1

@ is a SQL*Plus command, it has no meaning in PL/SQL. Your script is being included within the PL/SQL block at parse time, which you can see if you list the code in the buffer. The variables declared in your control block are available to the 'included' code directly, without needing substitution.

As an example, if uitvoer.sql just contains:

dbms_output.put_line(v_s);

Then this control script:

set serveroutput on
declare
  v_s varchar2(10) := 'Test';
begin
  @uitvoer.sql
end;
/

list

Produces:

Test

PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.

  1  declare
  2    v_s varchar2(10) := 'Test';
  3  begin
  4  dbms_output.put_line(v_s);
  5* end;

The PL/SQL block in the buffer has the included code, not a reference to uitvoer.sql. But the included code worked because it referred to a variable from the control script which was still in-scope.

---

If you want to allow for the control variables having different names, allowing uitvoer.sql to be called more flexibly perhaps, then you can still use substitution variables, but you're still substituting the variable name, not its value. For example, with this uitvoer.sql (note that the substitution variable assginment does not have quotes around it):

declare
  variable_s varchar2(10);
begin
  variable_s := &&1;
  dbms_output.put_line(variable_s);
end;

And your control script passing the variable name:

declare
  v_s varchar2(10) := 'Test';
begin
  @uitvoer.sql v_s
end;
/

You see:

old   7:   variable_s := &&1;
new   7:   variable_s := v_s;
Test

PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.

  1  declare
  2    v_s varchar2(10) := 'Test';
  3  begin
  4  declare
  5    variable_s varchar2(10);
  6  begin
  7    variable_s := &&1;
  8    dbms_output.put_line(variable_s);
  9  end;
 10* end;