Document ID: 45552.1
Subject: Using Oracle Database Manager with 7.2 & 7.3 on NT
Last Modified: 08 May 97
Author: DRUSSELL
Oracle Database Manager is a remote database administration tool that
allows a database administrator to perform three key functions:
1.) starting up a database
2.) shutting down a database
3.) checking the status (running or not) of a database.
This bulletin is intended to clarify the steps to perform a few common
Database Manager tasks that are not easily understood from the provided
documentation.
The following topics are covered in this bulletin:
- Creating a new database alias
- How Database Manager uses the ORACLE.INI file
- Creating a new database configuration
- Finding a configuration file
- Shutting down a database
1. Creating a new database alias
--------------------------------
1. Click on the Aliases button.
A dialog box titled Database Connection appears.
2. Fill in the Alias and Database fields.
The Database field must contain a valid Oracle database connect string.
A connect string could be a local one such as "2:" or "2:SID", a SQL*Net
V1 connect string such as "t:hostname:SID", or a SQL*Net V2 alias.
3. Click on the Add button to save the Alias/Database pair.
2. How Database Manager uses the ORACLE.INI file
---------------------------------------------------------------
The above process is straightforward, however the use of the ORACLE.INI
file by the 32-bit Database Manager (the Windows NT and Windows 95
versions) needs clarification.
When you click on the Add button in the Database Connection dialog box
the following line is created in the [Oracle] section of the
ORACLE.INI file:
SQLNET DBNAME MyAlias=My_DB_Name
where MyAlias and My_DB_Name are the values you typed in the Alias and
Database fields.
This is an abnormal behavior since all 32-bit Oracle tools must use the
Windows NT or the Windows 95 registry to store initialization information.
None of the 32-bit tools are affected by this abnormality, but the 16-bit
tools may be affected since these tools normally use the ORACLE.INI file for
storing initialization information.
If you experience connection problems with your 16-bit tools on a 32-bit
platform after a database alias is created via Database Manager, try removing
the above line.
NOTE: The ORACLE.INI file is normally located in the Windows home directory,
typically C:\WINDOWS.)
3. Creating a new database configuration
----------------------------------------
Database Manager includes many preset configurations, which are available
from the Configuration drop-down list. Clicking on the Configure button
brings up the Configure Initialization Parameters dialog box. This is
where you can edit a few parameters of the selected configuration.
Unfortunately, Database Manager does not allow you to create a new
configuration and edit all of its parameters in one step. You must save an
existing configuration with a different name and edit the .ORA file of the new
configuration.
Although this may be awkward, creating a new configuration for your
database instance is a very important task because the preset
configurations are designed to use the default instance, whose SID is ORCL. A
Windows NT configuration, for instance, will try to use the
CTL1ORCL.ORA control file, but if an instance tries to use this control file
while the default ORCL instance is already running on the same computer, you
will get an ORA 600 [2141] error.
1. Choose one of the preset configurations from the Database Manager main
window and click on the Configure button to open the Configure
Initialization Parameters dialog box .
2. In the dialog box, click on the Save As button.
3. Another dialog box titled "Configuration: Save As" appears.
4. Enter the name of your new configuration and the name of the
configuration file which will store your new initialization
parameters information. By default, this file will be saved in the
C:\ORANT\VS10\EDITED directory,
where C:\ORANT is the local Oracle home directory
(C:\ORAWIN95 for Windows 95
(C:\ORAWIN for Windows 3.1x, or 16-bit Database Manager
running on Windows NT or Windows 95)
You can click on the Browse button to choose another location for the
file.
5. After a new configuration is created, exit Database Manager and restart
it. You should also do this after making any change to a configuration
file. This step is necessary because Database Manager will use the
cached version rather than reading the configuration file each time.
Once the new configuration is created, you can modify the initialization
parameters by editing the configuration file using any ASCII text editor,
such as Notepad. The initialization parameter normally used is the
INIT.ORA file on the computer hosting your Oracle7 database. To use the
same parameters in Database Manager, simply copy the INIT.ORA and rename
the copy with a new configuration file name, i.e. ALIAS1.ORA.
You may wonder why Database Manager does not automatically use the
INIT.ORA file. It is because Database Manager is designed as a remote
administration tool; your Oracle7 server's file system is not always
accessible to Database Manager running remotely.
4. Finding the configuration file of the selected configuration
---------------------------------------------------------------
Database Manager finds a configuration name by looking up the
config_name=file_name pair in the [CONFIGS_EDITED] section of the
C:\ORANT\VS10\VS10.INI file for Windows NT, C:\ORAWIN95\VS10\VS10.INI
for Windows 95, or C:\ORAWIN\VS10\VS10.INI for Windows 3.1x or 16-bit
Database Manager running on Windows NT or Windows 95.
5. Shutting down a database
---------------------------
Database Manager always issues a SHUTDOWN IMMEDIATE command rather than
SHUTDOWN NORMAL to stop a running database. Database Manager also
checks for current user sessions before initiating a shutdown. When
there are open sessions, Database Manager displays a warning dialog and
waits for your approval to proceed with the shutdown.