maintain information in an Oracle database. But if you use Oracle tools such as

SQL*Plus to modify Oracle Applications data, you risk destroying the integrity of your

data and you lose the ability to audit changes to your data.

Because Oracle Applications tables are interrelated, any change you make using an

Oracle Applications form can update many tables at once. But when you modify Oracle

Applications data using anything other than Oracle Applications, you may change a

row in one table without making corresponding changes in related tables. If your tables

get out of synchronization with each other, you risk retrieving erroneous information

and you risk unpredictable results throughout Oracle Applications.

When you use Oracle Applications to modify your data, Oracle Applications

automatically checks that your changes are valid. Oracle Applications also keeps track

of who changes information. If you enter information into database tables using

database tools, you may store invalid information. You also lose the ability to track who

has changed your information because SQL*Plus and other database tools do not keep a

record of changes.

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