Get in and look around

What you're about to use

Oracle APEX is a low-code platform for building web apps on an Oracle Database. You design pages in your browser; APEX stores those designs in the database and turns them into web pages when someone opens the app. You don't write HTML, and there's no server to set up.

Every request takes the same short path:

So your app's definition lives in the database, as metadata: the same place as your tables. That's why an APEX page can show live data with nothing but a SQL query.

Two words you'll meet straight away:

• Workspace: your area in APEX, where your apps live. You sign in to it.
• Schema: the database user that owns your tables and packages. Each workspace is linked to one. When you create a table in SQL Workshop, it goes into your schema.

A free workspace on apex.oracle.com has four areas you'll use throughout the course: App Builder (your apps), SQL Workshop (run SQL and see your tables), Gallery (sample apps to install) and Administration (users and settings).

Older tutorials. APEX changes every release. If a tutorial shows something you can't find, check its version: for example, SQL Workshop's visual Query Builder is gone in 26.2, and you write SQL directly instead. Everything in this course is written for 26.2.

Lab at a glance

You finish this part with your own APEX 26.2 workspace, a sample app running in it, and a first look at how apps are built. You won't build or change anything yet.

Tip: request the workspace (Part A) first. Activation is usually quick, but if it takes a while, read on while you wait.

Part A: Request and activate your workspace

1. Go to apex.oracle.com and choose the option to get started for free or request a workspace.
2. Fill in the form: - First and last name, and your email address - Workspace name: use TURNOUT (if taken, add your initials, e.g. TURNOUT_NS)
3. Answer the short survey and accept the agreement, then submit.
4. Open the email from Oracle and click the link to create or activate your workspace.
5. Set your password when prompted. Write down three things: workspace name, username, password.

Checkpoint: you see a confirmation that your workspace is ready.

The exact screens can change slightly over time. If a field isn't listed here, use a sensible value and carry on.

Part B: Sign in and confirm you're on 26.2

1. Go to the sign-in page from the activation email (or apex.oracle.com → Sign In).
2. Enter your workspace, username and password.
3. You land on the workspace home page. Find the four areas from "What you're about to use" above: App Builder, SQL Workshop, Gallery, and Administration (under your user menu, top right).
4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and read the version number.

Checkpoint: the version starts with 26.2.

If it shows an older version (26.1 or earlier), the hosted service hasn't been upgraded yet. Carry on with the lab; everything in Parts 0–6 works the same. Re-check before Part 7.

Part C: Your first query in SQL Workshop

1. From the workspace home page, click SQL Workshop, then SQL Commands.
2. Type this into the editor and click Run:

select version_no from apex_release;

3. Look at the results area below the editor: it shows the exact APEX version.
4. Now try one more, which shows today's date, your schema, and who APEX thinks you are:

select sysdate as today,
       sys_context('USERENV', 'CURRENT_SCHEMA') as my_schema,
       sys_context('APEX$SESSION', 'APP_USER') as me
  from dual;

On apex.oracle.com the schema is named like WKSP_YOURWORKSPACE, and ME is your APEX username. (The older shortcut, select user from dual, shows APEX_PUBLIC_USER here: that's the account APEX itself connects as, not your schema.)

5. Open the SQL Workshop menu at the top and choose Object Browser. Your schema is empty for now; you'll create Turnout's twelve tables there in Part 2.

Checkpoint: both queries return one row.

Note: older tutorials show a visual “Query Builder” here. It was removed in 26.2; writing SQL directly is the way forward.

Part D: Install and run a sample app

1. Return to the workspace home page and open the Gallery.
2. Browse the sample apps. Pick any one whose description interests you.
3. Click Install and accept the defaults. Wait for it to finish (usually under a minute).
4. Click Run (or open App Builder, find the app, and click its run icon).
5. Sign in to the app with the same username and password as your workspace.
6. Click through at least three pages. Try sorting a report, opening a form, and using the search.

Checkpoint: the app opens in a new browser tab and you can move between pages.

While you click, notice: the app looks finished, but nobody hand-wrote its HTML. Every page comes from metadata stored in the database (remember the request path above).

Part E: Peek inside Page Designer

1. Go back to the builder tab, open App Builder and click the sample app.
2. You see a grid of its pages, each with a number. Click any report page.
3. Page Designer opens. Find its three main areas:

4. Click a region in the Rendering tree. Watch the Property Editor change. Find its Source and see the SQL query behind the report.
5. Close Page Designer without saving. If asked, discard changes.

Checkpoint: you found the SQL query behind a report. That's the low-code idea in one click: a setting, a query, and APEX does the rest.

Before you move on

• You can sign in to your workspace, and it says 26.2
• Both queries ran in SQL Commands
• A sample app is installed and you clicked through it
• You found the SQL query behind a report in Page Designer
• The Part 0 quiz below is passed

Troubleshooting