5 Getting Started with Oracle Database

5.1 Checking the Installed Oracle Database Contents and Directory Location

You can use Oracle Universal Installer to check the contents and directory location of an Oracle Database installation. To do this:

1. Start Oracle Universal Installer, follow the instructions in "Running Oracle Universal Installer".

2. Click Installed Products to display the Inventory dialog box on the Welcome screen.

3. Select the Oracle Database product from the list to check the installed contents.

4. Click Details to find additional information about an installed product.

5. Click Close to close the Inventory dialog box.

6. Click Cancel to close Oracle Universal Installer, and then click Yes to confirm.

5.2 Logging In to Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control

If you configured Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control during the installation, you can use it to manage the database. Alternatively, you can use Oracle Enterprise Manager Grid Control to manage the database. To display the Database Control:

1. Use a Web browser to access the Database Control URL:

   http://host:port/em

   In this example:

   • host is the name of the computer on which you installed Oracle Database

   • port is the port number reserved for the Database Control during installation

   If you do not know the correct port number to use, look for the following line in the $ORACLE_HOME/install/portlist.ini file:

   Enterprise Manager Console HTTP Port (db_name) = 1158
   
   

   The installation reserves the first available port from the range 5500 to 5519. For example, if you installed Oracle Database on host mgmt42, and the Database Control uses port 1158, use the following URL:

   http://mgmt42:1158/em
   
   

   Oracle Enterprise Manager displays the Database Control login page.

2. Log in to the database using the user name SYS and connect as SYSDBA.

   Use the password that you specified for the SYS account during the installation.

Understanding Database Control Login Privileges

When you log in to the Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control using the SYSMAN user account, you are logging in as the Oracle Enterprise Manager super user. The SYSMAN account is automatically granted the roles and privileges required to access all the management features provided by the Database Control.

You can also use the SYS and SYSTEM accounts to log in to the Database Control. In addition, you can grant login privileges to other database users, as follows:

1. Log in to the Database Control.

   See Also:

   The "Logging In to Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control" section for information about logging in to the Database Control

2. Click Setup at the top of the Database Control home page.

3. Click Administrators in the left navigation bar.

4. Click Create to create an Enterprise Manager user.

5. In the Name field, enter the user name of an existing database user or click the flashlight icon and select a user from the pop-up window.

6. Enter the password for this user, and then click Review.

7. On the properties page, click Finish.

Enterprise Manager assigns login privileges to the specified user and includes this user in the list of Enterprise Manager users on the Setup Administrators page.

5.3 Managing Automatic Storage Management

This section provides information about managing an Automatic Storage Management installation. It covers the following topics:

• Starting and Stopping Automatic Storage Management

• Automatic Storage Management Utilities

5.4 Accessing Oracle Database with SQL*Plus

To run the SQL and PL/SQL commands to access the Oracle Database, you can use SQL*Plus. This tool enables you to perform the same database management operations, as well as to query, insert, update, or delete data directly in the database.

Use the following command to start SQL*Plus and log in as the SYS user, connecting as SYSDBA:

$ $ORACLE_HOME/bin/sqlplus 
SQL> CONNECT SYS as SYSDBA
Enter password: SYS_password

For example, to log on as SYSTEM using the password Systempwd1, you enter:

$ $ORACLE_HOME/bin/sqlplus 
SQL> CONNECT SYSTEM
Enter password: Systempwd1

If you are logging on as SYS, you would need to connect as SYSDBA:

$ $ORACLE_HOME/bin/sqlplus 
SQL> CONNECT SYS as SYSDBA
Enter password: SYS_password

5.5 Accessing Oracle Database with SQL Developer

To run the SQL and PL/SQL commands to access Oracle Database, you can use SQL Developer. All SQL and PL/SQL commands are supported as they are passed directly from the SQL Worksheet to the Oracle Database.

Set Up the JDK Path For SQL Developer

Set the following environmental variables to ensure that the correct jdk is picked up:

• $ORACLE_HOME

• $JAVA_HOME=$ORACLE_HOME/jdk

• $PATH=$JAVA_HOME/bin/:$PATH

To start SQL Developer on which the Sun Java SDK release 1.5 is installed, use the following commands:

• Change to $ORACLE_HOME/sqldeveloper.

• Run $ ./sqldeveloper.sh.

• Right-Click Connections. In the dialog box, enter a Connection name, username, password, and for the host string, the name of the database to which you want to connect and click Connect.

Once connected, you can view, create, modify, and delete the database objects using the Connection Navigator or issue any SQL or PL/SQL command using a SQL Worksheet (From the Tools menu, select SQL Worksheet).

SQL*Plus commands have to be interpreted by the SQL Worksheet before being passed to the database. The SQL Worksheet currently supports a number of SQL*Plus commands. SQL*Plus commands which are not supported by the SQL Worksheet are ignored and are not sent to the Oracle Database.

5.6 Reviewing Accounts and Passwords

All databases created by the Database Configuration Assistant (DBCA) include the SYS, SYSTEM, SYSMAN, and DBSNMP database accounts. In addition, Oracle provides several other administrative accounts. Before using these accounts, you must unlock them and reset their passwords. Table 5-1 describes these accounts and lists their user names and default passwords.

5.7 Unlocking and Resetting User Passwords

Passwords for all Oracle system administration accounts except SYS, SYSTEM, SYSMAN, and DBSMP are revoked after installation. Before you use a locked account, you must unlock it and reset its password. If you created a preconfigured database during the installation, but you did not unlock a required account, you must unlock it, using one of the following methods:

• Using Database Control to Unlock Accounts and Reset Passwords

• Using SQL*Plus to Unlock Accounts and Reset Passwords

• Unlocking and Changing Passwords

5.8 Identifying Databases

The Oracle Database 11g software identifies a database by its global database name. A global database name consists of the database name and database domain. Usually, the database domain is the same as the network domain, but it need not be. The global database name uniquely distinguishes a database from any other database in the same network. You specify the global database name when you create a database during the installation, or using the Database Configuration Assistant. For example:

sales.us.oracle.com

In this example:

• sales is the name of the database. The database name portion is a string of no more than 30 characters that can contain alphanumeric, underscore (_), dollar ($), and pound (#) characters. The DB_NAME initialization parameter specifies the database name.

• us.oracle.com is the database domain in which the database is located. In this example, the database domain is the same as the network domain. Together, the database name and the database domain make the global database name unique. The domain portion is a string of no more than 128 characters that can contain alphanumeric, underscore (_), and pound (#) characters. The DB_DOMAIN initialization parameter specifies the database domain name.

The DB_NAME parameter and the DB_DOMAIN name parameter combine to create the global database name value assigned to the SERVICE_NAMES parameter in the initialization parameter file.

The System Identifier (SID) identifies a specific database instance. The SID uniquely distinguishes the instance from any other instance on the same computer. Each database instance requires a unique SID and database name. In most cases, the SID is the same as the database name portion of the global database name.

5.9 Locating the Server Parameter File

By default, the preconfigured database uses a server parameter file named spfilesid.ora, which is stored in the $ORACLE_HOME/dbs directory. However, if you choose Automatic Storage Management for the database, Database Configuration Assistant typically uses the same storage mechanism for the server parameter file.

If the server parameter file is not located in the $ORACLE_HOME/dbs directory, the database uses the SPFILE parameter in an initialization parameter file to locate it. The default initialization parameter file is $ORACLE_HOME/dbs/initsid.ora.

You can use the Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control to view the location of the server parameter file and list all of the initialization parameters, as follows:

1. Log in to the Database Control.

   See Also:

   The "Logging In to Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control" section for information about logging in to the Database Control

2. Click Server.

3. In the Database Configuration section of the Server page, click Initialization Parameters.

   Enterprise Manager displays a table listing the current value of each initialization parameter.

4. Select SPFile tab.

   Enterprise Manager displays a table listing the value of each initialization parameter specified in the server parameter file. The location of the server parameter file is displayed in the earlier table.

5.10 Reviewing Tablespaces and Data Files, Redo Log Files, and Control Files

The following sections contain information about tablespaces and data files, redo log files, and control files:

• Identifying Tablespaces and Data Files

• Locating Redo Log Files

• Locating Control Files