The Mysterious Case of the Two-Year Date Defaulting to 1900s in ColdFusion Oracle 12c

If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve stumbled upon a rather peculiar issue in ColdFusion Oracle 12c. You’re not alone! Many developers have faced the frustration of watching their two-year date default to the 1900s instead of the 2000s. In this article, we’ll delve into the root of the problem, explore the reasons behind this anomaly, and most importantly, provide you with a step-by-step guide to resolve this issue once and for all.

What’s causing the issue?

To understand the solution, we need to grasp the underlying reason behind this quirk. It all boils down to how ColdFusion interprets two-digit years and how Oracle 12c handles date storage. Here’s a simplified explanation:

• ColdFusion’s two-digit year assumption: When you input a two-digit year (e.g., ’20’), ColdFusion assumes it’s in the 1900s. This is because, historically, two-digit years were common in older systems, and ColdFusion is designed to be backwards compatible.
• Oracle 12c’s date storage: Oracle stores dates as a seven-byte binary value, which includes the century, year, month, day, hour, minute, and second. By default, Oracle 12c uses the ‘RR’ date format, which is a two-digit year representation that can lead to ambiguity when dealing with two-digit years.

The perfect storm: ColdFusion and Oracle 12c’s date interpretation

When you combine ColdFusion’s two-digit year assumption with Oracle 12c’s ‘RR’ date format, you get a recipe for disaster. Here’s what happens:

1. You input a two-digit year (e.g., ’20’) in your ColdFusion application.

2. ColdFusion, thinking it’s in the 1900s, sends the date to Oracle 12c as a two-digit year.

3. Oracle 12c, using the ‘RR’ format, interprets the two-digit year as being in the 1900s as well.

Voilà! Your two-year date has been defaulted to the 1900s.

Resolving the issue: A step-by-step guide

Fear not, dear developer! We’ve got a solution for you. Here’s a comprehensive guide to resolve the two-year date defaulting issue in ColdFusion Oracle 12c:

Step 1: Update your ColdFusion application to use four-digit years

To avoid the two-digit year assumption, make sure to input four-digit years (e.g., ‘2020’) in your ColdFusion application. This can be achieved by:

• Modifying your ColdFusion code to accept four-digit years:

<cfinput type="date" name="myDate" mask="9999-mm-dd" />

or

<cfparam name="myDate" type="date" pattern="yyyy-mm-dd" />

By doing so, you ensure that ColdFusion sends the correct date format to Oracle 12c.

Step 2: Configure Oracle 12c to use a four-digit year format

To instruct Oracle 12c to use a four-digit year format, you’ll need to:

• Alter the NLS_DATE_FORMAT parameter in your Oracle 12c database:

ALTER SESSION SET NLS_DATE_FORMAT = 'YYYY-MM-DD';

This sets the default date format for the current session to use four-digit years.

Step 3: Update your Oracle 12c connection settings in ColdFusion

Finally, you need to update your Oracle 12c connection settings in ColdFusion to reflect the new date format:

• In the ColdFusion Administrator, navigate to Data Sources and select your Oracle 12c data source.
• Click the Edit button and scroll down to the Advanced section.
• In the Connection String field, add the following parameter:

nls_date_format=YYYY-MM-DD

This parameter specifies the date format for the connection, ensuring that Oracle 12c uses the four-digit year format.

Step 4: Test and verify

After implementing these changes, test your application to ensure that the two-year date is correctly defaulted to the 2000s. You can do this by:

• Inputting a two-digit year (e.g., ’20’) in your ColdFusion application.
• Verifying the stored date in Oracle 12c using a query, such as:

SELECT TO_CHAR(myDate, 'YYYY-MM-DD') FROM myTable;

If everything is set up correctly, the resulting date should be in the 2000s (e.g., ‘2020-01-01’).

Conclusion

ColdFusion Oracle 12c’s two-year date defaulting to the 1900s can be a frustrating issue, but with these steps, you should be able to resolve it once and for all. Remember to input four-digit years in your ColdFusion application, configure Oracle 12c to use a four-digit year format, update your Oracle 12c connection settings in ColdFusion, and test to verify the solution.

ColdFusion Version	Oracle 12c Version	Solution Steps
2018	12.1.0.2.0	1. Update ColdFusion code to use four-digit years 2. Configure Oracle 12c to use four-digit year format 3. Update Oracle 12c connection settings in ColdFusion 4. Test and verify
2016	12.1.0.1.0	1. Update ColdFusion code to use four-digit years 2. Configure Oracle 12c to use four-digit year format 3. Update Oracle 12c connection settings in ColdFusion 4. Test and verify

By following this guide, you’ll be able to overcome the two-year date defaulting issue in ColdFusion Oracle 12c and ensure accurate date storage in your application.

Additional Tips and Resources

For further reading and troubleshooting, check out the following resources:

• Adobe ColdFusion: Two-digit year problem
• Oracle 12c: Format Models
• Oracle Recipes: 2-Digit Year Problem

Remember to always test your application thoroughly and consult with your development team and Oracle 12c administrators to ensure a smooth implementation of these changes.

We hope this comprehensive guide has helped you resolve the two-year date defaulting issue in ColdFusion Oracle 12c. If you have any further questions or concerns, feel free to ask in the comments below!

Frequently Asked Question

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