DBA Interview Questions with Answers

What are four common errors found in an alert .log?

If we are getting any issue regarding database while performing any activity we should check alert log file in
dump destination.. The four common error we find in alert.log are:
Deadlock Errors (ORA-00060), Oracle Internal errors, Backup and recovery errors, Snapshot too old error
(O1555)
What is PCT Free/PCT Used/PCT increase parameter in segment? What is growth factor?
PCT-FREE is a block storage it uses to mention how much space should be left in database block
for future updates (updating the records eg. previously name Smith after that we will update the name as
Smith Taylor). If mention PCTFREE as 10, oracle will adding the new rows to block up to 90% it allows 10%
for future updates.
If the PCT used was set to 60 this means if the data inside the block is 60 it is FULL and if the data inside the
block is 59 it is Empty.
This is the parameter which specify in percent that a block can only used for insert or come in the free list(list
of blocks in segment ready for insert operation) when used space in a block is less than PCTUSED.
Suppose value of pctused is 40 and pctfree is 20 then data can be inserted till 80 of the block directly. And
suppose the used space is 60 and some one has perform a delete operation in a row in the same block
which brings the used space to 50 .Now one cannot insert any record in the same block unless the used
space comes down below 40 i.e. pctused.
What is dump destination? What are bdump, cdump and udump?
The dump destination is the location where the trace files are located for all the Oracle process.
bdump-->Background processes + alert_SID.log file location
cdump--> Core Processes dump, udump--> User Processes dump, adump--> for ASM processes
These destinations contains useful information related to process failures.
UDUMP is specifying the user dump directory where all user error logs (trace files) will be placed.
BDUMP is specifying the background dump directory where all database error logs (trace files) will be
placed.
CDUMP is specifying the core dump directory where all OS error logs (core dump files) will be placed.
Default location is (ORACLE_BASE/admin/<SID>)
SQL>show parameters dump_dest;
It'll show you all the dump directories wherever it is currently located. You can change your parameters in
init.ora by creating spfile from pfile.
What will you do if in any condition you do not know how to troubleshoot the error at all and there
are no seniors or your co-workers around?
We need to find where in the compilation the error is occurring. We have to divide the code and check for
correctness of the code part-by-part. This is called debugging. Keep checking the code until you find the
code which is wrong.
Search forums for similar error codes or symptoms and make a plan then submit it to your supervising DBA if
you are not authorized to carry it out yourself.
I am getting error "No Communication channel" after changing the domain name? What is the
solution?
Here Question is not clear about Where the Oracle database is residing. If the Oracle Database is resides on
your local machine then the domain name must be updated in the tnsnames.ora file. Change this file in
../Admin folder contained one. If you are accessing remote Database then there are no changes required to
your tnsnames.ora file only check with tnsping with the database service name. Change the domain name in
the sqlnet.ora file in NAMES.DEFAULT_DOMAIN parameter

You have taken import of a table in a database. You have got the Integrity constraint violation error.
How you are going to resolve it.
If u wants to import the table just says constraints=n the movement table got imported then u create
constraint on that tables.
What is the most important action a DBA must perform after changing the database from
NOARCHIVELOG TO ARCHIVELOG?
First of all take an offline backup of whole database (including the (datafile controlfile and redolog files). It is
obvious that archive log process should be started by:
SQL>alter system Archivelog start;
Otherwise the database halts if unable to rotate redo logs
Show one instance when you encountered an error in alert log and you overcome that error. What
actions you took to overcome that error.
Oracle writes error in alert log file. Depending upon the error corrective action needs to be taken.
1) Deadlock Error: Take the trace file in user dump destination and analysis it for the error.
2) ORA-01555 Snapshot error: Check the query try to fine tune and check the undo size.
3) Unable to extent segment: Check the tablespace size and if require add space in the tablespace by
'alter database datafile .... resize' or alter tablespace add datafile command.
What is Ora-1555 Snapshot too Old error? Explain in detail?
Oracle Rollback Segments (Undo more recently) hold a copy of data before it was modified and they work in
a round-robin fashion. Writing and then eventually overwriting the entries as soon as the changes are
committed.
They are needed to provide read consistency (a consistent set of data at a point in time) or to allow a
process to abandon or rollback the changes or for database recovery.
Heres a typical scenario:User A opens a query to fetch every row from a billion row table. If User B updates and commits the last row
of the billion row table a Rollback entry will be created so User A can see the data as it was before the
update.
Other users are busily updating rows in the database and this in turn generates rollback which may
eventually cause the entry needed for User A to be overwritten (after all User B did commit the change so
its OK to overwrite the rollback segment). Maybe 15 minutes later the query is still running and User A finally
fetches the last row of the billion row table but the rollback entry is gone. He gets ORA-01555: Snapshot
too old rollback segment too small
I have applied the following commands: Now what will happen, will the database will give an error / it
will work?
Shutdown abort;
Startup;
Definitely database will be start without error but all uncommitted data will be lost such as killed all
sessions, killed all transactions, and didn't write from the buffers because shutdown abort directly
shutdown instance without committing.
There is four modes to shutdown the database:
1) Shutdown immediate, 2) Shutdown normal, 3) Shutdown transactional, 4) Shutdown aborts
When the database is shutdown by first 3 methods checkpoint takes place but when is shutdown by abort
option it doesn't enforces checkpoints, it simply shutdowns without waiting any users to disconnect.
What is mutated trigger? In single user mode we got mutated error, as a DBA how you will resolve it?
Mutated error will occur when same table access more than once in one state. If you are using before in
trigger block then replace it with after.
Explain Dual table. Is any data internally stored in dual Table. of users is accessing select sysdate
from dual and they getting some millisecond differences. If we execute SELECT SYSDATE FROM

EMP; what error will we get. Why?

Dual is a system owned table created during database creation. Dual table consist of a single column and a
single row with value x. We will not get any error if we execute select sysdate from scott.emp instead sysdate
will be treated as a pseudo column and displays the value for all the rows retrieved. For Example if there is
12 rows in emp table it will give result of date in 12 rows.
As an Oracle DBA what are the entire UNIX file you should be familiar with?
To check the process use: ps -ef |grep pmon or ps -ef
To check the alert log file: Tail -f alert.log
To check the cpu usage; Top vmstat 2 5
What is a Database instance?
A database instance also known as server is a set of memory structures and background processes that
access a set of database files. It is possible for a single database to be accessed by multiple instances (this
is oracle parallel server option).
What are the Requirements of simple Database?
A simple database consists of:
One or more data files, One or more control files, Two or more redo log files, Multiple users/schemas, One or
more rollback segments, One or more Tablespaces, Data dictionary tables, User objects (table, indexes,
views etc.)
The server (Instance) that access the database consists of:
SGA (Database buffer, Dictionary Cache Buffers, Redo log buffers, Shared SQL pool), SMON (System
Monitor),PMON (Process Monitor), LGWR (Log Write), DBWR (Data Base Write), ARCH (ARCHiver), CKPT
(Check Point), RECO, Dispatcher, User Process with associated PGS
Which process writes data from data files to database buffer cache?
The Background process DBWR rights data from datafile to DB cache.
How to DROP an Oracle Database?
You can do it at the OS level by deleting all the files of the database. The files to be deleted can be found
using:
1) select * from dba_data_files; 2) select * from v$logfile; 3) select * from v$controlfile; 4) archive log list
5) initSID.ora 6) clean the UDUMP, BDUMP, scripts etc, 7) Cleanup the listener.ora and the tnsnames.ora.
Make sure that the oratab entry is also removed.
Otherwise, go to DBCA and click on delete database.
In Oracle 10g there is a new command to drop an entire database.
Startup restrict mount;
drop database <instance_name>;
In fact DBA should never drop a database via OS level commands rather use GUI utility DBCA to drop the
database
How can be determining the size of the log files.
Select sum(bytes)/1024/1024 "size_in_MB" from v$log;
What is difference between Logical Standby Database and Physical Standby database?
A physical or logical standby database is a database replica created from a backup of a primary database. A
physical standby database is physically identical to the primary database on a block-for-block basis. It's
maintained in managed recovery mode to remain current and can be set to read only; archive logs are
copied and applied.
A logical standby database is logically identical to the primary database. It is updated using SQL statements
How do you find whether the instance was started with pfile or spfile
1) SELECT name, value FROM v$parameter WHERE name = 'spfile';
This query will return NULL if you are using PFILE
2) SHOW PARAMETER spfile

This query will returns NULL in the value column if you are using pfile and not spfile
3) SELECT COUNT(*) FROM v$spparameter WHERE value IS NOT NULL;
If the count is non-zero then the instance is using a spfile, and if the count is zero then it is using a pfile:
SQL> SELECT DECODE(value, NULL, 'PFILE', 'SPFILE') "Init File Type"
FROM sys.v_$parameter WHERE name = 'spfile';
What is full backup?
A full backup is an operating system backup of all data files, on-line redo log
files and control file that constitute oracle database and the parameter. If you are using the Rman for backup
then in Rman full backup means Incremental backup on 0 level.
While taking hot backup (begin end backup) what will happens back end?
When we r taking hot backup (begin backup - end backup) the datafile header associated with the datafiles
in the corresponding Tablespace is frozen. So Oracle will stop updating the datafile header but will continue
to write data into datafiles. In hot backup oracle will generate more redos this is because oracle will write out
complete changed blocks to the redo log files.
Which is the best option used to move database from one server to another serve on same network
and Why?
Import Export, Backup-Restore, Detach-Attach
Import-Export is the best option used to move database from one server to another serve on same network.
It reduces the network traffic.Import/Export works well if youre dealing with very small databases. If we have
few million rows its takes minutes to copy when compared to seconds using backup and restore.
What is Different Type of RMAN Backup?
Full backup: During a Full backup (Level 0) all of the block ever used in datafile are backed up. The only
difference between a level 0 incremental backup and a full backup is that a full backup is never included in
an incremental strategy.
Comulative Backup: During a cumulative (Level 0) the entire block used since last full backup are backed
up.
RMAN> BACKUP INCREMENTAL LEVEL 1 CUMULATIVE DATABASE; # blocks changed since level 0
Differential Backup: During incremental backup only those blocks that have changed since last cumulative
(Level 1) or full backup (Level 0) are backed up. Incremental backup are differential by default.
RMAN> BACKUP INCREMENTAL LEVEL 1 DATABASE
Give one method for transferring a table from one schema to another:
There are several possible methods: Export-Import, CREATE TABLE... AS SELECT or COPY.
What is the purpose of the IMPORT option IGNORE? What is its default setting?
The IMPORT IGNORE option tells import to ignore "already exists" errors. If it is not specified the tables that
already exist will be skipped. If it is specified, the error is ignored and the tables data will be inserted. The
default value is N.
What happens when the DEFAULT and TEMP tablespace clauses are left out from CREATE USER
statements?
The user is assigned the SYSTEM tablespace as a default and temporary tablespace. This is bad because it
causes user objects and temporary segments to be placed into the SYSTEM tablespace resulting in
fragmentation and improper table placement (only data dictionary objects and the system rollback segment
should be in SYSTEM).
What happens if the constraint name is left out of a constraint clause?
The Oracle system will use the default name of SYS_Cxxxx where xxxx is a system generated number. This
is bad since it makes tracking which table the constraint belongs to or what the constraint does harder.
What happens if a Tablespace clause is left off of a primary key constraint clause?
This result in the index that is automatically generated being placed in then USERS default tablespace.
Since this will usually be the same tablespace as the table is being created in, this can cause serious

performance problems.
What happens if a primary key constraint is disabled and then enabled without fully specifying the
index clause?
The index is created in the users default tablespace and all sizing information is lost. Oracle doesnt store
this information as a part of the constraint definition, but only as part of the index definition, when the
constraint was disabled the index was dropped and the information is gone.
Using hot backup without being in archive log mode, can you recover in the event of a failure? Why
or why not?
You can't recover the data because in archive log mode it take the backup of redo log files if it in Active
mode, If it in inactive mode then it is not possible to take the backup of redolog files once the size is full, so in
that case it is impossible to take hot backup
What causes the "snapshot too old" error? How can this be prevented or mitigated?
This is caused by large or long running transactions that have either wrapped onto their own rollback space
or have had another transaction write on part of their rollback space. This can be prevented or mitigated by
breaking the transaction into a set of smaller transactions or increasing the size of the rollback segments and
their extents.
How can you tell if a database object is invalid?
select STATUS from user_objects where object_type='TABLE' AND
OBJECT_NAME='LOGMNRT_TABPART$';

A user is getting an ORA-00942 error yet you know you have granted them permission on the table,
what else should you check?
You need to check that the user has specified the full name of the object (SELECT empid FROM scott.emp;
instead of SELECT empid FROM emp;) or has a synonym that points to that object (CREATE SYNONYM
emp FOR scott.emp;)
A developer is trying to create a view and the database wont let him. He has the "DEVELOPER" role
which has the "CREATE VIEW" system privilege and SELECT grants on the tables he is using, what
is the problem?
You need to verify the developer has direct grants on all tables used in the view. You can't create a stored
object with grants given through a role.
If you have an example table, what is the best way to get sizing data for the production table
implementation?
The best way is to analyze the table and then use the data provided in the DBA_TABLES view to get the
average row length and other pertinent data for the calculation. The quick and dirty way is to look at the
number of blocks the table is actually using and ratio the number of rows in the table to its number of blocks
against the number of expected rows.
How can you find out how many users are currently logged into the database? How can you find
their operating system id?
To look at the v$session or v$process views and check the current_logins parameter in the v$sysstat view. If
you are on UNIX is to do a ps -ef|grep oracle|wc -l? Command, but this only works against a single instance
installation.
How can you determine if an index needs to be dropped and rebuilt?
Run the ANALYZE INDEX command on the index to validate its structure and then calculate the ratio of
LF_BLK_LEN/LF_BLK_LEN+BR_BLK_LEN and if it isnt near 1.0 (i.e. greater than 0.7 or so) then the index
should be rebuilt or if the ratio BR_BLK_LEN/ LF_BLK_LEN+BR_BLK_LEN is nearing 0.3. It is not so easy
to decide so I personally suggest contact to the expert before going to rebuild.
What is tkprof and how is it used?
The tkprof tool is a tuning tool used to determine CPU and execution times for SQL statements. You use it by
first setting timed_statistics to true in the initialization file and then turning on tracing for either the entire
database via the sql_trace parameter or for the session using the ALTER SESSION command. Once the
trace file is generated you run the tkprof tool against the trace file and then look at the output from the tkprof
tool. This can also be used to generate explain plan output.
What is Explain plan and how is it used?
The EXPLAIN PLAN command is a tool to tune SQL statements. To use it you must have an explain_table
generated in the user you are running the explain plan for. This is created using the utlxplan.sql script. Once
the explain plan table exists you run the explain plan command giving as its argument the SQL statement to
be explained. The explain plan table is then queried to see the execution plan of the statement. Explain plans
can also be run using tkprof.
How do you prevent output from coming to the screen?
The SET option TERMOUT controls output to the screen. Setting TERMOUT OFF turns off screen output.
This option can be shortened to TERM.
How do you prevent Oracle from giving you informational messages during and after a SQL
statement execution?
The SET options FEEDBACK and VERIFY can be set to OFF.
How do you generate file output from SQL?
By use of the SPOOL command
A tablespace has a table with 30 extents in it. Is this bad? Why or why not.
Multiple extents in and of themselves arent bad. However if you also have chained rows this can hurt
performance.

How do you set up tablespaces during an Oracle installation?

You should always attempt to use the Oracle Flexible Architecture standard or another partitioning scheme to
ensure proper separation of SYSTEM, ROLLBACK, REDO LOG, DATA, TEMPORARY and INDEX
segments.
You see multiple fragments in the SYSTEM tablespace, what should you check first?
Ensure that users dont have the SYSTEM tablespace as their TEMPORARY or DEFAULT tablespace
assignment by checking the DBA_USERS view.
What are some indications that you need to increase the SHARED_POOL_SIZE parameter?
Poor data dictionary or library cache hit ratios, getting error ORA-04031. Another indication is steadily
decreasing performance with all other tuning parameters the same.
Guideline for sizing db_block_size and db_multi_block_read for an application that does many full
table scans?
Oracle almost always reads in 64k chunks. The two should have a product equal to 64 or a multiple of 64.
When looking at v$sysstat you see that sorts (disk) is high. Is this bad or good? If bad -How do you
correct it?
If you get excessive disk sorts this is bad. This indicates you need to tune the sort area parameters in the
initialization files. The major sort parameter is the SORT_AREA_SIZE parameter.
When should you increase copy latches? What parameters control copy latches?
When you get excessive contention for the copy latches as shown by the "redo copy" latch hit ratio. You can
increase copy latches via the initialization parameter LOG_SIMULTANEOUS_COPIES to twice the number
of CPUs on your system.
Where can you get a list of all initialization parameters for your instance? How about an indication if
they are default settings or have been changed?
You can look in the init.ora file for an indication of manually set parameters. For all parameters, their value
and whether or not the current value is the default value, look in the v$parameter view.
Describe hit ratio as it pertains to the database buffers. What is the difference between instantaneous
and cumulative hit ratio and which should be used for tuning?
The hit ratio is a measure of how many times the database was able to read a value from the buffers verses
how many times it had to re-read a data value from the disks. A value greater than 80-90% is good, less
could indicate problems. If you simply take the ratio of existing parameters this will be a cumulative value
since the database started. If you do a comparison between pairs of readings based on some arbitrary time
span, this is the instantaneous ratio for that time span. Generally speaking an instantaneous reading gives
more valuable data since it will tell you what your instance is doing for the time it was generated over.
Discuss row chaining, how does it happen? How can you reduce it? How do you correct it?
Row chaining occurs when a VARCHAR2 value is updated and the length of the new value is longer than the
old value and would not fit in the remaining block space. This results in the row chaining to another block. It
can be reduced by setting the storage parameters on the table to appropriate values. It can be corrected by
export and import of the effected table.
You are getting busy buffer waits. Is this bad? How can you find what is causing it?
Buffer busy waits could indicate contention in redo, rollback or data blocks. You need to check the v$waitstat
view to see what areas are causing the problem. The value of the "count" column tells where the problem is,
the "class" column tells you with what. UNDO is rollback segments, DATA is data base buffers.
If you see contention for library caches how you can fix it?
Increase the size of the shared pool.
If you see statistics that deal with "undo" what are they really talking about?
Rollback segments and associated structures.
If a tablespace has a default pctincrease of zero what will this cause (in relationship to the SMON
process)?

The SMON process would not automatically coalesce its free space fragments.
If a tablespace shows excessive fragmentation what are some methods to defragment the
tablespace? (7.1,7.2 and 7.3 only)
In Oracle 7.0 to 7.2 The use of the 'alter session set events 'immediate trace name coalesce level
ts#'; command is the easiest way to defragment contiguous free space fragmentation. The ts# parameter
corresponds to the ts# value found in the ts$ SYS table. In version 7.3 the alter tablespace coalesce; is best.
If the free space is not contiguous then export, drop and import of the tablespace contents may be the only
way to reclaim non-contiguous free space.
How can you tell if a tablespace has excessive fragmentation?
If a select against the dba_free_space table shows that the count of tablespaces extents is greater than the
count of its data files, then it is fragmented.
You see the following on a status report: redo log space requests 23 redo log space wait time 0 Is
this something to worry about? What if redo log space wait time is high? How can you fix this?
Since the wait time is zero, no problem. If the wait time was high it might indicate a need for more or larger
redo logs.
If you see a pin hit ratio of less than 0.8 in the estat library cache report is this a problem? If so, how
do you fix it?
This indicates that the shared pool may be too small. Increase the shared pool size.
If you see the value for reloads is high in the estat library cache report is this a matter for concern?
Yes, you should strive for zero reloads if possible. If you see excessive reloads then increase the size of the
shared pool.
You look at the dba_rollback_segs view and see that there is a large number of shrinks and they are
of relatively small size, is this a problem? How can it be fixed if it is a problem?
A large number of small shrinks indicates a need to increase the size of the rollback segment extents. Ideally
you should have no shrinks or a small number of large shrinks. To fix this just increase the size of the extents
and adjust optimal accordingly.
You look at the dba_rollback_segs view and see that you have a large number of wraps is this a
problem?
A large number of wraps indicates that your extent size for your rollback segments are probably too small.
Increase the size of your extents to reduce the number of wraps. You can look at the average transaction
size in the same view to get the information on transaction size.
You see multiple extents in the Temporary Tablespace. Is this a problem?
As long as they are all the same size this is not a problem. In fact, it can even improve performance since
Oracle would not have to create a new extent when a user needs one.
How do you set up your Tablespace on installation Level: Low?
The answer here should show an understanding of separation of redo and rollback, data and indexes and
isolation of SYSTEM tables from other tables. An example would be to specify that at least 7 disks should be
used for an Oracle installation.
Disk Configuration:
SYSTEM tablespace on 1, Redo logs on 2 (mirrored redo logs), TEMPORARY tablespace on 3, ROLLBACK
tablespace on 4, DATA and INDEXES 5,6
They should indicate how they will handle archive logs and exports as well as long as they have a logical
plan for combining or further separation more or less disks can be specified.
You have installed Oracle and you are now setting up the actual instance. You have been waiting an
hour for the initialization script to finish, what should you check first to determine if there is a
problem?
Check to make sure that the archiver is not stuck. If archive logging is turned on during install a large number
of logs will be created. This can fill up your archive log destination causing Oracle to stop to wait for more

space.
When configuring SQLNET on the server what files must be set up?
INITIALIZATION file, TNSNAMES.ORA file, SQLNET.ORA file
When configuring SQLNET on the client what files need to be set up?
SQLNET.ORA, TNSNAMES.ORA
You have just started a new instance with a large SGA on a busy existing server. Performance is
terrible, what should you check for?
The first thing to check with a large SGA is that it is not being swapped out.
What OS user should be used for the first part of an Oracle installation (on UNIX)?
You must use root first.
When should the default values for Oracle initialization parameters be used as is?
Never
How many control files should you have? Where should they be located?
At least 2 on separate disk spindles (Mirrored by Oracle).
How many redo logs should you have and how should they be configured for maximum
recoverability?
You should have at least 3 groups of two redo logs with the two logs each on a separate disk spindle
(mirrored by Oracle). The redo logs should not be on raw devices on UNIX if it can be avoided.
Why are recursive relationships bad? How do you resolve them?
A recursive relationship defines when or where a table relates to itself. It is considered as bad when it is a
hard relationship (i.e. neither side is a "may" both are "must") as this can result in it not being possible to put
in a top or perhaps a bottom of the table. For example in the EMPLOYEE table you could not put in the
PRESIDENT of the company because he has no boss, or the junior janitor because he has no subordinates.
These type of relationships are usually resolved by adding a small intersection entity.
What does a hard one-to-one relationship mean (one where the relationship on both ends is "must")?
This means the two entities should probably be made into one entity.
How should a many-to-many relationship be handled?
By adding an intersection entity table
What is an artificial (derived) primary key? When should an artificial (or derived) primary key be
used?
A derived key comes from a sequence. Usually it is used when a concatenated key becomes too
cumbersome to use as a foreign key.
When should you consider de-normalization?
Whenever performance analysis indicates it would be beneficial to do so without compromising data integrity.
-UNIXHow can you determine the space left in a file system?
There are several commands to do this: du, df, or bdf
How can you determine the number of SQLNET users logged in to the UNIX system?
SQLNET users will show up with a process unique name that begins with oracle, if you do a ps -ef|grep
oracle|wc -l you can get a count of the number of users.
What command is used to type files to the screen?
cat, more, pg
Can you remove an open file under UNIX?
Yes
What is the purpose of the grep command?
grep is a string search command that parses the specified string from the specified file or files
The system has a program that always includes the word nocomp in its name, how can you
determine the number of processes that are using this program?

ps -ef|grep *nocomp*|wc -l
The system administrator tells you that the system has not been rebooted in 6 months, should he be
proud of this?
Most UNIX systems should have a scheduled periodic reboot so file systems can be checked and cleaned
and dead or zombie processes cleared out. May be, Some UNIX systems do not clean up well after
themselves. Inode problems and dead user processes can accumulate causing possible performance and
corruption problems.
How can you find dead processes?
ps -ef|grep zombie -- or -- who -d depending on the system.
How can you find all the processes on your system?
Use the ps command
How can you find your id on a system?
Use the "who am i" command.
What is the finger command?
The finger command uses data in the passwd file to give information on system users.
What is the easiest method to create a file on UNIX?
Use the touch command
What does >> do?
The ">>" redirection symbol appends the output from the command specified into the file specified. The file
must already have been created.
If you are not sure what command does a particular UNIX function what is the best way to determine
the command?
The UNIX man -k command will search the man pages for the value specified. Review the results from the
command to find the command of interest.
How can you determine if an Oracle instance is up from the operating system level?
There are several base Oracle processes that will be running on multi-user operating systems, these will be
smon, pmon, dbwr and lgwr. Any answer that has them using their operating system process showing feature
to check for these is acceptable. For example, on UNIX ps -ef|grep pmon will show what instances are up.
Users from the PC clients are getting messages indicating : ORA-06114: NETTCP: SID lookup failure.
What could the problem be?
The instance name is probably incorrect in their connection string.
Users from the PC clients are getting the following error stack:
ERROR: ORA-01034: ORACLE not available ORA-07318: smsget: open error when opening
sgadef.dbf file. HP-UX Error: 2: No such file or directory What is the probable cause?
The Oracle instance is shutdown that they are trying to access, restart the instance.
How can you determine if the SQLNET process is running for SQLNET V1? How about V2?
For SQLNET V1 check for the existence of the orasrv process. You can use the command "tcpctl status" to
get a full status of the V1 TCPIP server, other protocols have similar command formats. For SQLNET V2
check for the presence of the LISTENER process(s) or you can issue the command "lsnrctl status".
What file will give you Oracle instance status information? Where is it located?
The alert.ora log. It is located in the directory specified by the background_dump_dest parameter in the
v$parameter table.
Users are not being allowed on the system. The following message is received: ORA-00257 archiver
is stuck. Connect internal only, until freed. What is the problem?
The archive destination is probably full, backup the archivelogs and remove them and the archiver will restart.
Where would you look to find out if a redo log was corrupted assuming you are using Oracle
mirrored redo logs?

There is no message that comes to the SQLDBA or SRVMGR programs during startup in this situation, you
must check the alert. log file for this information.
You attempt to add a datafile and get: ORA-01118: cannot add anymore datafiles: limit of 40
exceeded. What is the problem and how can you fix it?
When the database was created the db_files parameter in the initialization file was set to 40. You can
shutdown and reset this to a higher value, up to the value of MAX_DATAFILES as specified at database
creation. If the MAX_DATAFILES is set to low, you will have to rebuild the control file to increase it before
proceeding.
You look at your fragmentation report and see that smon has not coalesced any of you tablespaces,
even though you know several have large chunks of contiguous free extents. What is the problem?
Check the dba_tablespaces view for the value of pct_increase for the tablespaces. If pct_increase is zero,
smon will not coalesce their free space.
Your users get the following error: ORA-00055 maximum number of DML locks exceeded? What is
the problem and how do you fix it?
The number of DML Locks is set by the initialization parameter DML_LOCKS. If this value is set to low
(which it is by default) you will get this error. Increase the value of DML_LOCKS. If you are sure that this is
just a temporary problem, you can have them wait and then try again later and the error should clear.
You get a call from you backup DBA while you are on vacation. He has corrupted all of the control
files while playing with the ALTER DATABASE BACKUP CONTROLFILE command. What do you do?
As long as all datafiles are safe and he was successful with the BACKUP controlfile command you can do
the following:
CONNECT INTERNAL STARTUP MOUNT (Take any read-only tablespaces offline before next step
ALTER DATABASE DATAFILE .... OFFLINE;
RECOVER DATABASE USING BACKUP CONTROLFILE
ALTER DATABASE OPEN RESETLOGS; (bring read-only tablespaces back online)
Shutdown and backup the system, then restart If they have a recent output file from the ALTER DATABASE
BACKUP CONTROL FILE TO TRACE; command, they can use that to recover as well.
If no backup of the control file is available then the following will be required: CONNECT INTERNAL
STARTUP NOMOUNT CREATE CONTROL FILE .....; However, they will need to know all of the datafiles,
logfiles, and settings for MAXLOGFILES, MAXLOGMEMBERS, MAXLOGHISTORY, MAXDATAFILES for the
database to use the command.
You have taken a manual backup of a datafile using OS. How RMAN will know about it?
Whenever we take any backup through RMAN in the repository information of the backup is recorded. The
RMAN repository can be either controlfile or recovery catalog. However if you take a backup through OS
command then RMAN does not aware of that and hence recorded are not reflected in the repository. This is
also true whenever we create a new controlfile or a backup taken by RMAN is transferred to another place
using OS command then controlfile/recovery catalog does not know about the prior backups of the database.
So in order to restore database with a new created controlfile we need to inform RMAN about the backups
taken before so that it can pick one to restore.
This task can be done by catalog command in RMAN.

Add information of backup pieces and image copies in the repository that are on disk.

Record a datafile copy as a level 0 incremental backup in the RMAN repository.

Record of a datafile copy that was taken by OS.

But CATALOG command has some restrictions. It can't do the following.

Can't catalog a file that belong to different database.

Can't catalog a backup piece that exists on an sbt device.

Example: Catalog Archive log

RMAN>CATALOG ARCHIVELOG '/oracle/oradata/arju/arc001_223.arc'

'/oracle/oradata/arju/arc001_224.arc';
Catalog Datafile
To catalog datafile copy '/oradata/backup/users01.dbf' as an incremental level 0 backup your command will
be
RMAN>CATALOG DATAFILE COPY '/oradata/backup/users01.dbf' LEVEL 0;
Note that this datafile copy was taken backup either using the RMAN BACKUP AS COPY command or
by using operating system utilities in conjunction with ALTER TABLESPACE BEGIN/END BACKUP.
Catalog multiple copies in a directory:
RMAN>CATALOG START WITH '/tmp/backups' NOPROMPT;
Catalog files in the flash recovery area:
To catalog all files in the currently enabled flash recovery area without prompting the user for each one issue
RMAN>CATALOG RECOVERY AREA NOPROMPT;
Catalog backup pieces:
RMAN>CATALOG BACKUPPIECE '/oradata2/o4jccf4';
How to Uncatalog Backup?
In many cases you need to uncatalog command. Suppose you do not want a specific backup or copy to be
eligible to be restored but also do not want to delete it.
To uncatalog all archived logs issue:
RMAN>CHANGE ARCHIVELOG ALL UNCATALOG;
To uncataog tablespace USERS issue:
RMAN>CHANGE BACKUP OF TABLESPACE USERS UNCATALOG;
To uncatalog a backuppiece name /oradata2/oft7qq issue:
RMAN>CHANGE BACKUPPIECE '/oradata2/oft7qq' UNCATALOG;
How would you find total size of database in OS level
The size of the database is the total size of the datafiles that make up the tablespaces of the database.
These details are found in the dba_extents view.
select sum(bytes)/(1024*1024) from V$datafile;
select sum(bytes)/(1024*1024) from dba_data_files;
select sum(bytes)/(1024*1024) from dba_extents; Can we take incremental Backup with out
taking complete Backup?
No, First full backup is needed

How to use "ALTER DATABASE BEGIN BACKUP;" command in Oracle 9i.

SQL>alter tablespace <tablespace_name> begin backup;
copy all the datafile redolog file using command prompt
querying v$datafile, v$controlfile to check the file status and path
after backing up end the command.
SQL>alter tablespace <tablespace_name> end backup;
repeat this for all tablespaces
How will you rectify if one of the rollback segments gets corrupted
The only option available is to restore and recover the database followed by opening the database with
resetlogs. In this case you will lose the entire prior database backup so must make fresh backup.
How many days, we are going to retain the data after taking the backup. For example the data which
backed up today that will get expire in 90 days. That means, it is 90 days retention policy for backup
You can configure retention policy command to create a persistent and automatic backup retention policy.
When a backup retention policy is in effect RMAN considers backups of datafiles and control files as
obsolete that is no longer needed for recovery according to criteria that you specify in the CONFIGURE
command. You can then use the REPORT OBSOLETE command to view obsolete files and DELETE
OBSOLETE to delete them. That means it is 90 days retention policy for backup
Difference Retention Policy of REDUNDANCY/RECOVERY WINDOW Parameters?
RETENTION POLICY: (REDUNDANCY/RECOVERY WINDOW) REDUNDANCY defines a fixed number of
backup to be retained. Any backup in excess of this number can be deleted. The default value 1 says as
soon as a new backup is created the old one is no longer needed and can be deleted. The other option of
retention policy is RECOVERY WINDOW specified in days, to define period of time in which point in time
recovery must be possible. Thus it defines how long backup should retain.
What kind of backup you take Physical / Logical? Which one is better and Why?
Logical backup means backing up the individual database objects such as tables, views , indexes using the
utility called EXPORT, provided by Oracle. The objects exported in this way can be imported into either same
database or into any other database. The backed-up copy of information is stored in a dumpfile, and this file
can be read only using another utility called IMPORT. There is no other way you can use this file. In this
backup Oracle Export utility stores data in Binary file at OS level.
Physical backups rely on the Operating System to make a copy of the physical files like data files, log files,
control files that comprise the database. In this backup physically CRD (datafile, controlfile, redolog file) files
are copied from one location to another (disk or tape)
We don't preferred logical backup. It is very slow and recoveries are almost not possible.
What is Partial Backup?
A Partial Backup is any operating system backup short of a full backup, taken while the database is open or
shut down.
A partial backup is an operating system backup of part of a database. The backup of an individual table
spaces data files or the backup of a control file are examples of partial backups. Partial backups are useful
only when the database is in ARCHIVELOG ...
What are the name of the available VIEW in oracle used for monitoring database is in backup mode
(begin backup).
V$backup : Status column of this view shows whether a tablespace is in hotbackup mode. The status

'ACTIVE' shows the datafile to be in backup mode.

V$datafile_header : The fuzzy column also helps a dba to monitor datafile which are in backup mode.
The fuzzy NO indicates that the datafile is in hotbackup 9begin backup) mode.
NOTE : The database doesn't startup when a datafile is in backup mode. So put datafile back in the normal
mode before shutting down the database.
What is Tail log backup? Where can we use it?
Tail Log Backup is the log backup taken after data corruption (Disaster). Even though there is file corruption
we can try to take log backup (Tail Log Backup). This will be used during point in time recovery.
Consider a scenario where in we have full backup of 12:00 noon one Transactional log backup at 1:00 PM.
The log backup is scheduled to run for every 1 hr. If disaster happens at 1:30 PM then we can try to take tail
log backup at 1:30 (after disaster). If we can take tail log backup then in recovery first restore full backup of
12:00 noon then 1:00 PM log backup recovery and then last tail backup of 1:30 (After Disaster).
How to check the size of SGA?
SQL> show SGA
Total System Global Area 167772160 bytes
Fixed Size 1247900 bytes
Variable Size 58721636 bytes
Database Buffers 104857600 bytes
Redo Buffers 2945024 bytes
How to define data block size
The primary block size is defined by the Initialization parameter DB_BLOCK_SIZE.
How can we determine the size of the log files.
SQL>Select sum(bytes)/(1024*1024) size_in_mb from v$log;
What do you do when the server cannot start due to a corrupt master database?
If the master database is corrupt then surely others also do have the problems and thus the need of MDF
recovery comes to an immediate. However you can try out to rebuild it with rebuild.exe and restore it.
What do you do when temp db is full?
You need to clean up the space and add more space in order to prevent this error in future.
SQL>Alter database tempfile temp01.dbf resize 200M;
Use V$TEMP_SPACE_HEADER to check the free space in Tempfile or use the query
SELECT A.tablespace_name tablespace, D.mb_total,
SUM (A.used_blocks * D.block_size) / 1024 / 1024 mb_used,
D.mb_total - SUM (A.used_blocks * D.block_size) / 1024 / 1024 mb_free
FROM v$sort_segment A,
(
SELECT B.name, C.block_size, SUM (C.bytes) / 1024 / 1024 mb_total
FROM v$tablespace B, v$tempfile C
WHERE B.ts#= C.ts#
GROUP BY B.name, C.block_size
)D
WHERE A.tablespace_name = D.name
GROUP by A.tablespace_name, D.mb_total;

The above query will displays for each sort segment in the database the tablespace the segment resides in,
the size of the tablespace, the amount of space within the sort segment that is currently in use, and the
amount of space available.
What is the frequency of log Updated..?
Whenever commit, checkpoint or redolog buffer is 1/3rd full, Time out occurs (3 sec.), 1 MB of redo log buffer
What are the Possibilities of Logical Backup (Export/Import)
- We can export from one user and import into another within the same database.
- We can export from one database and import into another database (but both source and destination
databases
should be are ORACLE databases)
- When migrating from one platform to another like from windows to sun Solaris then export is the only
method
to transfer the data.
What is stored in Oratab file
"oratab" is a file created by Oracle in the /etc or /var/opt/oracle directory when installing database software.
Originally ORATAB was used for SQL*Net V1, but lately it is being used to list the databases and software
versions installed on a server.
database_sid:oracle_home_dir:Y|N
The Y|N flags indicate if the instance should automatically start at boot time (Y=yes, N=no).
Besides acting as a registry for what databases and software versions are installed on the server, ORATAB
is also used for the following purposes:
Oracle's "dbstart" and "dbshut" scripts use this file to figure out which instances are to be start up or
shut down (using the third field, Y or N).
The "oraenv" utility uses ORATAB to set the correct environment variables.
One can also write Unix shell scripts that cycle through multiple instances using the information in the
oratab file.
In your database some blocks of particular datafile are corrupted. What statement will you issue
to know how many blocks are corrupted?
You can check the " Select * from V$DATABASE_BLOCK_CORRUPTION; " view to determine the
corrupted blocks.
What is a flash back query? This feature is also available in 9i. What are the difference between 9i
and 10g (related to flash back query).
Oracle 9i flashback 10g enhancement
Flashback query:
Flashback version query
Flashback_Transactional_query view
10g new Features:
Flashback Table
Flashback database
Setup for new feature:
AUM
Flash Recovery Area
Describe the use of %ROWTYPE and %TYPE in PL/SQL
%ROWTYPE allows you to associate a variable with an entire table row. The %TYPE associates a variable
with a single column type.

How can the problem be resolved if a SYSDBA, forgets his password for logging into enterprise
manager?
There are two ways to do that:
1. Login as SYSTEM and change the SYS password by using ALTER USER.
2. Recreate the password file using orapwd and set remote_password_file exclusive and then restart the
instance.
3. Also you can enter as / as sysdba and then after change the password Alter user sys identified by xxx;
How many maximum number of columns can be part of primary key in a table in 9i and 10g.
You can set primary key in a single table up to 16 columns of table in oracle 9i and 10g.
What is RAC?
RAC stands for Real Application Cluster. In previous versions, it is known as PARALLEL SERVER. RAC is a
mechanism that allows multiple instances (on different hosts/nodes) to access the same database. The
benefits: It provides more memory resources, since more hosts are being used; If one host gets down, then
other host assumes it's work load.
What is Data Pumping?
Data Pumping is a data movement utility. This is a replacement to imp/exp utilities. The earlier imp/exp
utilities are also data movement utilities, but they work within the local servers only. Where as, impdp/expdp
(Data pumping) are very fast and perform data movements from one database to another database on same
as well as different host. In other words, it provides secure transports.
What is Data Migration?
Data migration is actually the translation of data from one format to another format or from one storage
device to another storage device. Data migration is necessary when a company upgrades its database
or system software, either from one version to another or from one program to an entirely different program.
What is difference between spfile and init.ora file
init.ora or spfile both are contains Database parameters information. Both are supported by oracle. Every
database instance required either any one. If both are present first choice is given
to spfile only. init.ora saved in the format of ASCII where as SPFILE saved in the format of
binary. init.ora information is read by oracle engine at the time of database instance started only that means
any modification made in this those are applicable in the next startup only. But in spfile modifications
(through alter system..... command) can applicable without restarting oracle database (restarting instance).
What is SCN? Where the SCN does resides?
SCN - System Change Number - is always getting incremented by Oracle server and will be used to make
sure the consistency across the database. The system change number (SCN) is an ever-increasing value
that uniquely identifies a committed version of the database. Every time a user commits a transaction. Oracle
records a new SCN. You can obtain SCNs in a number of ways for example from the alert log. You can then
use the SCN as an identifier for purposes of recovery. For example you can perform an incomplete recovery
of a database up to SCN 1030. Oracle uses SCNs in control files datafile headers and redo records. Every
redo log file has both a log sequence number and low and high SCN. SCN number will be updated in almost
all places of the database.
CONTROLFILE, DATAFILE HEADERS, REDOLOG FILES (and hence ARCHIVE LOG FILES), DATA
BLOCK HEADERS but not in ALERT LOG file as it is not part of database.
How to know which query is taking long time?
By testing with the help of these tools tkprof or using explain plan. tkprof is available to DBA Only where as
explain plan can run programmer as well as DBA also. As well as tkprof generates complexilty after
sucessful execution only where as explain plan can show Oracle internal plan & other details. Even though
they are not alternatives for one to another. But both are designed for one purpose only. They are two
different tools they are engaged in different useful situations also you can use STATSPACK to take Snaps
while running those queries and get the report with details of SQL taking more time to

respond otherwise, you can search Top ten sql with the following views:
SQL>SELECT * FROM V$SQL;
SQL>SELECT * FROM V$SQLAREA;
SQL>SELECT * FROM (SELECT rownum Substr(a.sql_text 1 200) sql_text
Trunc(a.disk_reads/Decode(a.executions 0 1 a.executions)) reads_per_execution a.buffer_gets a.disk_reads
a.executions a.sorts a.address FROM v$sqlarea a ORDER BY 3 DESC)WHERE rownum < 10;
How can you check which user has which Role.
Sql>Select * from DBA_ROLE_PRIVS order by grantee;
What are clusters
Groups of tables physically stored together because they share common columns and are often used
together is called clusters.
Name (init.ora) parameters which affects system performance.
These are the Parameters for init.ora which affect system performance
DB_BLOCK_BUFFERS; SHARED_POOL_SIZE; SORT_AREA_SIZE; DBWR_IO_SLAVES;
ROLLBACK_SEGMENTS; SORT_AREA_RETAINED_SIZE; B_BLOCK_LRU_EXTENDED_STATISTICS
SHARED_POOL_RESERVE_SIZE
How do you rename a database?
Prior to the introduction of the DBNEWID (NID) utility alteration of the internal DBID of an instance was
impossible and alteration of the DBNAME required the creation of a new controlfile. The DBNEWID utility
allows the DBID to be altered for the first time and makes changing the DBNAME simpler.
Steps: Change DBNAME only
1.Mount the database after clean shutdown.
2.Invoke the DBNEWID utility (NID) from the command line using sys user.
nid TARGET=sys/password@TSH2 DBNAME=TSH3 SETNAME=YES
Assuming the validation is successful the utility prompts for confirmation before performing the actions.
Note: The SETNAME parameter tells the DBNEWID utility to only alter the database name.
3.clean shutdown the database
SQL>SHUTDOWN IMMEDIATE
Set the DB_NAME initialization parameter in the initialization parameter file (PFILE) to the new database
name.
Note:The DBNEWID utility does not change the server parameter file (SPFILE). Therefore, if you use
SPFILE to start your Oracle database, you must re-create the initialization parameter file from the server
parameter file, remove the server parameter file, change the DB_NAME in the initialization parameter file,
and then re-create the server parameter file. Because you have changed only the database name, and not
thedatabase ID, it is not necessary to use the RESETLOGS option when you open the database. This
means that all previous backups are still usable.
4.Create a new password file.
orapwd file=c:\oracle\920\database\pwdTSH2.ora password=password entries=10
5.Open the database without Reset logs option
SQL>Startup;
Steps: change DBID only
Repeat the same above procedure
nid TARGET=sys/password@TSH3
Shutdown and open the database with RESETLOGS option

What is the view name where we can get the space for tables or views?
DBA_Segments;
SELECT SEGMENT_NAME, SUM(BYTES) FROM DBA_SEGMENTS
WHERE SEGMENT_NAME='TABLE_NAME' AND OWNER='OWNER OF THE TABLE GROUP BY
SEGMENT_NAME;
We cannot get the space of view because view does not have its own space it depend on base table.
What background process refreshes materialized views?
Job Queue processes
What view would you use to determine free space in a tablespace?
It is dba_free_space
SQL>SELECT TABLESPACE_NAME , BYTES FROM sm$ts_free;
SQL>SELECT TABLESPACE_NAME,SUM(BYTES/1024/1024) FROM
DBA_FREE_SPACE GROUP BY TABLESPACE_NAME;
If CPU is very slow, what can u do to speed?
Use VMSTAT to check the CPU enqueues or use also TOP and SAR commands for CPU load.
What would you use to improve performance on an insert statement that places millions of rows into that table?
Drop the indexes and recreate after insert.
DML Triggers to be DISABLED and then ENABLED once the insert completed.
DISABLE the Clustered Index and then ENABLED once the insert completed.
If Monday take full backup and Tuesday it was cumulative backup and Wednesday we taken incremental
backup, Thursday some disaster happen then what type of recovery and how it will take?
Restore the Monday full backup + Tuesday cumulative backup + Wednesday Incremental backup. Becausecumulative
and incremental clears the archives every backup
What is the difference between local managed Tablespace & dictionary managed Tablespace ?
The basic diff between a locally managed tablespace and a dictionary managed tablespace is that in the
dictionary managed tablespace every time a extent is allocated or deallocated data dictionary is updated
which increases the load on data dictionary while in case of locally managed tablespace the space
information is kept inside the datafile in the form of bitmaps every time a extent is allocated or deallocated
only the bitmap is updated which removes burden from data dictionary. The Tablespaces that record extent
allocation/deallocation in the dictionary are called dictionary managed tablespaces and tablespaces that
record extent allocation in the tablespace header are called locally managed tablespaces.

While installing the Oracle 9i ( 9.2) version, automatically system takes the space of approximately 4
GB. That is fine.... Now, if my database is growing up and it is reaching the 4GB of my database
space...Now, I would like to extend my Database space to 20 GB or 25 GB... what are the things i have
to do?

Following steps can be performed:

1. First check for available space on the server.
2. You can increase the size of the datafiles if you have space available on the server and also you can make
auto extend on. So that in future you don't need to manually increase the size.
The alternative better idea is that make the autoextend off and add more datafiles to the Tablespace. Making
a single datafile to a bigger size is risky. By making autoextend off you can monitor the growth of the
tablespace schedule a growth monitoring script with a threshold of 85 full.

How to handle data corruption for ASM type files?

The storage array should contain one or more spare disks (often called hot spares). When a physical disk
starts to report errors to the monitoring infrastructure or fails suddenly the firmware should immediately
restore fault tolerance by mirroring the contents of the failed disk onto a spare disk
When a user comes to you and asks that a particular SQL query is taking more time. How will you
solve this?
If you find the SQL Query (which make problem) then take a SQLTRACE with explain plan it will show how
the SQL query will executed by oracle depending upon the report you will tune your database.
For example: one table has 10,000 records but you want to fetch only 5 rows but in that query oracle does
the full table scan. Only for 5 rows full table is scan is not a good thing so create an index on the particular
column by this way to tune the database.
By default Maximum Enabled Role in a database.
The MAX_ENABLED_ROLES init.ora parameter limits the number of roles any user can have enabled
simultaneously. The default is 30 in both oracle 8i and 9i. When you create a role it is enabled by default. If
you create many roles, then you may exceed the MAX_ENABLED_ROLE setting even if you are not the user
of this role.
User Profiles:
The user profile are used to limits the amount of system and database resources available to a user and to
manage password restrictions. If no profile are created in a database then the default profile are, which
specify unlimited resources for all users, will be used.
How to convert local management Tablespace to dictionary managed Tablespace?
>execute dbms_space_admin.tablespace_convert_to_local('tablespace_name');
>execute dbms_space_admin.tablespace_convert_from_local('tablespace_name');
What is a cluster Key ?
The related columns of the tables are called the cluster key. The cluster key is using a cluster index and its
value is stored only once formultiple tables in the cluster.
What are four performance bottlenecks that can occur in a database server and how are they
detected and prevented?
CPU bottlenecks
Undersized memory structures
Inefficient or high-load SQL statements
Database configuration issues
Four major steps to detect these issues:Analyzing Optimizer Statistics
Analyzing an Execution Plan
Using Hints to Improve Data Warehouse Performance
Using Advisors to Verify SQL Performance
Analyzing Optimizer Statistics

Optimizer statistics are a collection of data that describes more details about the database and the objects in
the database. The optimizer statistics are stored in the data dictionary. They can be viewed using data
dictionary views similar to the following:
SELECT * FROM DBA_SCHEDULER_JOBS WHERE JOB_NAME 'GATHER_STATS_JOB';
Because the objects in a database can constantly change statistics must be regularly updated so that they
accurately describe these database objects. Statistics are maintained automatically by Oracle Database or
you can maintain the optimizer statistics manually using the DBMS_STATS package.
Analyzing an Execution Plan
General guidelines for using the EXPLAIN PLAN statement are:
To use the SQL script UTLXPLAN.SQL to create a sample output table called PLAN_TABLE in your schema.
To include the EXPLAIN PLAN FOR clause prior to the SQL statement.
After issuing the EXPLAIN PLAN statement to use one of the scripts or packages provided by Oracle
Database to display the most recent plan table output.
The execution order in EXPLAIN PLAN output begins with the line that is indented farthest to the right. If two
lines are indented equally then the top line is normally executed first.
To analyze EXPLAIN PLAN output:
EXPLAIN PLAN FOR (YOUR QUERY);
EXPLAIN PLAN FOR SELECT p.prod_name c.channel_desc SUM(s.amount_sold) revenue
FROM products p channels c sales s
WHERE s.prod_id p.prod_id
AND s.channel_id c.channel_id
AND s.time_id BETWEEN '01-12-2001' AND '31-12-2001'GROUP BY p.prod_name c.channel_desc;
SELECT * FROM TABLE (DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY);
Using Advisors how to Verify SQL Performance?
Using the SQL Tuning Advisor and SQL Access Advisor you can invoke the query optimizer in advisory mode
to examine a given SQL statement or set of SQL statements and provide recommendations to improve their
efficiency. The SQL Tuning Advisor and SQL Access Advisor can make various types of recommendations
such as creating SQL profiles restructuring SQL statements creating additional indexes or materialized views
and refreshing optimizer statistics. Additionally Oracle Enterprise Manager enables you to accept and
implement many of these recommendations in very few steps
Difference between Rman Recovery Catalog or nocatalog Option?
The recovery catalog is an optional feature of RMAN though Oracle, recommends that you use it, it isnt
required. One major benefit of the recovery catalog is that it stores metadata about backups in a database
that can be reported or queried. Catalog means you have a recovery catalog database, nocatalog means
that you are using the controlfile as rman repository. Of course catalog option can only be used when
recovery catalog is present (which is not mandatory). From functional point of view there is no difference
either taking backup in catalog or nocatlaog mode.
What is Oracle Net?
Oracle Net is responsible for handling client-to-server and server to- server communications in an
Oracle environment. It manages the flow of information in the Oracle network infrastructure. Oracle Net is
used to establish the initial connection to the Oracle server and then it acts as the messenger, which passes
requests from the client back to the server or between two Oracle servers.
Difference of Backup Sets and Backup Pieces?
RMAN can store backup data in a logical structure called a backup set, which is the smallest unit of an
RMAN backup. A backup set contains the data from one or more datafiles, archived redo logs, or control files
or server parameter file. Backup sets, which are only created and accessed through RMAN, are the only
form in which RMAN can write backups to media managers such as tape drives and tape libraries.
A backup set contains one or more binary files in an RMAN-specific format. This file is known as a backup

piece. A backup set can contain multiple datafiles. For example, you can back up ten datafiles into a single
backup set consisting of a single backup piece. In this case, RMAN creates one backup piece as output. The
backup set contains only this backup piece.
What is an UTL_FILE? What are different procedures and functions associated with it?
The UTL_FILE package lets your PL/SQL programs read and write operating system (OS) text files. It
provides a restricted version of standard OS stream file input/output (I/O).
Subprogram -Description
FOPEN function-Opens a file for input or output with the default line size.
IS_OPEN function -Determines if a file handle refers to an open file.
FCLOSE procedure -Closes a file.
FCLOSE_ALL procedure -Closes all open file handles.
GET_LINE procedure -Reads a line of text from an open file.
PUT procedure-Writes a line to a file. This does not append a line terminator.
NEW_LINE procedure-Writes one or more OS-specific line terminators to a file.
PUT_LINE procedure -Writes a line to a file. This appends an OS-specific line terminator.
PUTF procedure -A PUT procedure with formatting.
FFLUSH procedure-Physically writes all pending output to a file.
FOPEN function -Opens a file with the maximum line size specified.
Differentiate between TRUNCATE and DELETE?
The Delete commands will log the data changes in the log file where as the truncate will simply remove the
data without it. Hence Data removed by Delete command can be rolled back but not the data removed by
TRUNCATE. Truncate is a DDL statement whereas DELETE is a DML statement.
What is an Oracle Instance?
Instance is a combination of memory structure and process structure. Memory structure is SGA (System or
Shared Global Area) and Process structure is background processes.
Components of SGA:
Database Buffer Cache: It is further divided into Library Cache and Data Dictionary Cache or Row Cache,
Shared Pool/large pool/stream pool/java pool
Redo log Buffer,
Background Process:
Mandatory Processes (SMON, PMON, DBWR, LGWR, CKPT, RECO)
Optional Process (ARCN, RBAC, MMAN, MMON, MMNL)
When Oracle starts an instance, it reads the initialization parameter file to determine the values of
initialization parameters. Then, it allocates an SGA, which is a shared area of memory used for database
information, and creates background processes. At this point, no database is associated with these memory
structures and processes.
What information is stored in Control File?
The database name, The timestamp of database creation, The names and locations of associated datafiles
and redo log files, Tablespace information, Datafile offline ranges, The log history, Archived log
information, Backup set and backup piece information, Backup datafile and redo log information, Datafile
copy information, The current log sequence number
When you start an Oracle DB which file is accessed first?
To Start an instance, oracle server need a parameter file which contains information about the instance,
oracle server searches file in following sequence:
1) SPFILE ------ if finds instance started .. Exit
2) Default SPFILE -- if it is spfile is not found
3) PFILE -------- if default spfile not find, instance started using pfile.
4) Default PFILE -- is used to start the instance.

What is the Job of SMON, PMON processes?

SMON: System monitor performs instance recovery at instance startup in a multiple instances. Recovers
other instances that have failed in cluster environment .It cleans up temporary segments that are no
longer in use. Recovers dead transactions skipped during crash and instance recovery. Coalesce the
free extents within the database, to make free space contiguous and easy to allocate.
PMON: Process monitor performs recovery when a user process fails. It is responsible for cleaning up
the cache, freeing resources used by the processes. In the mts environment it checks on
dispatcher and server processes, restarting them at times of failure.
What is Instance Recovery?
When an Oracle instance fails, Oracle performs an instance recovery when the associated database is restarted.
Instance recovery occurs in two steps:
Cache recovery: Changes being made to a database are recorded in the database buffer cache. These
changes are also recorded in online redo log files simultaneously. When there are enough data in the
database buffer cache, they are written to data files. If an Oracle instance fails before the data in the
database buffer cache are written to data files, Oracle uses the data recorded in the online redo log files to
recover the lost data when the
associated database is re-started. This process is called cache recovery.
Transaction recovery: When a transaction modifies data in a database, the before image of the modified
data is stored in an undo segment. The data stored in the undo segment is used to restore the original
values in case a transaction is rolled back. At the time of an instance failure, the database may have
uncommitted transactions. It is possible that changes made by these uncommitted transactions have gotten
saved in data files. To maintain read consistency, Oracle rolls back all uncommitted transactions when the
associated database is re-started. Oracle uses the undo data stored in undo segments to accomplish this.
This process is called transaction recovery.
1. Rolling forward the committed transactions
2. Rolling backward the uncommitted transactions
What is written in Redo Log Files?
Log writer (LGWR) writes redo log buffer contents Into Redo Log Files. Log writer does this every three
seconds, when the redo log buffer is 1/3 full and immediately before the Database Writer (DBWn) writes its
changed buffers into the data file.
How do you control number of Datafiles one can have in an Oracle database?
When starting an Oracle instance, the database's parameter file indicates the amount of SGA space to
reserve for datafile information; the maximum number of datafiles is controlled by the DB_FILES parameter.
This limit applies only for the life of the instance.
How many Maximum Datafiles can there be in an Oracle Database?
Default maximum datafile is 255 that can be defined in the control file at the time of database creation.
It can be increased by setting the initialization parameter value up to higher at the time of database creation.
Setting this value too higher can cause DBWR issues.
Before 9i Maximum number of datafile in database was 1022.After 9i the limit is applicable to the number of
datafile in the Tablespace.
What is a Tablespace?
A tablespace is a logical storage unit within the database. It is logical because a tablespace is not visible in
the file system of the machine on which database resides. A tablespace in turn consists of at least one
datafile, which, in tune are physically located in the file system of the server. The tablespace builds the
bridge between the Oracle database and the file system in which the table's or index' data is stored.
There are three types of tablespaces in Oracle:
Permanent tablespaces, Undo tablespaces, Temporary tablespaces

What is the purpose of Redo Log files?

The purpose of redo log file is to record all changes made to the data during the recovery of database. It
always advisable to have two or more redo log files and keep them in a separate disk, so you can recover
the data during the system crash.
Which default Database roles are created when you create a Database?
Connect , resource and dba are three default roles
What is a Checkpoint?
A checkpoint performs the following three operations:
1. Every block in the buffer cache is written to the data files. That is, it synchronizes the data blocks in the
buffer cache with the datafiles on disk. It's the DBWR that writes all modified database blocks back to the
datafiles.
2. The latest SCN is written (updated) into the datafile header.
3. The latest SCN is also written to the controlfiles.
The update of the datafile headers and the control files is done by the LGWR (if CKPT is enabled). As of
version 8.0, CKPT is enabled by default. The date and time of the last checkpoint can be retrieved
through checkpoint_time in v$datafile_header. The SCN of the last checkpoint can be found
in v$database as checkpoint_change#.
Which Process reads data from Datafiles?
The Server process reads the blocks from datafiles to buffer cache
Which Process writes data in Datafiles?
DBWn Process is writing the dirty buffers from db cache to data files.
Can you make a Datafile auto extendible. If yes, then how?
You must be logged on as a DBA user, then issue
For Data File:
SQL>Alter database datafile 'c:\oradata\mysid\XYZ.dbf' autoextend on next 10m maxsize 40G
SQL>Alter database datafile 'c:\oradata\mysid\XYZ.dbf' autoextend on next 10m maxsize unlimited;
For Temp File:
SQL>Alter database tempfile 'c:\oradata\mysid\XYZ.dbf' autoextend on next 10m maxsize unlimited;
This would turn on autoextend, grab new disk space of 10m when needed and have no upper limit on the
size of the datafile.
Note: This would be bad on a 32bit machine, where the max size is typically 4gig.
What is a Shared Pool?
It is the area in SGA that allows sharing of parsed SQL statements among concurrent users. It is to store the
SQL statements so that the identical SQL statements do not have to be parsed each time they're executed.
The shared pool is the part of the SGA where (among others) the following things are stored:
Optimized query plans, Security checks, Parsed SQL statements, Packages, Object information
What is kept in the Database Buffer Cache?
Database Buffer cache is one of the most important components of System Global Area (SGA). Database
Buffer Cache is the place where data blocks are copied from datafiles to perform SQL operations. Buffer
Cache is shared memory structure and it is concurrently accessed by all server processes. Oracle allows
different block size for different tablespaces. A standard block size is defined
in DB_BLOCK_SIZE initialization parameter. System tablespace uses standard block
size. DB_CACHE_SIZE parameter is used to define size for Database buffer cache. For example to create a
cache of 800 MB, set parameter as below
DB_CACHE_SIZE=800M
If you have created a tablesapce with bock size different from standard block size, for example your standard
block size is 4k and you have created a tablespace with 8k block size then you must create a 8k buffer cache
as

DB_8K_CACHE_SIZE=256
How many maximum Redo Logfiles one can have in a Database?
Maximum number of log files a database can accommodate depends on the parameter
"MAXLOGMEMBERS" specified during database creation. In a database we can create 255 maximum redo
log files. It depends on what you specified for MAXLOGFILES during database creation (manually) or what
you specified for "Maximum no. of redo log files" with DBCA.
What is PGA_AGGREGRATE_TARGET parameter?
PGA_AGGREGATE_TARGET is an Oracle server parameter that specifies the target aggregate PGA
memory available to all server processes attached to the instance. Some of the properties of the
PGA_AGGREGATE_TARGET parameter are given below:
Parameter type: Big integer
Syntax: PGA_AGGREGATE_TARGET = integer [K M G]Default value: 20% of SGA size or 10MB,
whichever is greater or modifiable by ALTER SYSTEM
Large Pool is used for what?
Large Pool is an optional memory structure used for the following purposes: (1) Session information for shared server
(2) I/O server processes
(3) Parallel queries
(4) Backup and recovery if using through RMAN.
The role of Large Pool is important because otherwise memory would be allocated from the Shared pool.
Hence Large pool also reduces overhead of Shared pool.
What is PCT Increase setting?
PCTINCREASE refers to the percentage by which each next extent (beginning with the third extend) will
grow. The size of each subsequent extent is equal to the size of the previous extent plus this percentage
increase.
What is PCTFREE and PCTUSED Setting?
PCTFREE is a block storage parameter used to specify how much space should be left in a database block
for future updates. For example, for PCTFREE=10, Oracle will keep on adding new rows to a block until it is
90% full. This leaves 10% for future updates (row expansion).
When using Oracle Advanced Compression, Oracle will trigger block compression when the PCTFREE is
reached. This eliminates holes created by row deletions and maximizes contiguous free space in blocks.
PCTUSED is a block storage parameter used to specify when Oracle should consider a database block to be
empty enough to be added to the freelist. Oracle will only insert new rows in blocks that is enqueued on the
freelist. For example, if PCTUSED=40, Oracle will not add new rows to the block unless sufficient rows are
deleted from the block so that it falls below 40% empty.
SQL> SELECT Pct_free FROM user_tables WHERE table_name = EMP;

What is Row Migration and Row Chaining?

There are two circumstances when this can occur, the data for a row in a table may be too large to fit into a
single data block. This can be caused by either row chaining or row migration.
Chaining: Occurs when the row is too large to fit into one data block when it is first inserted. In this case,
Oracle stores the data for the row in a chain of data blocks (one or more) reserved for that segment. Row
chaining most often occurs with large rows, such as rows that contain a column of data type LONG, LONG
RAW, LOB, etc. Row chaining in these cases is unavoidable.
Migration: Occurs when a row that originally fitted into one data block is updated so that the overall row
length increases, and the blocks free space is already completely filled. In this case, Oracle migrates the
data for the entire row to a new data block, assuming the entire row can fit in a new block. Oracle preserves
the original row piece of a migrated row to point to the new block containing the migrated row: the rowid of a
migrated row does not change. When a row is chained or migrated, performance associated with this row
decreases because Oracle must scan more than one data block to retrieve the information for that row.
1.INSERT and UPDATE statements that cause migration and chaining perform poorly, because they
perform additional processing.
2.SELECTs that use an index to select migrated or chained rows must perform additional I/Os.
Detection: Migrated and chained rows in a table or cluster can be identified by using the ANALYZE
command with the LIST CHAINED ROWS option. This command collects information about each migrated or
chained row and places this information into a specified output table. To create the table that holds the
chained rows,
execute script UTLCHAIN.SQL.
SQL> ANALYZE TABLE scott.emp LIST CHAINED ROWS;
SQL> SELECT * FROM chained_rows;
You can also detect migrated and chained rows by checking the table fetch continued row statistic in the
v$sysstat view.
SQL> SELECT name, value FROM v$sysstat WHERE name = table fetch continued row;
Although migration and chaining are two different things, internally they are represented by Oracle as one.
When detecting migration and chaining of rows you should analyze carefully what you are dealing with.
What is Ora-01555 - Snapshot Too Old error and how do you avoid it?
1. Increase the size of rollback segment. (Which you have already done)
2. Process a range of data rather than the whole table.
3. Add a big rollback segment and allot your transaction to this RBS.
4. There is also possibility of RBS getting shrunk during the life of the query by setting optimal.
5. Avoid frequent commits.
6. Google out for other causes.
What is a locally Managed Tablespace?
A Locally Managed Tablespace is a tablespace that manages its own extents maintaining a bitmap in each
data file to keep track of the free or used status of blocks in that data file. Each bit in the bitmap corresponds
to a block or a group of blocks. When the extents are allocated or freed for reuse, Oracle changes the bitmap
values to show the new status of the blocks. These changes do not generate rollback information because
they do not update tables in the data dictionary (except for tablespace quota information), unlike the default
method of Dictionary - Managed Tablespaces.
Following are the major advantages of locally managed tablespaces
Reduced contention on data dictionary tables
No rollback generated
No coalescing required
Reduced recursive space management.

Can you audit SELECT statements?

Yes, we can audit the select statements. Check out the below example:
SQL> show parameter audit
NAME TYPE VALUE

audit_file_dest string E:\ORACLE\PRODUCT\10.2.0\DB_2\
ADMIN\SRK\ADUMP
audit_sys_operations boolean FALSE
audit_trail string NONE
SQL> begin
dbms_fga.add_policy ( object_schema => SCOTT,
object_name => EMP2,
policy_name => EMP_AUDIT,
statement_types => SELECT );
end;
/
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.
SQL>select * from dba_fga_audit_trail;
no rows selected
In HR schema:
SQL> create table bankim(
name varchar2 (10),
roll number (20));
Table created.
SQL> insert into bankim values (bankim, 10);
1 row created.
SQL> insert into bankim values (bankim2, 20);
1 row created.
SQL> select * from bankim;
NAME ROLL
- bankim 10
bankim2 20
SQL> select name from bankim;
NAME
bankim
bankim2
In sys schema:
SQL>set head off
SQL> select sql_text from dba_fga_audit_trail;
select count(*) from emp2
select * from emp2
select * from emp3
select count(*) from bankim
select * from bankim
select name from bankim
What does DBMS_FGA package do?

The dbms_fga Package is the central mechanism for the FGA is implemented in the package dbms_fga,
where all the APIs are defined. Typically, a user other than SYS is given the responsibility of maintaining
these policies. With the convention followed earlier, we will go with the user SECUSER, who is entrusted with
much of the security features. The following statement grants the user SECUSER enough authority to create
and maintain the auditing facility.
Grant execute on dbms_fga to secuser;
The biggest problem with this package is that the polices are not like regular objects with owners. While a
user with execute permission on this package can create policies, he or she can drop policies created by
another user, too. This makes it extremely important to secure this package and limit the use to only a few
users who are called to define the policies, such as SECUSER, a special user used in examples.
What is Cost Based Optimization?
The CBO is used to design an execution plan for SQL statement. The CBO takes an SQL statement and tries
to weigh different ways (plan) to execute it. It assigns a cost to each plan and chooses the plan with smallest
cost.
The cost for smallest is calculated: Physical IO + Logical IO / 1000 + net IO.
How often you should collect statistics for a table?
CBO needs some statistics in order to assess the cost of the different access plans. These statistics
includes:
Size of tables, Size of indexes, number of rows in the tables, number of distinct keys in an index, number of
levels in a B* index, average number of blocks for a value, average number of leaf blocks in an index
These statistics can be gathered with dbms_stats and the monitoring feature.
How do you collect statistics for a table, schema and Database?
Statistics are gathered using the DBMS_STATS package. The DBMS_STATS package can gather statistics
on table and indexes, and well as individual columns and partitions of tables. When you generate statistics
for a table, column, or index, if the data dictionary already contains statistics for the object, then Oracle
updates the existing statistics. The older statistics are saved and can be restored later if necessary. When
statistics are updated for a database object, Oracle invalidates any currently parsed SQL statements that
access the object. The next time such a statement executes, the statement is re-parsed and the optimizer
automatically chooses a new execution plan based on the new statistics.
Collect Statistics on Table Level
sqlplus scott/tiger
exec dbms_stats.gather_table_stats ( ownname
=> 'SCOTT', tabname
=> 'EMP', estimate_percent => dbms_stats.auto_sample_size, method_opt
=> 'for all columns size auto', cascade
=> true, degree
=> 5 - )
/
Collect Statistics on Schema Level
sqlplus scott/tiger
exec dbms_stats.gather_schema_stats ( ownname
=> 'SCOTT', options
=> 'GATHER', estimate_percent => dbms_stats.auto_sample_size, method_opt
=> 'for all columns size auto', cascade
=> true, degree
=> 5 - )

Collect Statistics on Other Levels

DBMS_STATS can collect optimizer statistics on the following levels, see Oracle Manual
GATHER_DATABASE_STATS
GATHER_DICTIONARY_STATS
GATHER_FIXED_OBJECTS_STATS
GATHER_INDEX_STATS
GATHER_SCHEMA_STATS
GATHER_SYSTEM_STATS
GATHER_TABLE_STATS
Can you make collection of Statistics for tables automatic?
Yes, you can schedule your statistics but in some situation automatic statistics gathering may not be
adequate. It suitable for those databases whose object is modified frequently. Because the automatic
statistics gathering runs during an overnight batch window, the statistics on tables which are significantly
modified during the day may become stale.
There may be two scenarios in this case:
Volatile tables that are being deleted or truncated and rebuilt during the course of the day.
Objects which are the target of large bulk loads which add 10% or more to the objects total size.
So you may wish to manually gather statistics of those objects in order to choose the optimizer the best
execution plan. There are two ways to gather statistics.
1.Using DBMS_STATS package.
2.Using ANALYZE command
How can you use ANALYZE statement to collect statistics?
ANALYZE TABLE emp ESTIMATE STATISTICS FOR ALL COLUMNS;
ANALYZE INDEX inv_product_ix VALIDATE STRUCTURE;
ANALYZE TABLE customers VALIDATE REF UPDATE;
ANALYZE TABLE orders LIST CHAINED ROWS INTO chained_rows;
ANALYZE TABLE customers VALIDATE STRUCTURE ONLINE;
To delete statistics:
ANALYZE TABLE orders DELETE STATISTICS;
To get the analyze details:
SELECT owner_name, table_name, head_rowid, analyze_timestamp FROM chained_rows;
On which columns you should create Indexes?
The following list gives guidelines in choosing columns to index:

You should create indexes on columns that are used frequently in WHERE clauses.
You should create indexes on columns that are used frequently to join tables.
You should create indexes on columns that are used frequently in ORDER BY clauses.
You should create indexes on columns that have few of the same values or unique values in the table.
You should not create indexes on small tables (tables that use only a few blocks) because a full table
scan may be faster than an indexed query.
If possible, choose a primary key that orders the rows in the most appropriate order.
If only one column of the concatenated index is used frequently in WHERE clauses, place that column first
in the CREATE INDEX statement.
If more than one column in a concatenated index is used frequently in WHERE clauses, place the most
selective column first in the CREATE INDEX statement.
What type of Indexes is available in Oracle?

B-tree indexes: the default and the most common.

B-tree cluster indexes: defined specifically for cluster.

Hash cluster indexes: defined specifically for a hash cluster.
Global and local indexes: relate to partitioned tables and indexes.
Reverse key indexes: most useful for Oracle Real Application Clusters.
Bitmap indexes: compact; work best for columns with a small set of values
Function-based indexes: contain the pre-computed value of a function/expression Domain indexes:
specific to an application or cartridge.
What is B-Tree Index?
B-Tree is an indexing technique most commonly used in databases and file systems where pointers to data
are placed in a balance tree structure so that all references to any data can be accessed in an equal time
frame. It is also a tree data structure which keeps data sorted so that searching, inserting and deleting can
be done in logarithmic amortized time.
A table is having few rows, should you create indexes on this table?
You should not create indexes on small tables (tables that use only a few blocks) because a full table scan
may be faster than an indexed query.
A Column is having many repeated values which type of index you should create on this column
B-Tree index is suitable if the columns being indexed are high cardinality (number of repeated values). In fact
for this situation a bitmap index is very useful but bitmap index are vary expensive.
When should you rebuild indexes?
There is no thumb rule when you should rebuild the index. According to expert it depends upon your
database situation:
When the data in index is sparse (lots of holes in index, due to deletes or updates) and your query is usually
range based or If Blevel >3 then takes index in rebuild consideration; desc DBA_Indexes;
Because when you rebuild indexes then database performance goes down.
In fact binary tree index can never be unbalanced. Binary tree performance is good for both small and large
tables and does not degrade with the growth of table.
Can you build indexes online?
Yes, we can build index online. It allows performing DML operation on the base table during index creation.
You can use the statements:
CREATE INDEX ONLINE and DROP INDEX ONLINE.
ALTER INDEX REBUILD ONLINE is used to rebuild the index online.
A Table Lock is required on the index base table at the start of the CREATE or REBUILD process to
guarantee DDL information. A lock at the end of the process also required to merge change into the final
index structure.
A table is created with the following setting
storage (initial 200k
next 200k
minextents 2
maxextents 100
pctincrease 40)
What will be size of 4th extent?
Percent Increase allows the segment to grow at an increasing rate.
The first two extents will be of a size determined by the Initial and Next parameter (200k)
The third extent will be 1 + PCTINCREASE/100 times the second extent (1.4*200=280k).
AND the 4th extent will be 1 + PCTINCREASE/100 times the third extent (1.4*280=392k!!!) and so on...
Can you Redefine a table Online?
Yes. We can perform online table redefinition with the Enterprise Manager Reorganize Objects wizard or with
the DBMS_REDEFINITION package.

It provides a mechanism to make table structure modification without significantly affecting the table
availability of the table. When a table is redefining online it is accessible to both queries and DML during the
redefinition process.
Purpose for Table Redefinition
Add, remove, or rename columns from a table
Converting a non-partitioned table to a partitioned table and vice versa
Switching a heap table to an index organized and vice versa
Modifying storage parameters
Adding or removing parallel support
Reorganize (defragmenting) a table
Transform data in a table
Restrictions for Table Redefinition:
One cannot redefine Materialized Views (MViews) and tables with MViews or MView Logs defined on
them.
One cannot redefine Temporary and Clustered Tables
One cannot redefine tables with BFILE, LONG or LONG RAW columns
One cannot redefine tables belonging to SYS or SYSTEM
One cannot redefine Object tables
Table redefinition cannot be done in NOLOGGING mode (watch out for heavy archiving)
Cannot be used to add or remove rows from a table
Can you assign Priority to users?
Yes, we can do this through resource manager. The Database Resource Manager gives a database
administrators more control over resource management decisions, so that resource allocation can be aligned
with an enterprise's business objectives.
With Oracle database Resource Manager an administrator can:
Guarantee certain users a minimum amount of processing resources regardless of the load on the system
and the number of users
Distribute available processing resources by allocating percentages of CPU time to different users and
applications.
Limit the degree of parallelism of any operation performed by members of a group of users
Create an active session pool. This pool consists of a specified maximum number of user sessions
allowed to be concurrently active within a group of users. Additional sessions beyond the maximum are
queued for execution, but you can specify a timeout period, after which queued jobs terminate.
Allow automatic switching of users from one group to another group based on administrator-defined
criteria. If a member of a particular group of users creates a session that runs for longer than a specified
amount of time, that session can be automatically switched to another group of users with different resource
requirements.
Prevent the execution of operations that are estimated to run for a longer time than a predefined limit
Create an undo pool. This pool consists of the amount of undo space that can be consumed in by a group
of users.
Configure an instance to use a particular method of allocating resources. You can dynamically change the
method, for example, from a daytime setup to a nighttime setup, without having to shut down and restart the
instance.

Can one switch to another database user without a password?

Users normally use the "CONNECT" statement to connect from one database user to another. However,
DBAs can switch from one user to another without a password. Of course it is not advisable to bridge
Oracle's security, but look at this example:
SQL> CONNECT / as sysdba
SQL> SELECT password FROM dba_users WHERE username='SCOTT';
F894844C34402B67
SQL> ALTER USER scott IDENTIFIED BY anything;
SQL> CONNECT scott/anything
OK, we're in. Let's quickly change the password back before anybody notices.
SQL> ALTER USER scott IDENTIFIED BY VALUES 'F894844C34402B67';
User altered.
How do you delete duplicate rows in a table?
There is a several method to delete duplicate row from the table:
Method1:
DELETE FROM SHAAN A WHERE ROWID >
(SELECT min(rowid) FROM SHAAN B
WHERE A.EMPLOYEE_ID = B.EMPLOYEE_ID);
Method2:
delete from SHAAN t1
where exists (select 'x' from SHAAN t2
where t2.EMPLOYEE_ID = t1.EMPLOYEE_ID
and t2.EMPLOYEE_ID = t1.EMPLOYEE_ID
and t2.rowid
> t1.rowid);
Method3:
DELETE SHAAN
WHERE rowid IN
( SELECT LEAD(rowid) OVER
(PARTITION BY EMPLOYEE_ID ORDER BY NULL)
FROM SHAAN );
Method4:
delete from SHAAN where rowid not in
( select min(rowid)
from SHAAN group by EMPLOYEE_ID);
Method5:
delete from SHAAN
where rowid not in ( select min(rowid)
from SHAAN group by EMPLOYEE_ID);
Method6:
SQL> create table table_name2 as select distinct * from table_name1;
SQL> drop table table_name1;
SQL> rename table_name2 to table_name1;
What is Automatic Management of Segment Space setting?
Automatic Segment Space Management (ASSM) introduced in Oracle9i is an easier way of managing space
in a segment using bitmaps. It eliminates the DBA from setting the parameters pctused, freelists, and freelist
groups.
ASSM can be specified only with the locally managed tablespaces (LMT). The CREATE TABLESPACE
statement has a new clause SEGMENT SPACE MANAGEMENT. Oracle uses bitmaps to manage the free

space. A bitmap, in this case, is a map that describes the status of each data block within a segment with
respect to the amount of space in the block available for inserting rows. As more or less space becomes
available in a data block, its new state is reflected in the bitmap.
CREATE TABLESPACE myts DATAFILE '/oradata/mysid/myts01.dbf' SIZE 100M
EXTENT MANAGEMENT LOCAL UNIFORM SIZE 2M
SEGMENT SPACE MANAGEMENT AUTO;
What is COMPRESS and CONSISTENT setting in EXPORT utility?
If COMPRESS=Y, the INITIAL storage parameter is set to the total size of all extents allocated for the object.
The change takes effect only when the object is imported.
Setting CONSISTENT=Y exports all tables and references in a consistent state. This slows the export, as
rollback space is used. If CONSISTENT=N and a record is modified during the export, the data will become
inconsistent.
What is the difference between Direct Path and Convention Path loading?
When you use SQL loader by default it use conventional path to load data. This method competes equally
with all other oracle processes for buffer resources. This can slow the load. A direct path load eliminates
much of the Oracle database overhead by formatting Oracle data blocks and writing the data blocks directly
to the database files. If load speed is most important to you, you should use direct path load because it is
faster.
What is an Index Organized Table?
An index-organized table (IOT) is a type of table that stores data in a B*Tree index structure. Normal
relational tables, called heap-organized tables, store rows in any order (unsorted).
CREATE TABLE my_iot (id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, value VARCHAR2 (50)) ORGANIZATION INDEX;
What are a Global Index and Local Index?
When you create a partitioned table, you should create an index on the table. The index may be partitioned
according to the same range values that were used to partition the table. Local keyword in the index partition
tells oracle to create a separate index for each partition of the table. The Global clause in create index
command allows you to create a non-partitioned index or to specify ranges for the index values that are
different from the ranges for the table partitions. Local indexes may be easier to manage than global indexes
however, global indexes may perform uniqueness checks faster than local (portioned) indexes perform them.
What is difference between Multithreaded/Shared Server and Dedicated Server?
Oracle Database creates server processes to handle the requests of user processes connected to an
instance.

A dedicated server process, which services only one user process

A shared server process, which can service multiple user processes
Your database is always enabled to allow dedicated server processes, but you must specifically configure
and enable shared server by setting one or more initialization parameters.
Can you import objects from Oracle ver. 7.3 to 9i?
We can not import from lower version export to higher version in fact. But not sure may be now concept is
changed.
How do you move tables from one tablespace to another tablespace?
Method 1:
Export the table, drop the table, create the table definition in the new tablespace, and then import the data
(imp ignore=y).
Method 2:
Create a new table in the new tablespace with the "CREATE TABLE x AS SELECT * from y" command:
CREATE TABLE temp_name TABLESPACE new_tablespace AS SELECT * FROM real_table;
Then drop the original table and rename the temporary table as the original:

DROP TABLE real_table;

RENAME temp_name TO real_table;
Note: After step #1 or #2 is done, be sure to recompile any procedures that may have been
invalidated by dropping the table. Prefer method #1, but #2 is easier if there are no indexes, constraints, or
triggers. If there are, you must manually recreate them.
Method 3:
If you are using Oracle 8i or above then simply use:
SQL>Alter table table_name move tablespace tablespace_name;
How do see how much space is used and free in a tablespace?
SELECT * FROM SM$TS_FREE;
SELECT TABLESPACE_NAME, SUM(BYTES) FROM DBA_FREE_SPACE GROUP BY TABLESPACE_NA
ME;
Can view be the based on other view?
Yes, the view can be created from other view by directing a select query to use the other view data.
What happens, if you not specify Dictionary option with the start option in case of LogMinor
concept?
It is recommended that you specify a dictionary option. If you do not, LogMiner cannot translate internal
object identifiers and datatypes to object names and external data formats. Therefore, it would return internal
object IDs and present data as hex bytes. Additionally, theMINE_VALUE and COLUMN_PRESENT functions
cannot be used without a dictionary.
What is the Benefit and draw back of Continuous Mining?
The continuous mining option is useful if you are mining in the same instance that is generating the redo
logs. When you plan to use the continuous mining option, you only need to specify one archived redo log
before starting LogMiner. Then, when you start LogMiner specify
theDBMS_LOGMNR.CONTINUOUS_MINE option, which directs LogMiner to automatically add and mine
subsequent archived redo logs and also the online catalog.
Continuous Mining is not available in Real Application Cluster.
What is LogMiner and its Benefit?
LogMiner is a recovery utility. You can use it to recover the data from oracle redo log and archive log file.
The Oracle LogMiner utility enables you to query redo logs through a SQL interface. Redo logs contain
information about the history of activity on a database.
Benefit of LogMiner?
1. Pinpointing when a logical corruption to a database; suppose when a row is accidentally deleted then
logMiner helps to recover the database exact time based and changed based recovery.
2. Perform table specific undo operation to return the table to its original state. LogMiner reconstruct the
SQL statement in reverse order from which they are executed.
3. It helps in performance tuning and capacity planning. You can determine which table gets the most
update and insert. That information provides a historical perspective on disk access statistics, which can be
used for tuning purpose.
4. Performing post auditing; LogMiner is used to track any DML and DDL performed on database in the
order they were executed.
What is Oracle DataGuard?
Oracle DataGuard is a tools that provides data protection and ensures disaster recovery for enterprise data.
It provides comprehensive set of services that create, maintain, manage, and monitor one or more standby
databases to enable production Oracle databases to survive disasters and data corruption. Dataguard
maintains these standsby databases as transitionally consistent copies of the production database. Then, if
the production database becomes failure Data Guard can switch any standby database to the production
role, minimizing the downtime associated with the outage. Data Guard can be used with traditional backup,

restoration, and cluster techniques to provide a high level of data protection and data availability.
What is Standby Databases
A standby database is a transitionally consistent copy of the primary database. Using a backup copy of the
primary database, you can create up to 9 standby databases and incorporate them in a Data Guard
configuration. Once created, Data Guard automatically maintains each standby database by
transmitting redo data from the primary database and then applying the redo to the standby database.
Similar to a primary database, a standby database can be either a single-instance Oracle database or an
Oracle Real Application Clusters database. A standby database can be either a physical standby database
or a logical standby database:
Difference between Physical standby Logical standby databases
Provides a physically identical copy of the primary database on a block-for-block basis. The database
schema, including indexes, is the same. A physical standby database is kept synchronized with the primary
database, though Redo Apply, which recovers the redo data, received from the primary database and
applies the redo to the physical standby database.
Logical Standby database contains the same logical information as the production database, although the
physical organization and structure of the data can be different. The logical standby database is kept
synchronized with the primary database though SQL Apply, which transforms the data in the redo received
from the primary database into SQL statements and then executing the SQL statements on the standby
database.
If you are going to setup standby database what will be your Choice Logical or Physical?
We need to keep the physical standby database in recovery mode in order to apply the received archive
logs from the primary database. We can open physical stand by database to read only and make it
available to the applications users (Only select is allowed during this period). Once the database is opened in
Read only mode then we can not apply redo logs received from primary database.
We do not see such issues with logical standby database. We can open up the database in normal mode
and make it available to the users. At the same time, we can apply archived logs received from primary
database.
If the primary database needed to support pretty large user community for the OLTP system and pretty large
Reporting Group then better to use logical standby as primary database instead of physical database.
What are the requirements needed before preparing standby database?
OS Architecture of primary database secondary database should be same.
The version of secondary database must be the same as primary database.
The Primary database must run in Archivelog mode.
Require the same hardware architecture on the primary and all standby site.
Does not require the same OS version and release on the primary and secondary site.
Each Primary and secondary database must have its own database.
What are Failover and Switchover in case of dataguard?
Failover is the operation of bringing one of the standby databases online as the new primary database when
failure occurs on the primary database and there is no possibility of recover primary database in a timely
manner. The switchover is a situation to handle planned maintenance on the primary database. The main
difference between switchover operation and failover operation is that switchover is performed when primary
database is still available or it does not require a flash back or re-installation of the original primary database.
This allows the original primary database to the role of standby database almost immediately. As a result
schedule maintenance can performed more easily and frequently.
When you use WHERE clause and when you use HAVING clause?
HAVING clause is used when you want to specify a condition for a group function and it is written after
GROUP BY clause The WHERE clause is used when you want to specify a condition for columns, single row
functions except group functions and it is written before GROUP BY clause if it is used.

What is a cursor and difference between an implicit & an explicit cursor?

A cursor is a PL/SQL block used to fetch more than one row in a Pl/SQl block. PL/SQL declares a cursor
implicitly for all SQL data manipulation statements, including quries that return only one row. However,
queries that return more than one row you must declare an explicit cursor or use a cursor FOR loop.
Explicit cursor is a cursor in which the cursor name is explicitly assigned to a SELECT statement via the
CURSOR...IS statement. An implicit cursor is used for all SQL statements Declare, Open, Fetch, Close. An
explicit cursors are used to process multirow SELECT statements An implicit cursor is used to process
INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE and single row SELECT. .INTO statements.
Explain the difference between a data block, an extent and a segment.
A data block is the smallest unit of logical storage for a database object. As objects grow they take chunks of
additional storage that are composed of contiguous data blocks. These groupings of contiguous data blocks
are called extents. All the extents that an object takes when grouped together are considered the segment of
the database object.
You have just had to restore from backup and do not have any control files. How would you go about
bringing up this database?
I would create a text based backup control file, stipulating where on disk all the data files where and then
issue the recover command with the using backup control file clause.
A table is classified as a parent table and you want to drop and re-create it. How would you do this
without affecting the children tables?
Disable the foreign key constraint to the parent, drop the table, re-create the table, and enable the foreign
key constraint.
How to Unregister database from Rman catalog
First we start up RMAN with a connection to the catalog and the target, making a note of the DBID in the
banner:
C:\>rman catalog=rman/rman@shaan target=HRMS/password@orcl3
connected to target database: W2K1 (DBID=691421794)
connected to recovery catalog database
Note the DBID from here. Next we list and delete any backupset recorded in the repository:
RMAN> LIST BACKUP SUMMARY;
RMAN> DELETE BACKUP DEVICE TYPE SBT;
RMAN> DELETE BACKUP DEVICE TYPE DISK;
Next we connect to the RMAN catalog owner using SQL*Plus and issue the following statement:
SQL> CONNECT rman/rman@shaan
SQL> SELECT db_key, db_id FROM db
WHERE db_id = 1487421514;
DB_KEY
DB_ID
----------

---------1

691421794

The resulting key and id can then be used to unregister the database:
SQL> EXECUTE dbms_rcvcat.unregisterdatabase(1, 691421794);
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.

My database was terminated while in BACKUP MODE, do I need to recover?

If a database was terminated while one of its tablespaces was in BACKUP MODE (ALTER
TABLESPACE xyz BEGIN BACKUP;), it will tell you that media recovery is required when you try
to restart the database. The DBA is then required to recover the database and apply all
archived logs to the database. However, from Oracle 7.2, one can simply take the individual
datafiles out of backup mode and restart the database.
SQL> ALTER DATABASE DATAFILE C:\PATH\FILENAME END BACKUP;
One can select from V$BACKUP to see which datafiles are in backup mode From Oracle9i
onwards, the following command can be used to take all of the datafiles out of hotbackup
mode:
SQL>ALTER DATABASE END BACKUP;
Note: This command must be issued when the database is mounted, but not yet opened.
Does Oracle write to data files in begin/hot backup mode?
When a tablespace is in backup mode, Oracle will stop updating its file headers, but will
continue to write to the data files. When in backup mode, Oracle will write complete changed
blocks to the redo log files. Because of this, increased log activity and archiving during on-line
backups. To solve this problem, simply switch to RMAN backups.
Difference Consistent and Inconsistent Backup
The backup taken in shutdown state or in same point in time are referred to as
consistent. Unlike an inconsistent backup, a consistent whole database backup does not
require recovery after it is restored, here all header of datafile belongs to writable tablespace
have the same SCN. These datafile donot have any change past this check point SCN. The SCN
of datafile header matches exactly controlfile checkpoint.
An inconsistent backup is a backup of one or more database files that you make while the
database is open or after the database has shut down abnormally. This means that the files in
the backup contain data taken from different points in time. This can occur because the
datafiles are being modified as backups are being taken. Not any of the above mentioned
properties are exist here. A recovery (Applying all the archive and online redo logs) is needed
in order to make the backup consistent.
Difference between restoring and recovering?
Restoring involves copying backup files from secondary storage (backup media) to disk. This
can be done to replace damaged files or to copy/move a database to a new location.
Recovery is the process of applying redo logs to the database to roll it forward. One can rollforward until a specific point-in-time (before the disaster occurred), or roll-forward until the
last transaction recorded in the log files.
Difference between Complete and Incomplete Recovery?
Complete recovery involves using redo data or incremental backups combined with a backup of
a database, tablespace, or datafile to update it to the most current point in time. It is
called complete because Oracle applies all of the redo changes contained in the archived and
online logs to the backup. Typically, you perform complete media recovery after a media failure

damages datafiles or the control file.

Incomplete recovery, or point-in-time recovery we do not apply all of the redo records
generated after the most recent backup or when archive redo log is missing.
Because you are not completely recovering the database to the most current time, you must
tell Oracle when to terminate recovery. You can perform the following types of media recovery.
Time based Recovery, Cancel based Recovery, Change based Recovery, Log sequence Recovery
What happens when we open the database with Resetlogs option after incomplete
recovery?
The RESETLOGS operation creates a new incarnation of the databasein other words, a
database with a new stream of log sequence numbers starting with log sequence 1.
Before using the OPEN RESETLOGS command to open the database in read/write mode after an
incomplete recovery, it is a good idea to first open the database in read-only mode, and
inspect the data to make sure that the database was recovered to the correct point. If the
recovery was done to the wrong point, then it is easier to re-run the recovery if
no OPENRESETLOGS has been done.
Difference between online and offline backups?
A hot (or on-line) backup is a backup performed while the database is open and available for
use (read and write activity). Except for Oracle exports, one can only do on-line backups when
the database is ARCHIVELOG mode. A cold (or off-line) backup is a backup performed while
the database is off-line and unavailable to its users. Cold backups can be taken regardless if
the database is in ARCHIVELOG or NOARCHIVELOG mode.
It is easier to restore from off-line backups as no recovery (from archived logs) would be
required to make the database consistent. Nevertheless, on-line backups are less disruptive
and doesn't require database downtime.
Point-in-time recovery (regardless if you do on-line or off-line backups) is only available when
the database is in ARCHIVELOG mode.
What is the difference between Views and Materialized Views in Oracle?
Views evaluate the data in the tables underlying the view definition at the time the view is
queried. It is a logical view of your tables, with no data stored anywhere else. The upside of a
view is that it will always return the latest data to you. The downside of a view is that its
performance depends on how good a select statement the view is based on. If the select
statement used by the view joins many tables, or uses joins based on non-indexed columns,
the view could perform poorly.
Materialized views are similar to regular views, in that they are a logical view of your data
(based on a select statement), however, the underlying query result set has been saved to a
table. The upside of this is that when you query a materialized view, you are querying a table,
which may also be indexed. Materialized views having several other advantages over simple
view.
What happens when you set CONTROL_FILE_RECORD_KEEP_TIME to 0
Never set CONTROL_FILE_RECORD_KEEP_TIME to 0. If you do, then backup records may be

overwritten in the control file before RMAN is able to add them to the catalog. As we know that
The CONTROL_FILE_RECORD_KEEP_TIME initialization parameter determines the minimum
number of days that records are retained in the control file before they are candidates for
being overwritten.
How to find the last refresh of your database (when the recovery with resetlogs
performed)?
If the cloned database has been opened with RESETLOGS option, you can try checking out
V$DATABASE.RESETLOGS_TIME. if the V$DATABASE.CREATED is not equal to
V$DATABASE.RESETLOGS_TIME...there is a possibility that it might be opened with resetlogs
option. I don't have the required set up to check and confirm this myself....but this is
something you can get it a shot.
Command to find files created a day before
find . -type f -mtime 1 -exec ls -lth {} \;
Initially Flashback Database was enabled but noticed Flashback was disabled
automatically long time ago. What is the Issue?
Reason:
It could be because the flashback area 100% Once Flashback Area become 100% full then
oracle will log in Alert that Flashback will be disabled and it will automatically turn off Flash
Back without user intervention.
How can I check if there is anything rolling back?
It depends on how you killed the process. If you did and alter system kill session you should be
able to look at the used_ublk block in v$transaciton to get an estimate for the rollback being
done. If you killed to server process in the OS and pmon is recovering the transaction you can
look at V$FAST_START_TRANSACTIONS view to get the estimate
How do you see how many instances are running?
In Linux, Unix the command: ps -ef|grep pmon
In Windows: services.msc
Which is more efficient Incremental Backups using RMAN or Incremental Export?
Rman
The current logfile gets damaged. What you can do now?
Once current redolog file is damaged, instance is aborted and it needs recovery upto
undamaged part. Only undamaged part can be recovered. Here DBA must apply time based
recovery, means it can be a point in time or specified by SCN. It leads to incomplete recovery
Where should the tuning effort be directed?
Consider the following areas for tuning in order to increase performance of DB
Application Tuning:
Experience showed that approximately 80% of all Oracle system performance problems are
resolved by coding optimal SQL. Also consider proper scheduling of batch tasks after peak
working hours.
Memory Tuning:
Properly size your database buffers (shared pool, buffer cache, log buffer, etc) by looking at
your buffer hit ratios. Pin large objects into memory to prevent frequent reloads.
Disk I/O Tuning:
Database files needs to be properly sized and placed to provide maximum disk subsystem
throughput. Also look for frequent disk sorts, full table scans, missing indexes, row chaining,

data fragmentation, etc

Eliminate Database Contention:
Study database locks, latches and wait events carefully and eliminate where possible.
Tune the Operating System:
Monitor and tune operating system CPU, I/O and memory utilization. For more information,
read the related Oracle FAQ dealing with your specific operating system.
What are the common Import/ Export problems?
ORA-00001: Unique constraint (...) violated - You are importing duplicate rows. Use
IGNORE=NO to skip tables that already exist (imp will give an error if the object is re-created).
ORA-01555: Snapshot too old - Ask your users to STOP working while you are exporting or
use parameter CONSISTENT=NO
ORA-01562: Failed to extend rollback segment - Create bigger rollback segments or set
parameter COMMIT=Y while importing
IMP-00015: Statement failed ... object already exists... - Use the IGNORE=Y import
parameter to ignore these errors, but be careful as you might end up with duplicate rows.
By mistake a use drop or truncate a Table then what is the best method to recover it?
There are several methods possibly through RMAN such as:
Restore and recover the primary database to a point in time before the drop. This is an
extreme measure for one table as the entire database goes back in time.
Restore and recover the tablespace to a point in time before the drop. This is a better option,
but again, it takes the entire tablespace back in time.
Restore and recover a subset of the database as a DUMMY database to export the table data
and import it into the primary database. This is the best option as only the dropped table goes
back in time to before the drop.
How to find running jobs in oracle database
select sid, job,instance from dba_jobs_running;
select sid, serial#,machine, status, osuser,username from v$session where username!='NULL';
--all active users
select owner, job_name from DBA_SCHEDULER_RUNNING_JOBS; --for oracle 10g
How to find long running jobs in oracle database
select username,to_char(start_time, 'hh24:mi:ss dd/mm/yy') started, time_remaining
remaining, message from v$session_longops
where time_remaining = 0 order by time_remaining desc
Login without password knowledge
This is not the genuine approach consider it as a practice.
SQL> CONNECT / as sysdba
Connected.
SQL> SELECT password FROM dba_users WHERE username='SCOTT';
PASSWORD
--------------- --------------F894844C34402B67
SQL> ALTER USER scott IDENTIFIED BY anything;
User altered.
SQL> CONNECT scott/anything

Connected.
OK, we're in. Let's quickly change the password back before anybody notices.
SQL> ALTER USER scott IDENTIFIED BY VALUES 'F894844C34402B67';
User altered.
While applying the CPU Patch why we need to update the Oracle Inventory?
Because when you apply the CPU it updates the oracle binaries.

Difference between locks and latches

Locks are used to protect the data or resources from the simultaneous use of them by multiple
sessions which might set them in inconsistent state. Locks are external mechanism, means
user can also set locks on objects by using various oracle statements.
Latches are for the same purpose but works at internal level. Latches are used to Protect and
control access to internal data structures like various SGA buffers. They are handled and
maintained by oracle and we cant access or set it.
Setting the audit_trail parameter in the database to db, it generates lot of records
in sys.aud$ table. Can you suggest any method to overcome this issue?
1. When you set audit it does audit for every single activity on the database. So it may lead
into performance problem.
You have to disable every single audit(<> noaudit) before or after you set the parameter and
then enable one by one based on the requirement.
2. You should monitor the growth of sys.aud$ and archive it properly or maintain the space.
How to change the topnsql of AWR Snapshot in 10g
Select * from DBA_HIST_WR_CONTROL
1898043910 +00 01:00:00.000000 +01 00:00:00.000000 DEFAULT
exec DBMS_WORKLOAD_REPOSITORY.MODIFY_SNAPSHOT_SETTINGS(topnsql => 30);
Select * from DBA_HIST_WR_CONTROL
1898043910 +00 01:00:00.000000 +01 00:00:00.000000 30
How to detect whos causing excessive redo generation
SELECT S1.SID, S1.SERIAL_NUM, S1.USER_NAME, S1.PROGRAM, T1.USED_UBLK,
T1.USED_UREC FROM V$SESSION S1, V$TRANSACTION T1 WHERE S1.TADDR = T1.ADDR ORDER
BY 5 DESC, 6 DESC, 1, 2, 3, 4;
Tracking undo generation by all session
SELECT S1.SID, S1.USER_NAME, R1.NAME, T1.START_TIME, T1.USED_UBLK , T1.USED_UREC
FROM V$SESSION S1, V$TRANSACTION T1, V$ROLLNAME R1 WHERE T1.ADDR = S1.TADDR AND
R1.USN = T1.XIDUSN;
Or you can collect Statistics from V$SESSTAT to AWR
How do you remove an SPFILE parameter (not change the value of, but actually

purge it outright)?
Use "ALTER SYSTEM RESET ..." (For database versions 9i and up)
Syntax:
ALTER SYSTEM RESET PARAMETER SID='SID|*'
ALTER SYSTEM RESET "_TRACE_FILES_PUBLIC" SCOPE=SPFILE SID='*';
NOTE: The "SID='SID|*'" argument is REQUIRED!
Can you use RMAN to recover RMAN?
Yes, you can!
Which situation Exist condition is better than IN
If the resultant of sub query is small then IN is typically more appropriate where as resultant
of sub query is big/large/long then EXIST is more appropriate. The Exist always results full
scan of table where as first query can make use of index on Table.
Is Oracle really quicker on Windows than Solaris?
I found in my experience that Yes, windows perform better on comparable hardware just about
any UNIX box. I am working on Windows but once I installed Solaris trying to test. I found the
windows installations always outperformed the Solaris ones both on initial loading the pool
cache and subsequent runs. The test package is rather large (5000+ lines), which is used in a
form to display customer details. On Solaris I was typically getting an initial return time of 5
seconds and on windows, typically, 1 second. Even subsequent runs (i.e. cached) the windows
outperformed Solaris. The parameter sizes for the SGA were approx. the same and the file
systems are the conventional method. In both cases the disk configuration is local.
What is Difference between DBname and instance_name?
A database is a set of files (data, redo, ctl and so on) where as An instance is a set of
processes (SMON, PMON, DBWR, etc) and a shared memory segment (SGA).
A database may be mounted and opened by many INSTANCES (Parallel Server) concurrently.
An instance may mount and open ANY database -- however it may only open a single database
at any time. There for you need unique (for the set of files).
Does DBCA create instance while creating database?
DBCA does not create instance. It create database (set of files). The instance is only feelings
do a shutdown and goodbye instance and on windows it registers the necessary services that
can be used to start an instance when you want.
Is there any way to create database without DBCA?
Yes, you can used oradim directly
What's the difference between connections, sessions and processes?
A connection is a physical circuit between you and the database. A connection might be one of
many types -- most popular begin DEDICATED server and SHARED server. Zero, one or more
sessions may be established over a given connection to the database as show above with
sqlplus. A process will be used by a session to execute statements. Sometimes there is a one
to one relationship between CONNECTION->SESSION->PROCESS (eg: a normal dedicated
server connection). Sometimes there is a one to many from connection to sessions (eg: like

autotrace, one connection, two sessions, one process). A process does not have to be
dedicated to a specific connection or session however, for example when using shared server
(MTS), your SESSION will grab a process from a pool of processes in order to execute a
statement. When the call is over, that process is released back to the pool of processes.
SQL>select username from v$session where username is not null;
you can see one session, me
SQL>select username, program from v$process;
you can see all of the backgrounds and my dedicated server...
Autotrace for statistics uses ANOTHER session so it can query up the stats for your
CURRENT session without impacting the STATS for that session!
SQL>select username from v$session where username is not null;
now you can see two session but...
SQL>select username, program from v$process;
Same 14 processes...
What about Fragmentation situation (LMT) in oracle 8i and up?
Fragmentation is that if you have many small holes (regions of contiguous free space) that
are too small to be the next extent of any object. These holes of free space resulted from
dropping some object (or truncating them) and the resulting free space cannot be used by any
other object in that tablespace. This is a direct result of using pctincrease that is not zero and
having many weird sized extents (every extents is unique size and shape). In oracle 8i and
above we all are using locally managed tablespace. These would use either uniform sizing or
our automatic allocation scheme. In either case it is almost impossible to get into a situation
where you have unusable free space.
To see if you suffer from fragmentation you can query from DBA_FREE_SPACE (best to do an
alter tablespace to ensure all contiguous made into 1 big free region). You would look any free
space that is smaller then the smallest next extent size for any object in that tablespace.
Check with below query:
Select * from dba_free_space
where tablespace_name = 'T' and bytes <= ( select min(next_extent)
from dba_segments where tablespace_name = 'T') order by block_id
Is there a way we can flush out a known data set from the database buffer cache?
No you dont, in real life; the cache would never be empty. It is true that 10g introduce an
alter system flush buffer_cache, but it is not really worthwhile. Having empty buffer cache is
fake, if no more so than what you are currently doing.
What would be the best approach to benchmark the response time for a particular
query?
run query q1 over and over (with many different inputs)
run query q2 over and over (with many different inputs)
discard first couple of observations, and last couple
use the observations in the middle

What is difference between Char and Varchar2 and which is better approach?
A CHAR datatype and VARCHAR2 datatype are stored identically (eg: the word 'WORD' stored
in a CHAR(4) and a varchar2(4) consume exactly the same amount of space on disk, both
have leading byte counts).
The difference between a CHAR and a VARCHAR is that a CHAR(n) will ALWAYS be N bytes
long, it will be blank padded upon insert to ensure this. A varchar2(n) on the other hand will
be 1 to N bytes long, it will NOT be blank padded. Using a CHAR on a varying width field can
be a pain due to the search semantics of CHAR.
Consider the following examples:
SQL> create table t ( x char(10) );
Table created.
SQL> insert into t values ( 'Hello' );
1 row created.
SQL> select * from t where x = 'Hello';
X
---------Hello
SQL> variable y varchar2(25)
SQL> exec :y := 'Hello'
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.
SQL> select * from t where x = :y;
no rows selected
SQL> select * from t where x = rpad(:y,10);
X
---------Hello
Notice how when doing the search with a varchar2 variable (almost every tool in the world
uses this type), we have to rpad() it to get a hit. If the field is in fact ALWAYS 10 bytes long,
using a CHAR will not hurt -- HOWEVER, it will not help either.
Rman always shows date in DD-MON-YY format. How to set date format to
M/DD/YYYY HH24:MI:SS in rman ?
You can just set the NLS_DATE_FORMAT before going into RMAN:
In Rman list backup how do i get time column that shows me date and time including
seconds as generally it is showing only date.
Before connecting the rman target set the date format on command prompt:
export NLS_DATE_FORMAT=dd-mon-yyyy hh24:mi:ss - Linux
Set NLS_DATE_FORMAT=dd-mon-yyyy hh24:mi:ss - windows
then try to connect rman target
rman target sys/oralce@orcl3 catalog rman/rman@shaan
rman> list backupset 10453

Why not use O/S backups instead of RMAN?

There is nothing wrong with doing just OS backups. OS backups are just as valid as RMAN
backups. RMAN is a great tool but it is not the only way to do it. Many people still prefer using
a scripting tool of there choice such as perl or ksh to do this.
RMAN is good if you have lots of databases. The catalog it uses remembers lots of details for
you. You don't have as much to think about.
RMAN is good if you do not have good "paper work" skills in place. Using OS backups, it is
more or less upto you to remember where they are, what they are called and so on. You have
to do all of the book keeping RMAN would do.
RMAN provides incremental backups, something you cannot get without RMAN.
RMAN provides tablespace point in time recovery. You can do this without RMAN but you have
to do it by yourself and it can be rather convoluted.
RMAN is more integrated with OEM. If you do OS backups, you'll have to do everything
yourself. With RMAN you may have less scripting to develop, test and maintain.
RMAN if the catalog/controlfile are damaged? what is the next step?
If you lose rman, you rebuild from the controlfiles of the backed up databases but, you should
not lose the rman catalog using proper techniques of backup itself.
How to switch between Noarchivelog and archivelog in oracle 10g
connect "/ as sysdba"
alter system set log_archive_start=true scope=spfile;
alter system set log_archive_dest='......' scope=spfile;
shutdown immediate;
startup mount
alter database archivelog;
alter database open;
connect /
-andconnect "/ as sysdba"
shutdown immediate
startup mount
alter database noarchivelog;
alter database open;
connect /
How to Update millions or records in a table?
If we had to update millions of records I would probably opt to NOT update.
I would more likely do:
CREATE TABLE new_table as select <do the update "here"> from old_table;
index new_table
grant on new table
add constraints on new_table

etc on new_table
drop table old_table
rename new_table to old_table;
You can do that using parallel query, with nologging on most operations generating very
little redo and no undo at all in a fraction of the time it would take to update the
data.
SQL>create table new_emp as select empno, LOWER(ename) ename, JOB,
MGR, HIREDATE, SAL, COMM, DEPTNO from emp;
SQL>drop table emp;
SQL>rename new_emp to emp;
How to convert database server sysdate to GMT date?
Select sysdate, sysdate+
(substr(tz_offset(dbtimezone),1,1)||1)*to_dsinterval(0

||substr(tz_offset( DBTIMEZONE ),2, 5)||:00) from dual;

What is the difference between to back up the current control file and to backup up
control file copy?
If you backup current control file you backup control file which is currently open by an
instance where as If you backup controlfile file copy" you backup the copy of control file which
is created either with SVRMGRL command "alter system backup controlfile to .." or with RMAN
command "copy current controlfile to ...". In the other words, the control file copy is not
current controlfile backup current controlfile creates a BACKUPSET containing controlfile. You
don't have to give the FILENAME where as backup controlfile copy <filename> creates a
BACKUPSET from a copy of controlfile. You
have to give the FILENAME.
How much of overhead in running BACKUP VALIDATE DATABASE and RESTORE
VALIDATE DATABASE commands to check for block corruptions using RMAN? Can I
run these commands anytime?
Backup validate works against the backups not against the live database so no impact on the
live database, same for restore validate they do not impact the real thing (it is reading the files
there only).
Is there a way to force rman to use these obsolete backups or once it is marked
obsolete?
As per my understanding it is just a report, they are still there until you delete them.
Can I use the same snapshot controlfile to backup multiple databases(one after
another) running on the same server?
This file is only use temporarily like a scratch file. Only one rman session can access the
snapshot controlfile at any time so this would tend to serialize your backups if you do that.
Why does not oracle keep RMAN info after recreating the controlfile?
Creating the new controlfile from scratch how do you expect the create controlfile to "make up"
the missing data? that would be like saying similarly we have drop and recreated my table and
now it is empty similarly here recreating from the scratch means the contents there will be
naturally will be gone. Use the rman catalog to deal this situation. It is just a suggestion.
What is the advantage of using PIPE in rman backups? In what circumstances one
would use PIPE to backup and restore?
It lets 3rd parties (anyone really) build an alternative interface to RMAN as it permits anyone
that can connect to an Oracle instance to control RMAN programmatically.
How To turn Debug Feature on in rman?
run {
allocate channel c1 type disk;
debug on;
}
rman>list backup of database;
now you will see a output
You can always turn debug off by issuing
rman>debug off;

Assuming I have a "FULL" backup of users01.dbf containing employees table that

contains 1000 blocks of data. If I truncated employees table and then an incremental
level 1 backup of users tablespace is taken, will RMAN include 1000 blocks that once
contained data in the incremental backup?
The blocks were not written to the only changes made by the truncate was to the data
dictionary (or file header) so no, it won't see them as changed blocks since they were not
changed.
Where should the catalog be created?
The recovery catalog to be used by Rman should be created in a separate database other than
the target database. The reason is that the target database will be shutdown while datafiles
are restored.
How many times does oracle ask before dropping a catalog?
The default is two times one for the actual command, the other for confirmation.
What are the various reports available with RMAN?
rman>list backup; rman> list archive;
What is the use of snapshot controlfile in terms of RMAN backup?
Rman uses the snapshot controlfile as a way to get a read consistent copy of the controlfile, it
uses this to do things like RESYNC the catalog (else the controlfile is a moving target,
constantly changing and Rman would get blocked and block the database)
Can RMAN write to disk and tape Parallel? Is it possible?
Rman currently won't do tape directly, you need a media manager for that, regarding disk and
tape parallel not as far as I know, you would run two backups separately (not sure). May be
trying to maintain duplicate like that could get the desired.
What is the difference between DELETE INPUT and DELETE ALL command in backup?
Generally speaking LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_n points to two disk drive locations where we archive
the files, when a command is issued through rman to backup archivelogs it uses one of the
location to backup the data. When we specify delete input the location which was backed up
will get deleted, if we specify delete all (all log_archive_dest_n) will get deleted.
DELETE all applies only to archived logs.
delete expired archivelog all;
Is it possible to restore a backupset (actually backup pieces) from a different
location to where RMAN has recorded them to be.
With 9.2 and earlier it is not possible to restore a backupset (actually backup pieces) from a
different location to where RMAN has recorded them to be. As a workaround you would have to
create a link using the location of where the backup was originally located. Then when
restoring, RMAN will think everything is the same as it was.
Starting in 10.1 it is possible to catalog the backup pieces in their new location into the
controlfile and recovery catalog. This means they are available for restoration by RMAN without
creating the link.
What is difference between Report obsolete and Report obsolete orphan

Report obsolete backup are reported unusable according to the users retention policy where as
Report obsolete orphan report the backup that are unusable because they belong to
incarnation of the database that are not direct ancestor of the current incarnation.
How to Increase Size of Redo Log
1. Add new log files (groups) with new size
ALTER DATABASE ADD LOGFILE GROUP
2. Switch with alter system switch log file until a new log file group is in state current
3. Now you can delete the old log file
ALTER DATABASE DROP LOGFILE MEMBER
What is the difference between alter database recover and sql*plus recover
command?
ALTER DATABASE recover is useful when you as a user want to control the recovery where as
SQL*PLUS recover command is useful when we prefer automated recovery.
Difference of two view V$Backup_Set and Rc_Backup_Set in respect of Rman
The V$Backup_Set is used to check the backup details when we are not managing Rman
catalog that is the backup information is stored in controlfile where as Rc_Backup_Set is
used when we are using catalog as a central repository to list the backup information.
Can I cancel a script from inside the script? How I cancil a select on Windows client?
Use ctl-c
How to Find the Number of Oracle Instances Running on Windows Machine
C:\>net start |find OracleService
How to create an init.ora from the spfile when the database is down?
Follow the same way as you are using
SQL> connect sys/oracle as sysdba
SQL> shutdown;
SQL> create pfile from spfile;
SQL> create spfile from pfile;
When you shutdown the database, how does oracle maintain the user session i.e.of
sysdba?
You still have your dedicated server
!ps -auxww | grep ora920
sys@ORA920> !ps -auxww | grep ora920
sys@ORA920> shutdown
sys@ORA920> !ps -auxww | grep ora920
You can see you still have your dedicated server. When you connect as sysdba, you fire up
dedicated server that is where it is.
What is ORA-002004 error? What you will do in that case?
A disk I/O failure was detected on reading the control file. Basically you have to check whether
the control file is available, permissions are right on the control file, spfile/init.ora right to the
right location, if all checks were done still you are getting the error, then from the multiplexed

control file overlay on the corrupted one.

Let us say you have three control files control01.ctl, control02.ctl and control03.ctl and now
you are getting errors on control03.ctl then just copy control01.ctl over to control03.ctl and
you should be all set.
In order to issue ALTER DATABASE BACKUP CONTROLFILE TO TRACE; database should be
mounted and in our case it is not mounted then the only other option available is to restore
control file from backup or copy the multiplexed control file over to the bad one.
Why do we need SCOPE=BOTH clause?
BOTH indicates that the change is made in memory and in the server parameter file. The new
setting takes effect immediately and persists after the database is shut down and started up
again. If a server parameter file was used to start up the database, then BOTH is the default. If
a parameter file was used to start up the database, then MEMORY is the default, as well as the
only scope you can specify.
How to know Number of CPUs on Oracle
Login as SYSDBA
SQL>show parameter cpu_count
NAME TYPE VALUE
cpu_count integer 2
Could you please tell me what are the possible reason for Spfile corruption and
Recovery?
It should not be corrupt under normal circumstances, if it were, it would be a bug or failure of
some component in your system. It could be a file system error or could be a bug.
You can easily recover however from
a) Your alert log has the non-default parameters in it from your last restart.
b) it should be in your backups
c) strings spfile.ora > init$ORACLE_SID.ora - and then edit the resulting file to clean it up
would be options.
How you will check flashback is enabled or not?
Select flashback_on from v$database;
In case Revoke CREATE TABLE Privilege from an USER giving ORA-01952. What is the
issue? How to do in that case?
SQL> revoke create table from Pay_payment_master;
ORA-01952: system privileges not granted to PAY_PAYMENT_MASTER
This is because this privilege is not assigned to this user directly rather it was assigned through
role CONNECT If you remove connect role from the user then you will not be able to create
session (Connect) to database. So basically we have to Revoke the CONNECT Role and Grant
other than create table privilege to this user.
What kind of information is stored in UNDO segments?
Only before image of data is stored in the UNDO segments. If transaction is rolled back
information from UNDO is applied to restore original datafile. UNDO is never multiplexed.

How to Remove Oracle Service in windows environment?

We can add or remove Oracle Service using oradim which is available in ORACLE_HOME/bin
C:\Oradim delete sid
or
Oradim delete svrc
Why ORA-28000: the account is locked? What you will do in that case?
The Oracle 10g default is to lock an account after 10 bad password attempts and giving ORA28000: the account is locked. In that case one of the solutions is increase default limit of the
login attempts.
SQL> Alter profile default limit FAILED_LOGIN_ATTEMPTS unlimited;
How to Reduce the Physical Reads on Statistics?
You need to increase the Buffer Cache
Consider the situation Buffer Cache of the database is 300MB. One SQL gave the Physical read
as 100. I increased as 400MB and now the same SQL giving the Physical read value is 0
How many redo groups are required for a Oracle DB?
At least 2 redo groups are required for a Oracle database to be working normally.
My spfile is corrupt and now I cannot start my database running on my laptop. Is there a way
to build spfile again?
if you are on unix then
$ cd $ORACLE_HOME/dbs
$ strings spfilename temp_pfile.ora
edit the temp_pfile.ora, clean it up if there is anything "wrong" with it and then
SQL> startup pfile=temp_pfile.ora
SQL> create spfile from pfile;
SQL> shutdown
SQL> startup
On windows -- just try editing the spfile [do not try with the prod db first try to check on test
db. It can be dangerous], create a pfile from it. save it, and do the same or if you got problem
you can startup the db from the command line using sqlplus create a pfile, do a manual startup
(start the oracle service, then use sqlplus to start the database)
What is a fractured block? What happens when you restore a file containing
fractured block?
A block in which the header and footer are not consistent at a given SCN. In a user-managed
backup, an operating system utility can back up a datafile at the same time that DBWR is
updating the file. It is possible for the operating system utility to read a block in a half-updated
state, so that the block that is copied to the backup media is updated in its first half, while the
second half contains older data. In this case, the block is fractured.
For non-RMAN backups, the ALTER TABLESPACE ... BEGIN BACKUP or ALTER DATABASE BEGIN
BACKUP command is the solution for the fractured block problem. When a tablespace is in
backup mode, and a change is made to a data block, the database logs a copy of the entire

block image before the change so that the database can reconstruct this block if media
recovery finds that this block was fractured.
The block that the operating system reads can be split, that is, the top of the block is written
at one point in time while the bottom of the block is written at another point in time. If you
restore a file containing a fractured block and Oracle reads the block, then the block is
considered a corrupt.
You recreated the control file by using backup control file to trace and using alter
database backup controlfile to location command what have you lost in that case?
You lost all of the backup information as using backup controlfile to trace where as using other
ALTER DATABASE BACKUP CONTROLFILE to D:\Backup\control01.ctl. All backup information is
retained when you take binary control file backup.
If a backup is issued after shutdown abort command what kind of backup
is that?
It is an inconsistent backup. If you are in noarchivelog mode ensure that you issue the
shutdown immediate command or startup force is another option that you can issue: startup
force->shutdown abort; followed by shutdown immediate;

How can I check if there is anything rolling back?

It depends on how you killed the process. If you did and alter system kill session you should be
able to look at theused_ublk block in v$transaciton to get an estimate for the rollback being
done. If you killed to server process in the OS and PMON is recovering the transaction you can
look at V$FAST_START_TRANSACTIONS view to get the estimate
How to find out how much rollback a session has to do
select time_remaining from v$session_longops
where sid =<sid of the session doing the rollback>;
How to Drop a column of a Table?
Consider the below Example
Create table x(a date, b date, c date);
Now to drop column B:
Alter table x set unused column b;

-- it will mark column as UNUSED

Select * from sys.dba_unused_col_tabs;

Alter table x drop unused columns;
Alternative method to drop column:
Alter table x drop column c cascade constraints;
How can we see the oldest flashback available?
You can use the following query to see the flashback data available.
SELECT to_char(sysdate,'YYYY-MM-DD
HH24:MI') current_time, to_char(f.oldest_flashback_time, 'YYYY-MM-DD
HH24:MI')OLDEST_FLASHBACK_TIME,
(sysdate - f.oldest_flashback_time)*24*60 HIST_MIN FROM v$database
d, V$FLASHBACK_DATABASE_LOG f;
How to get current session id, process id, client process id?
select b.sid, b.serial#, a.spid processid, b.process clientpid from v$process a, v$session b
where a.addr = b.paddr
and b.audsid = userenv('sessionid');
V$SESSION.SID and V$SESSION.SERIAL# are database process id
V$PROCESS.SPID Shadow process id on the database server
V$SESSION.PROCESS Client process id, on windows it is : separated the first # is the
process id on the client and 2nd one is the thread id.
What is MRC ? What you do as application DBA for MRC?
MRC also called as Multiple Reporting Currency in oracle application. Default you have currency
in US Dollars but if your organization operating books are in other currency then you as
application DBA need to enable MRC in applications.
How will you find Invalid Objects in database?
select count(*) from dba_objects where status like 'INVALID';
select * from dba_objects where status like 'INVALID';
Can you use both ADPATCH and OPATCH in application?

Yes you have to use both in application , for application patches you will use ADPATCH UTILITY
and for applying database patch in application you will use opatch UTILITY.
Do you have idea how to trace a running process on Linux?
Using strace you can trace the system calls being executed by a running process
$ strace -p 1435
Process 1435 attached interrupt to quit
Pressed <control-C> - press control-C to stop the strace
$ strace -cfo smon_strace.log -p 1435
Process 1435 attached interrupt to quit
Process 1435 detached
What are database link? Differenciate the use of each of them?
A database link is a named object that describes a "path" from one database to another. There
are different types of database link such as: Private database link, public database link &
network database link.
Private database link is created on behalf of a specific user. A private database link can be used
only when the owner of the link specifies a global object name in a SQL statement or in the
definition of the owner's views or procedures.
Public database link is created for the special user group PUBLIC. A public database link can be
used when any user in the associated database specifies a global object name in a SQL
statement or object definition.
Network database link is created and managed by a network domain service. A network
database link can be used when any user of any database in the network specifies a global
object name in a SQL statement or object definition.
How to know which version of database you are working?
select * from v$version;
In Reference to Rman point in time Recovery which scenario is better for you (Until
time or until sequence)?
I am practicing various scenarios for backup and recovery using RMAN. I find until SCN better
than until time, with log_seq in the middle. Until time is still going to use (ultimately) an SCN
to recover, so if you know the SCN it would be preferred if not then time is fine.
If you have forgotten the root password on CentOS then what you will do?
If you are on CentOS then follow these steps:
- At the splash screen during boot time, press any key which will take you an interactive menu.
- Then select a Linux version you wish to boot and press a to append option to the line this
will bring you to a line with the boot command
- Next at the end of that line type single as an option/parameter and then Press Enter to
exit and execute the boot this will start the OS with single user mode which allow you to reset
the root password by typing passwd and you can set new password for root.
How to determine whether the datafiles are synchronized or not?
select status, checkpoint_change#, to_char(checkpoint_time, 'DD-MON-YYYY HH24:MI:SS') as

checkpoint_time, count(*)
from v$datafile_header
group by status, checkpoint_change#, checkpoint_time
order by status, checkpoint_change#, checkpoint_time;
Check the results of the above query if it returns one and only one row for the online datafiles,
means they are already synchronized in terms of their SCN. Otherwise the datafiles are still not
synchronized yet.
You have just restored from backup and do not have any control files. How would
you go about bringing up this database?
If you do not have a control file, you can create one from scratch in SQL*Plus as follows:
1. sqlplus /nolog
2. connect / as sysdba
3. Startup nomount;
4. the either create controlfile or restore it from the backup (if you have)
5. alter dataase mount;
6. Recover database using backup controlfile;
7. Alter database open;
From more details follow my blog post "Disaster Recovery from the
scratch": http://shahiddba.blogspot.com/2012/05/rman-disaster-recovery-from-scratch.html
Is there any way to find the last record from the table?
select * from employees where rowid in(select max(rowid) from employees);
select * from employees minus select * from employees where rownum < (select count(*) from
employees);
How you will find Oracle timestamp from current SCN?
select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual; -- Oracle Ver. 9i
SCN
-----------8843525
SQL> Select to_char(CURRENT_SCN) from v$database; -- oracle Ver. 10g or above
SQL>
select current_scn, dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number from v$database;
--standby case
SQL> select scn_to_timestamp(8843525) from dual;
How to suspend/resume a process using oradebug?
SQL> oradebug setorapid 14
Unix process pid: 14962, image: oracle@localhost.localdomain (TNS V1-V3)
SQL> oradebug suspend
Statement processed.
SQL> oradebug resume
Statement processed.

How to find the last time a session performed any activity?

In v$session the column last_call_et has value which tells us the last time (seconds) ago when
the session performed any activity within the database.
select username, floor(last_call_et / 60) "Minutes", status
from v$session
where username is not null order by last_call_et;
How to find parameters that will take into effect for new sessions?
Using the following query one can find the list of parameters that will take info effect for new
sessions if the value of the parameter is changed.
SQL> SELECT name FROM v$parameter WHERE issys_modifiable = 'DEFERRED';
You can change the parameter using the deferred option:
SQL> alter system set sort_area_size=65538 deferred;
System altered
How to free (Flush) buffer cache?
How to free buffer cache?
Note: you may only want to do this on Dev or Test environment as it would affect performance
on production. I already written on my earlier
post http://shahiddba.blogspot.com/2012/05/dba-interview-questions-with-answers_14.html
in real life; the cache would never be empty
-- displays the status and number of pings for every buffer in the SGA
SQL> select distinct status from v$bh;
STATUS

--cr
free
xcur
-- flush buffer cache for 10g and upwards
SQL> alter system flush buffer_cache;
System altered.
-- flush buffer cache for 9i and upwards
SQL> alter session set events immediate trace name flush_cache;
Session altered.
-- Shows buffer cache was freed after flushing buffer cache
SQL> select distinct status from v$bh;
STATUS

Free
How to suspend all jobs from executing in dba_jobs?
By setting the value of 0 to the parameter job_queue_processes you can suspend all jobs
from executing in DBA_JOBS. The value of this parameter can be changed without instance

restart.
SQL> show parameter job_queue_processes;
NAME TYPE VALUE

job_queue_processes integer 400
Now set the value of the parameter in memory, which will suspend jobs from starting
SQL> alter system set job_queue_processes=0 scope=memory;
System altered.
How to see the jobs currently being executed?
By using dba_jobs_running to can see all the job currently executing
SQL> select djr.sid, djr.job, djr.failures, djr.this_date, djr.this_sec, dj.what from
dba_jobs_running djr, dba_jobs dj where djr.job = dj.job;
What is GSM in Oracle application E-Business Suite?
GSM stands for Generic Service Management Framework. Oracle E-Business Suite consist of
various compoennts like Forms, Reports, Web Server, Workflow, Concurrent Manager. Earlier
each service used to start at their own but managing these services (given that) they can be
on various machines distributed across network. So Generic Service Management is extension
of Concurrent Processing which manages all your services , provide fault tolerance (If some
service is down ICM through FNDSM and other processes will try to start it even on remote
server) With GSM all services are centrally managed via this Framework.
How can you license a product after installation?
You can use ad utility adlicmgr to licence product in Oracle application.
In a situation when you want to know which was the last query fired by the user.
How to check?
Select S.USERNAME||'('||s.sid||')-'||s.osuser UNAME
,s.sid||'/'||s.serial# sid,s.status "Status",p.spid,sql_text sqltext
from v$sqltext_with_newlines t,V$SESSION s , v$process p
where t.address =s.sql_address and p.addr=s.paddr(+) and t.hash_value = s.sql_hash_value
order by s.sid,t.piece;
Can one copy Oracle software from one machine to another?
Yes, one can copy or FTP the Oracle Software between similar machines. Look at the following
example:
# use tar to copy files and directorys with permissions and ownership
tar cf $ORACLE_HOME | rsh cd $ORACLE_HOME; tar xf
To copy the Oracle software to a different directory on the same server:
cd /new/oracle/dir/
(cd $ORACLE_HOME; tar cf . ) | tar xvf NOTE: Remember to relink the Intelligent Agent on the new machine to prevent messages like
Encryption key supplied is not the one used to encrypt file:
cd /new/oracle/dir/

cd network/lib
make -f ins_agent.mk install
A single transaction can have multiple deletes and a single SCN number identifying
all of these deletes. What if I want to flash back only a single individual delete?
You would flash back to the SYSTEM (not your transactions) SCN at that point in time. The
SYSTEM has an SCN, your transaction has an SCN. You care about the SYSTEM SCN with
flashback, not your transactions SCN.
Are flash back queries useful for the developer or the DBA both? How can I as a
developer and DBA get to know the SCN number of a transaction?
Oracle Flashback is a tool is useful for both either DBA and Developer. If you deleted data
accidently then either DBA or Developer both can flashback, recover and fix this problem. As a
developer you can use "dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number" to returns the current
system SCN and as DBA you can use Log Miner utility to to look back in time at various events
to find SCN's as well.
After Performing DML operation you are using flashback query to retun back your
committed data can you use flashback concept after Truncating any data?
In version 9i, Flashback is limited to Data Manipulation Language (DML) commands such as
SELECT,INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE. Truncate doesn't generate any undo for the table
truncate just cuts it all loses where as delete puts the deleted data into undo. Flashback query
works on undo.

What is SID and what is it used for? Where can I find out the SID of my database?
The SID is a site identifier. It plus the Oracle_home are hashed together in Unix to create a
unique key name for attaching an SGA. If your Oracle_sid or Oracle_home is not set correctly,
you will get "oracle not available". you can get instance name with the following command:
select instance from v$thread;
select instance_name from v$instance;
If you are buying a new server that will be a mirror image of the current Production
Server what would be the step for that?
In same environment and directory structure setup server, install oracle, use oradim to setup
the registry (register the instance) and restore from backup.
I am cloning database A as database B, both exactly identical, running in
NOARCHIVELOG mode. Database A will be shutdown before copying files. I am using
the CREATE CONTROLFILE statement to clone.
a) Do I need to copy redo log files from A to B if I need to open B with RESETLOGS
option?
b) Do I need to copy control files from A to B since I will be creating controlfile for B?
a) You do not need to, but you would avoid having to open resetlogs if that makes you feel
better.
b) Not if you are doing the create controlfile trick. You could just copy EVERYTHING, startup
mount, and issue a series of alter database rename file 'old name' to 'new names'; and then
alter database open (assuming logs are in the same place, else you'll drop and create them).
Note: My understanding is that if you use RESETLOGS option in CREATE CONTROLFILE, the
redo log files will be created by Oracle as per the specifications given in the create controlfile
statement.
I have a new server. What is the best way I can have the same oracle setup that is
there on a prodn db? Either we need to restore the file systems and relink oracle
without doing any installation?
My suggestion is install the same software on another server then then apply restore and
recover procedure on the same environment or directory structure.
No idea about "relink oracle without doing any installation", see the admin guide for your OS
for details on things like this.
There is any difference between Oracle TCL and DCL command?
DCL stands for Data Control Language. These command are used to configure and control
database objects such as GRANT, REVOKE where as TCL stands for Transaction Control
language. It is used to manage the changes made by DML statements. It allows statements to
be grouped together into logical transactions such as
COMMIT - save work done
SAVEPOINT - identify a point in a transaction to which you can later roll back
ROLLBACK - restore database to original since the last COMMIT
SET TRANSACTION - Change transaction options like isolation level and what rollback segment

to use
What happens when the lock is disabling on the table?
When you disabling the lock on table then you are not able to perform DDL operation on that
table but you still to manage DML operation easily
For Example:
Create Table s1 (Eno number(2), ename varchar2(15), salary number(5,2));
insert into s1 values (1, 'shahid', 400);
insert into s1 values (1, 'javed', 200);
insert into s1 values (2, 'karim', 100);
--disable lock on table
Alter table s1 disable table lock;
-- cannot drop/truncate table as table lock is disable
drop table s1;
truncate table s1;
--you cannot able to add/modify/drop column
Alter table s1 add comm number(5,2);
Alter table s1 modify s1 salary number (10,4);
Alter table s1 drop column salary;
-- But still you are able to perform DML
update s1 set salary= 800 where eno=2;
select * from s1;
delete from s1 where eno=2;
insert into s1 values (2, 'mohan', 250);
What is the importance of clock time in case of database cloning?
My personal experience sometimes just cloning a database is not enough if moving it to
another machine you also have to ensure:
1. The environment on the new machine is setup, to match the cloned system this would
include memory & disc allocation space.
2. The "new" machine time is the same or greater than the machine you were cloning from
How much space does it take to clone a database?
The clone needs the same space.
In which case %LIKE (before or after use) operator performance increases?
LIKE% works the fastest because it uses the index to search on the column provided an index
is specified on the column. Using % after LIKE, results in faster results.
Do you have idea about Fuzz testing or fuzzing?
Fuzz testing or fuzzing is a software testing technique that provides random data ("fuzz") to
the inputs of a program. If the program fails (for example, by crashing, or by failing built-in
code assertions), the defects can be noted. The great advantage of fuzz testing is that the test
design is extremely simple, and free of preconceptions about system behavior.
Using the expdp/impdp (Data Pump in 10g), can export and import data from one

schema/Database to another schema/Data is it possible?

Yes, you can use dblink for that
What is DataMapper?
DataMAPPER is a high-performance data migration tool designed for large-scale data
movement projects. Its distinct client/server design allows users to work in a graphical
environment, without sacrificing the performance.
How to Start Enterprise Manager from command line?
C:\cd ORACLE_HOME/bin
C:\emctl start dbconsole
Now type on the browser http://localhost.localdomain:5500/em/
How will you find current and max utilization of session and number of processes?
SQL>select resource_name, current_utilization, max_utilization from v$resource_limit where re
source_name in('processes','sessions');
RESOURCE_NAME

CURRENT_UTILIZATION MAX_UTILIZATION

---------------------

------------------- ---------------

processes

14

18

sessions

12

17

As the table is being modified, can ROWID of a row change?

A rowid is assigned to a row upon insert and is imutable (never changing) unless the row is
deleted and re-inserted (meaning it is another row, not the same row!).
What happened when I updated narrow rows, setting character to wide values?
In this case row will migrate but the rowid for the row stays the same even when the row
migrate.
Session 1: retrieves a row with rowid X
Session 2: deletes the row with rowid X, commits
/* rowid X is now free for re-use */
Session 3: inserts a new row with rowid X, commits
Session 1: update .... where rowid = X
Session 1's update is not updating the same row that it had earlier retrieved.
Consider the above scenario what should be the solution
Use the Primary Key with the table. If you combine rowid with the primary key then it will be
perfectly safe to use rowid id in all cases.
If you have a single delete statement that deletes many records using rowids. Would
there ever be a time when the rowid within this table change during the execution of
this delete statement?
In order for a rowid to change you have to enable row movement first so if row movement is
not enabled then answer is NO. If it is, then flashback table could change a rowid incase of
DDL statement and would not happen concurrently with a delete (so it would not affect it).
For Example:
Alter table s1 shrink space compact, that moves rows and would change rowids.

Update of a partition key that causes a row to move, that moves rows and would change
rowids.
If I fire two inserts in a table, whether the rowid of the 2nd record will be greater
than
rowid of the 1st record?
The answer is NO see the example below
if you insert A
then

insert B

later

insert C
delete A
insert D

It is quite possible in above example that D will be "first" in the table as it took over A's place.
If rowids always "grew", than space would never be reused (that would be an implication of
rowids growing always. We would never be able to reuse old space as the rowid is just a
file.block.slot-on-block - a physical address).
Difference between Stored Procedure and Macro?
Stored Procedure:
It does not return rows to the user.
It has to use cursors to fetch multiple rows
It used Inout/out to send values to user
It is stored in DATABASE or USER PERM
A stored procedure also provides output/Input capabilities
Macros:
It returns set of rows to the user.
It is stored in DBC PERM space
A macro that allows only input values
If the port 1521 is default port for the TNSLinstener. I have a database server on
port 1527 how can I make the clients connect on this port or can I have one listener
service connect to listen for 2 servers?
If you are using "Host naming" convention (this is a method that does not require the client to
have a tnsnames.ora file at all. You must be using TCP or you must only have one default
database per host. The client only needs to know the hostname of the server to connect) then
yes, 1521 is the default and only port.
If you are using tnsnames.ora, the Oracle nameserver, or any other method to connect then
no, 1521 is not a default port. In this case, 1521 is simply the port used by "convention". The
clients would, typically in their tnsnames.ora, connect to the listener on some specified port
number. 1521 is the convention used by many people; it is neither mandatory nor necessary.
What is an IPC protocol and where and how it is used? I have experience only in
TCP/IP protocol. Is there any advantage in using IPC over TCP?
IPC is interposes communication you have messages, pipes, socket pairs and so on it is alot

like just using sockets with TCP/IP. IPC is generally limited to "a machine", not over a network.
IPC used to be a tad faster than TCP but recent tests have shown this to be less and less true.
In your absence any body has done any alteration then how did you notice or How to
know last DDL fired from the particular schema and particular table?
To find the last ddl performed check out the last_ddl_time from all_objects, dba_objects,
user_objects view because each time and object changes the last_ddl_time is updated from
these view.
Select CREATED, TIMESTAMP, last_ddl_time from all_objects
WHERE OWNER='HRMS' AND OBJECT_TYPE='TABLE' AND OBJECT_NAME='PAYROLL_MAIN_FIL
E';
In the above query HRMS is the schema name and payroll_main_file is the table name.
How to find tables that have a specific column name?
SELECT owner, table_name, column_name
FROM dba_tab_columns
WHERE column_name like 'AMOUNT'
ORDER by table_name;
Differentiate Row level and statement level Trigger?
Row Level Trigger is fired each time row is affected by Insert, Update or Delete command. If
statement doesnt affect any row then no trigger action happens where as Statement level
trigger fires when a SQL statement affects the rows of the table. The trigger activates and
performs its activity irrespective of number of rows affected due to SQL statement. They get
fired once for each triggering statement.

I exported one table with a name of user, how to import that table with another name of user?
EXPDP user1/pwd TABLES=test DUMPFILE=test.DMP DIRECTORY=abc;
IMPDP user2/pwd REMAP_SCHEMA=user1:user2 DUMPFILE=test.DMP DIRECTORY=abc ;
-orIMPDP user2/pwd directory=directory_name tables=table_name
dumpfile=dump_name.dmp;
SQL>Grant read, write on directory directory_name to public;
SQL>Grant read, write on directory <dir_name> to <user>;
Just careful to give grant to public if it is production Environment
I have two server of same configuration having single database of 10GB and 20 GB size respectively,
I want to merge into single server what are the prerequisites and steps to follow in this case.
In my view Export/Import is the best solution to merge the database. You can export the schemas from one
database and import it into other database.
Can one monitor how fast a table is imported?
If you need to monitor how fast rows are imported from a running import job, try one of the following
methods:
Method 1:
select substr(sql_text,instr(sql_text,'INTO "'),30) table_name,
rows_processed,
round((sysdate-to_date(first_load_time,'yyyy-mm-dd hh24:mi:ss'))*24*60,1)
minutes,
trunc(rows_processed/((sysdate-to_date(first_load_time,'yyyy-mm-dd
hh24:mi:ss'))*24*60)) rows_per_min
from sys.v_$sqlarea
where sql_text like 'INSERT %INTO "%'
and command_type = 2
and open_versions > 0;
If the import has more than one table, this statement will only show information about the current table being
imported.
Method 2:
Use the FEEDBACK=n import parameter. This command will tell IMP to display a dot for every N rows
imported.
How we will increase performance on particular table? Here I am inserting 2GB data in table, its takes
more time to insert in a table. Is there any way to increase performance on a particular table?
Index on huge table while doing insert will not only solution to improve performance. Get your table
partitioned that will make table insertion faster and also easy to manage the archive data. Alternatively do
one thing first disable constraints as well as index then perform insertion then again enable.
You can use high-speed solid-state disk (RAM-SAN) to make Oracle inserts run up to 300x faster than platter
disk.
How to reduce alert log Size?

If you move or delete your Alert log file, it is recreated automatically in next startup, alternatively you can put
a script at OS level to move the archives and use new one. So the best way to reduce the size of log is just
move your aler.log to some other place. Oracle will recreate it in next startup.
How you will know the instance is Primary or Standby?
By querying v$database one can tell if the host is primary or standby
On the primary database:
SQL> select database_role from v$database;
DATABASE_ROLE
-----------------PRIMARY
OR check the value of controlfile_type in V$database i.e is CURRENT for primary and "STANDBY" for
standby
SQL> SELECT controlfile_type FROM V$database;
CONTROL
------------CURRENT
On the Standby database:
SQL> select database_role from v$database;
DATABASE_ROLE
------------------PHYSICAL STANDBY
SQL> SELECT controlfile_type FROM V$database;
CONTROL
------------STANDBY
Note: You may need to connect to as sys if the instance is in mount state
How would you determine what sessions are connected and what resources they are waiting for?
Use of V$SESSION and V$SESSION_WAIT
Give two methods you could use to determine what DDL changes have been made.
You could use Logminer or Streams
How would you determine who has added a row to a table?
Turn on fine grain auditing for the table.
Explain the differences between PFILE and SPFILE
A PFILE is a Static, text file that initializes the database parameter in the moment that its started. If you want
to modify parameters in PFILE, you have to restart the database.
A SPFILE is a dynamic, binary file that allows you to overwrite parameters while the database is already
started (with some exceptions).
Name some clients that can connect with Oracle?
There are several such as SQL Developer, SQL-Plus, TOAD, dbvisualizer, PL/SQL Developer.
In which view can you find information about every view and table of oracle dictionary?

DICT or DICTIONARY view. You can query as:

SQL> SELECT * FROM DICT;
How can we change which databases are started during a reboot in Linux Env.?
Edit the /etc/oratab
How can we reduce the space of TEMP datafile?
Prior to Oracle 11g, you have to re-create the datafile. In Oracle 11g a new feature was introduced and you
can shrink the TEMP tablespace.
How can you view all the current users connected in your database in this moment?
SELECT COUNT(*),USERNAME FROM V$SESSION GROUP BY USERNAME;
What is the difference between a view and a materialized view?
A view is a select that is executed each time a user accesses to it. A materialized view stores the result of
this query in memory for faster access purposes.
Can we have different database versions in the same RAC Env.?
Yes, but Clusterware version must be greater than the database version.
How can you difference a usual parameter and an undocumented parameter of oracle?
The undocumented parameters have the prefix _. Such as: _allow_resetlogs_corruption
What should be the result of logical comparision (NULL != NULL)

False in both cases:

In case of SELECT * FROM MY_SCHEMA.MY_TABLE why we are getting this error: SP2-0678: Column or
attribute type can not be displayed by SQL*Plus?
Check for sure the table has a BLOB column.
Which are the default passwords of SYSTEM/SYS?
MANAGER / CHANGE_ON_INSTALL
Is it possible to center an object horizontally in a repeating frame that has a variable horizontal size?
Yes
Can a field be used in a report without it appearing in any data group?
Yes
When a form is invoked with call_form, Does oracle forms issues a save point?
Yes
You have just had to restore from backup and do not have any control files. How would you go about
bringing up this database?
I would create a text based backup control file, stipulating where on disk all the data files where and then
issue the recover command with the using backup control file clause.
Explain the difference between a data block, an extent and a segment.
A data block is the smallest unit of logical storage for a database object. As objects grow they take chunks of
additional storage that are composed of contiguous data blocks. These groupings of contiguous data blocks
are called extents. All the extents that an object takes when grouped together are considered the segment of
the database object.
A table is classified as a parent table and you want to drop and re-create it. How would you do this
without affecting the children tables?

Disable the foreign key constraint to the parent, drop the table, re-create the table, enable the foreign key
constraint.
What column differentiates the V$ views to the GV$ views and how?
The INST_ID column which indicates the instance in a RAC environment the information came from.
How would you go about increasing the buffer cache hit ratio?
Use the buffer cache advisory over a given workload and then query the v$db_cache_advice table. If a
change was necessary then I would use the alter system set db_cache_size command.
How would you determine the time zone under which a database was operating?
select DBTIMEZONE from dual;
Explain the use of setting GLOBAL_NAMES equal to TRUE.
Setting GLOBAL_NAMES indicates how you might connect to a database. This variable is either TRUE or
FALSE and if it is set to TRUE it enforces database links to have the same name as the remote database to
which they are linking.
What background process refreshes materialized views?
The Job Queue Processes.
When a user process fails, what background process cleans up after it?
PMON
What are the roles and user accounts created automatically with the database?
DBA - role Contains all database system privileges.
SYS user account - The DBA role will be assigned to this account. All of the base tables and views for the
database's dictionary are store in this schema and are manipulated only by ORACLE.
SYSTEM user account - It has all the system privileges for the database and additional tables and views that
display administrative information and internal tables and views used by oracle tools are created using this
username.
What are the minimum parameters should exist in the parameter file (init.ora) ?
DB NAME - Must set to a text string of no more than 8 characters and it will be stored inside the datafiles,
redo log files and control files and control file while database creation.
DB_DOMAIN - It is string that specifies the network domain where the database is created. The global
database name is identified by setting these parameters
(DB_NAME & DB_DOMAIN) CONTORL FILES - List of control filenames of the database. If name is not
mentioned then default name will be used.
DB_BLOCK_BUFFERS - To determine the no of buffers in the buffer cache in SGA.
PROCESSES - To determine number of operating system processes that can be connected to ORACLE
concurrently. The value should be 5 (background process) and additional 1 for each user.
ROLLBACK_SEGMENTS - List of rollback segments an ORACLE instance acquires at database startup.
Also optionally LICENSE_MAX_SESSIONS,LICENSE_SESSION_WARNING and LICENSE_MAX_USERS.
What is the difference between NAME_IN and COPY ?
Copy is package procedure and writes values into a field.
Name in is a package function and returns the contents of the variable to which you apply.
How do you implement the If statement in the Select Statement

We can implement the if statement in the select statement by using the Decode statement. e.g select
DECODE (EMP_CAT,'1','First','2','Second'Null); Here the Null is the else statement where null is done .
How many rows will the following SQL return?
Select * from emp Where rownum = 10;
No rows
Can dual table be deleted, dropped or altered or updated or inserted?
Yes

Why it is not necessary to take UNDO backup

In fact when you do some transaction, redo entries will be generated and accepted just like that whenever
some change happen to UNDO tablespace or UNDO segments oracle will generate redo entries.
So even though you does not backup UNDO, you have the redo entries through which you can recover or
rollback the transactions.
What happens with the datafile during hot backup process?
The below three action will happen in case of hot backup process in database
1.The Tablespace checkpointed.
2.The checkpoint SCN in datafile header will freeze to increment with checkpoint.
3.Full image of changed DB block are written to redologs.
Why more redologs are generated during hotbackup?
During the hotbackup in initial checkpointing, the datafile that comprise the tablespace generates full image
of changed Db block in these tablespace to the redologs. Normally oracle logs an entry in the redologs for
every change in database but it does not log the whole image of database blog. By logging full images of
changed DB blocks to the redologs during hot backup mode, oracle eliminates the possibility of the backup
containing fractured blocks and guarantees that in the event of a recovery, any fractured that might be in the
backup copy of the datafile will be resolved by replacing them with the full image of the block from the
redologs.
How do you increase the performance of % like operator?
The % placed after the search word (ss%) can enable the use of index if one is specified in the index
column. This performance is better than the other two ways using % such as before the search word (like
%ss) and before and after the search word (%ss%).
What is cache Fusion Technology?
Cache fusion treats multiple buffer caches as one joint global cache. This solves the issues like data
consistency internally, without any impact on the application code or design. Cache fusion technology eases
the process of a very high number of concurrent users and SQL operations without compromising data
consistency.
Do you have idea about reports server?
Reports server is also a component of the middle tier and is hosted in the same node of the concurrent
processing server. Reports server is used to produce business intelligence reports.
What is importance of replication and their use in oracle?
Replication is the process of copying and maintaining database objects in multiple databases that make up a
distributed database system. Changes applied at one site are captured and stored locally before being
forwarded and applied each of the remote location. Replication provides user with fast, local access to
shared data, and protects availability of applications because alternate data access options exist. Even if one
site becomes unavailable, users can continue to query or even update the remaining locations.
In simple replication, you create a snapshot, a table corresponding to the query's column list. When the
snapshot is refreshed, that underlying table is populated with the results of the query. As data changes in a
table in the master database, the snapshot is refreshed as scheduled and moved to the replicated database.

Advanced replication allows the simultaneous transfer of data between two or more Master Sites. There are
considerations to keep in mind when using multi-master replication. The important ones are sequences
(which cannot be replicated), triggers (which can turn recursive if you're not careful) and conflict resolution.
What is the basic difference between Cloning and Standby databases?
The clone database is a copy of the database which can be opened in read write mode. It is treated as a
separate copy of the database that is functionally completely separate. The standby database is a copy of
the production database used for disaster protection. In order to update the standby database; archived redo
logs from the production database can be used. If the primary database is destroyed or its data becomes
corrupted, one can perform a failover to the standby database, in which case the standby database becomes
the new primary database.
Why we are using materialized view instead of a table?
Materialized views are basically used to increase query performance since it contains results of a query.
They should be used for reporting instead of a table for a faster execution.
Which BG process refreshes the materialized view?
Job Queue Process
What is the importance of transportable Tablespace in oracle?
The transportable tablespace enable us to transport data objects across different platform. Moving data
using transportable can be much faster than performing either export/import or unload or load of the same
because transporting a tablespace only requires the copying of datafiles & integrating the tablespace
structure information.
Can we reduce the size of TEMP datafile?
Yes, we can reduce the space of the TEMP datafile. Prior to oracle 11g, you had to recreate the datafile but
in oracle 11g you reduce space of TEMP datfile by shrinking the TEMP tablespace. It is a new feature to 11g.
The dynamic performance view DBA_temp_files can be very useful in determining which table space to
shrink.
SELECT TABLESPACE_NAME, ROUND(BYTES/1048576/1024, 2) "IN
GB", FILE_ID, FILE_NAME FROM DBA_TEMP_FILES;
ALTER TABLESPACE TEMP SHRINK TEMPFILE D:\ORACLE\ORADATA\SADHAN\TEMP02.DBF KEEP

5G;

New data dictionary to check free space

Select * from dba_temp_free_space;
How can we move table from one schema to another?
The simplest way is Login with the SCOTT schema and use the below command to move EMP table from
HR Schema. You can also use Copy and Import/Export for that.
CREATE TABLE EMP
AS SELECT * FROM HR.EMP;
How we can prevent fragmentation in oracle Tablespace.
Tablespace fragmentation can be prevented by using PCTINCREASE command. PCTINCREASE is the
percentage a new subsequent extent will grow. This value should be ideally set to 0 or 100 to avoid
tablespace fragmentation. Alternate and strange values for PCTINCREASE results in strange sizes of
extents. Same size of each extent of all segments must be used.

Do you know the use of iostat, vmstat and netstat?

Iostat report on terminal, disk and terminal IO activities.
Vmstat reports on virtual memory statistics for processes, disk, tape and CPU activity.
Netstat reports on the contents of network data structures.
Name the different types of indexes available in Oracle?
Oracle provides several Indexing schemas
B-tree index Retrieves a small amount of information from a large table.
Global and Local index Relates to partitioned tables and indexes.
Reverse Key Index - It Is most useful for oracle real application clusters applications.
Domain Index Refers to an application
Hash cluster Index Refers to the index that is defined specifically for a hash cluster.
What is a user process trace file?

It is an optional file which is produced by user session.

It is generated only if the value of SQL_TRACE parameter is set to true for a session.

SQL_TRACE parameter can be set at database, instance, or session level.

If it set at instance level, trace file will be created for all connected sessions.

If it is set at session level, trace file will be generated only for specified session.

The location of user process trace file is specified in the USER_DUMP_DEST parameter.

How can you use automatic PGA memory management with oracle 9i or above?
Set the WORK_AREA_SIZE_POLICY parameter to AUTO and set PGA_AGGREGATE_TARGET
When a user comes to you and asks that a particular SQL query is taking more time. How will you
solve this?
If you find the particular query is taking time to execute, then take a SQLTRACE with explain plan, it will
show how the SQL query will be executed by oracle, depending upon the report you will tune your database.
Then determine the table size and check the user requirement is % of data from query table. If it is less then
For example: one table has 10000 records, but you want to fetch only 5 rows, but in that query oracle does
the full table scan. Only for 5 rows full table scan is not a good, so create an index on that particular column.
If the user requirement is more than 80% of data from query table then in that case if we create index, again
user will get poor performance because oracle will get contention on db buffer cache since first of all index
block need to be picked up as well as almost all block from that table will be pull out. Hence it will increase
the I/O, also other user request may get slow performance since existing data in cache will be flush out and
reloaded.
Additionally we need to check system level performance, either any problem with dbwn either dbwn writing
slow any modified data which is in buffer to datafile and either user server process is waiting for space in
buffer cache?
Check alert log file too.
Check if user query needed join or sorting?
Check either there is not enough space in temporary tablespace?
If user again user again facing issue then we need drill down to check either any issue with table block level
either table needs defragments if watermark reached high.

What is Difference between sqlnet.ora, listener.ora, tnsname.ora network file?

sqlnet.ora: The normal location for this file is D:\oracle\ora92\network\admin. The sqlnet.ora file is the profile
configuration file, and it resides on the client machines and the database server. The sqnet.ora is text file
(optional) that contain basic configuration details used by the SQL*Net. It contain network configuration
details such domain name, as what path to take in resolving then name of an instance, order of naming
method, authentication services etc.
listener.ora: The normal location for this file is D:\oracle\ora92\network\admin. This file is client side file
(typically on remote PC). The client uses this tnsname.ora file to obtain connection details from the desired
database.
tnsname.ora: The normal location for this file is D:\oracle\ora92\network\admin. This file is located on both
client and server. If you make configuration changes on the server ensure you can connect to the database
through the listener if you are logged on to the server. If you make configuration change on the client ensure
you can connect from your client workstation to the database through the listener running on the server.
What is the address of official oracle support?
Metalink.oracle.com or support.oracle.com
Is the password in oracle case sensitive?
In oracle 10g and earlier version NO and since 11g is YES
What is the difference between ISNULL and IS NOT NULL operators?
The IS NULL and IS NOT NULL operators are used to find the NULL and not NULL values respectively. The
IS NULL operator returns TRUE, when the value is NULL; and FALSE, when the value is not NULL. The IS
NOT NULL operator returns TRUE, when the value is not NULL; and FALSE, when the value is NULL.

Why drop table is not going into Recycle bin?

If you are using SYS user to drop any table then users object will not go to the recyclebin as there is no
recyclebin for SYSTEM tablespace, even we have already SET recycle bin parameter TRUE.
Select * from v$parameter where name = 'recyclebin';
Show parameter recyclebin;
How to recover password in oracle 10g?
You can query with the table user_history$. The password history is store in this table.
How to detect inactive session to kill automatically?
You can use the SQLNET.EXPIRE_TIME for the dead connections (for abnormal disconnections) by
specifying a time interval in minute to send a problem message that verify client/server connections are
active. Setting the value greater than 0 to this parameter ensures that connection is not left open indefinitely,
due to abnormal client termination. If probe finds a terminated connection, or connection that is no longer in
use, it returns an error, causing the server process to exit.
SQLNET.EXPIRE_TIME=10
Why we need CASCADE option with DROP USER command whenever dropping a user and why
"DROP USER" commands fails when we don't use it?
If a user having any object then YES in that case you are not able to drop that user without using CASCADE
option. The DROP USER with CASCADE option command drops user along with its all associated objects.
Remember it is a DDL command after the execution of this command rollback cannot be performed.
Can you suggest the best steps to refresh a Database?
Refreshing the database is nothing but applying the change on one database (PROD) to another (Test). You
can use import/export and RMAN method for this purpose.
Import/Export Method: If you database is small and if you need to refresh particular schema only then it is
always better to use this method.
1.Export the dump file from source DB
2.Drop and recreate Test environment User.
3.Import the dump to destination DB.
RMAN Method: Now days RMAN is most likely to be used for backup and recovery. It is relatively easier and
better method for full database refresh to be refreshed. It is taking less time as compare to import/export
method. Here also you can use particular SCN based refreshing.
#!/usr/bin/ksh
export ORAENV_ASK='NO'
export ORACLE_SID=PRD
/usr/local/bin/oraenv
export NLS_LANG=American_america.us7ascii;
export NLS_DATE_FORMAT="Mon DD YYYY HH24:MI:SS";
$ORACLE_HOME/bin/rman target / nocatalog
log=/tmp/duplicate_tape_TEST.log connect auxiliary sys/PASSWORD@TEST;
run

{
allocate auxiliary channel aux1 device type disk;
set until SCN 42612597059;
duplicate target database to "TEST"
pfile='/u01/app/xxxx/product/10.2.0/db_1/dbs/initTEST.ora' NOFILENAMECHECK;
}
EOF
\
How will we know the IP address of our system in Linux environment?
Either use ipconfig command or ip addr show
It will give you all IP address and if you have oracle 9i you can query from SQL prompt.
SELECT UTL_INADDR.GET_HOST_ADDRESS "Host Address", UTL_INADDR.GET_HOST_NAME
"Host Name" FROM DUAL;
Can we create Bigfile Tablespace for all databases?
Infact your question do we create bigfile tablespace for every database is not clear for me. If you are asking
can we create bigfile for every database?
Yes you can but it is not ideal for every datafile if your work is suitable for small file then why you create
bigfile but if your mean is impact of bigfile that depends on your requirements and storage.
A bigfile tablespace is having single very big datafile which can store 4GB to 128 TB.
Creating single large datafile reducing the requirement of SGA and also it will allow you modification at
tablespace level. In fact it is ideal for ASM, logical device supporting stripping.
Avoid using bigfile tablespace where there is limited space availability. For more details impact, advantage,
disadvantage of bigfile on my blog.
Can you gice more explanation on logfile states?

CURRENT state means that redo records are currently being written to that group. It will be until a log
switch occurs. At a time there can be only one redo group current.
If a redo group containing redos of a dirty buffer that redo group is said to be ACTIVE state. As we know log
file keep changes made to the data blocks then data blocks are modified in buffer cache (dirty blocks). These
dirty blocks must be written to the disk (RAM to permanent media).
And when a redolog group contains no redo records belonging to a dirty buffer it is in an "INACTIVE" state.
These inactive redolog can be overwritten.
One more state UNUSED initially when you create new redo log group its log file is empty on that time it is
unused. Later it can be any of the above mentioned state.
What is difference between oracle SID and Oracle service name?
Oracle SID is the unique name that uniquely identifies your instance/database where as the service name is
the TNS alias can be same or different as SID.
How to find session for Remote users?
-- To return session id on remote session:
SELECT distinct sid FROM v$mystat;
-- Return session id of you in remote Environment:

Select sid from v$mystat@remot_db where rownum=1;

We have a complete cold Backup taken on Sunday. The database crashed on Wednesday. None of
the database files are available. The only files we have are the taped backup archive files till
Wednesday. Is there a possibility of recovering the database until the recent archive which we have
in the tape using the cold backup.
Yes, if you have all the archive logs since the cold backup then you can recover to your last log
Steps:
1) Restore all backup datafiles, and controlfile. Also restore the password file and init.ora if you lost those
too. Don't restore your redo logs if you backed them up.
2) Make sure that ORACLE_SID is set to the database you want to recover
3) startup mount;
4) Recover database using backup controlfile;
At this point Oracle should start applying all your archive logs, assuming that they're in log_archive_dest
5) alter database open resetlogs;
How to check RMAN version in oracle?
If you want to check RMAN catalog version then use the below query from SQL*plus
SQL> Select * from rcver;
If you want to check simply database version.
SQL> Select * from v$version;
What is the minimum size of Temporary Tablespace?
1041 KB
Difference b/w image copies and backup sets?
An image copy is identical, byte by byte, to the original datafile, control file, or archived redo log file. RMAN
can write blocks from many files into the same backup set but cant do so in the case of an image copy.
An RMAN image copy and a copy you make with an operating system copy command such as dd (which
makes image copies) are identical. Since RMAN image copies are identical to copies made with operating
system copy commands, you may use user-made image copies for an RMAN restore and recovery operation
after first making the copies known to RMAN by using the catalog command.
You can make image copies only on disk but not on a tape device. "backup as copy database;" Therefore,
you can use the backup as copy option only for disk backups, and the backup as backupset option is the
only option you have for making tape backups.
How can we see the C:\ drive free space capacity from SQL?
create an external table to read data from a file that will be as below
create BAT file free.bat as
@setlocal enableextensions enable delayedexpansion
@echo off
for /f "tokens=3" %%a in ('dir c:\') do (
set bytesfree=%%a
)
set bytesfree=%bytesfree:,=%

echo %bytesfree%
endlocal && set bytesfree=%bytesfree%
You can create a schedular to run the above free.bat, free_space.txt inside the oracle directory.
Differentiate between Tuning Advisor and Access Advisor?
The tuning Advisor:

It suggests indexes that might be very useful.

It suggests query rewrites.
It suggests SQL profile

The Access Advisor:

It suggest indexes that may be useful

Suggestion about materialized view.
Suggestion about table partitions also in latest version of oracle.

How to give Access of particular table for particular user?

GRANT SELECT (EMPLOYEE_NUMBER), UPDATE (AMOUNT) ON HRMS.PAY_PAYMENT_MASTER TO
SHAHID;
The Below command checks the SELECT privilege on the table PAY_PAYMENT_MASTER on the HRMS
schema (if connected user is different than the schema)
SELECT PRIVILEGE
FROM ALL_TAB_PRIVS_RECD
WHERE PRIVILEGE = 'SELECT'
AND TABLE_NAME = 'PAY_PAYMENT_MASTER'
AND OWNER = 'HRMS'
UNION ALL
SELECT PRIVILEGE
FROM SESSION_PRIVS
WHERE PRIVILEGE = 'SELECT ANY TABLE';
What are the problem and complexities if we use SQL Tuning Advisor and Access Advisor together?
I think both the tools are useful for resolving SQL tuning issues. SQL Tuning Advisor seems to be doing
logical optimization mainly by checking your SQL structure and statistics and the SQL Access Advisor does
suggest good data access paths, that is mainly work which can be done better on disk.
Both SQL Tuning Advisor and SQL Access Advisor tools are quite powerful as they can source the SQL they
will tune automatically from multiple different sources, including SQL cache, AWR, SQL tuning Sets and user
defined workloads.
Related with the argument complexity and problem of using these tools or how you can use these tools
together better to check oracle documentation.

Can you differentiate Redo vs. Rollback vs. Undo?

I find there is always some confusion when talking about Redo, Rollback and Undo. They all sound like
pretty much the same thing or at least pretty close.
Redo: Every Oracle database has a set of (two or more) redo log files. The redo log records all changes
made to data, including both uncommitted and committed changes. In addition to the online redo logs Oracle
also stores archive redo logs. All redo logs are used in recovery situations.
Rollback: More specifically rollback segments. Rollback segments store the data as it was before changes
were made. This is in contrast to the redo log which is a record of the insert/update/deletes.
Undo: Rollback segments. They both are really one in the same. Undo data is stored in the undo
tablespace. Undo is helpful in building a read consistent view of data.
Alert. log showing this error ORA-1109 signalled during: alter database close. What is the reason
behind it?
The ORA-1109 error just indicates that the database is not open for business. You'll have to open it up before
you can proceed.
It may be while you are shutting down the database, somebody trying to open the database respectively. It is
a failure attempt to open the database while shutdown is progress.Wait for the time to successfully shutdown
the database and open it again for use. Alternatively you have to restart your oracle services on windows
environment.
Which factors are to be considered for creating index on Table? How to select column for index?
Creation of index on table depends on size of table, volume of data. If size of table is large and we need only
few data for selecting or in report then we need to create index. There are some basic reason of selecting
column for indexing like cardinality and frequent usage in where condition of select query. Business rule is
also forcing to create index like primary key, because configuring primary key or unique key automatically
create unique index.
It is important to note that creation of so many indexes would affect the performance of DML on table
because in single transaction should need to perform on various index segments and table simultaneously.
What is Secure External password Store (SEPS)?
Through the use of SEPS you can store password credentials for connecting to database by using a client
side oracle wallet, this wallet stores signing credentials. This feature introduced since oracle 10g. Thus the
application code, scheduled job, scripts no longer needed embedded username and passwords. This
reduces risk because the passwords are no longer exposed and password management policies are more
easily enforced without changing application code whenever username and password change.
Differentiate DB file sequential read wait/DB File Scattered Read?
Sequential read associated with index read where as scattered read has to do with full table scan. The
sequential read, reads block into contiguous memory and DB scattered read gets from multiple block and
scattered them into buffer cache.
I install oracle 10g on windows 7 successfully. I found every thing working fine except the toad is
giving cannot load oci.dll error. Is this compatibility issue?
Read the toad user guide. You will get important information related to compatibility issue. In fact toad works
with both 32 bit and 64 bit oracle server where as toad only work with 32 bit client. If you need 64 bit client for

other applications, you can install both 32 bit and 64 bit client on a single machine and just tell the toad to
use the 32 bit client.
What are the differences between Physical/Logical standby databases? How would you decide which
one is best suited for your environment?
Physical standby DB:

As the name, it is physically (datafiles, schema, other physical identity) same copy of the primary

database.

It synchronized with the primary database with Apply Redo to the standby DB.

Logical Standby DB:

As the name logical information is the same as the production database, it may be physical structure

can be different.

It synchronized with primary database though SQL Apply, Redo received from the primary database

into SQL statements and then executing these SQL statements on the standby DB.

We can open physical stand by DB to read only and make it available to the applications users

(Only select is allowed during this period). we can not apply redo logs received from primary database at this
time.

We do not see such issues with logical standby database. We can open the database in normal mode

and make it available to the users. At the same time, we can apply archived logs received from primary
database.

For OLTP large transaction database it is better to choose logical standby database.

How to re-organize schema?

We can use dbms_redefinition package for online re-organization of schema objects. Otherwise using
import/export and data pump utility you can recreate or re-organize your schema.
To configure RMAN Backup for 100GB database? How we would estimate backup size and backup
time?
Check the actual size of your database. For rman backup size almost depends on your actual size of
database.
SELECT SUM(BYTES)/1024/1024/1024 FROM DBA_SEGMENTS;
Backup time depends on your hardware configuration of your server such as CPU, Memory, and Storage.
Later you can also minimize the backup time by configuring multiple channels with the backup scripts.
How can you control number of datafiles in oracle database?
The db_files parameter is a "soft limit " parameter that controls the maximum number of physical OS files
that can map to an Oracle instance. The maxdatafiles parameter is a different - "hard limit" parameter. When
issuing a "create database" command, the value specified for maxdatafiles is stored in Oracle control files
and default value is 32. The maximum number of database files can be set with the init parameter db_files.
Regardless of the setting of this parameter, maximum per database: 65533 (May be less on some operating
systems), Maximum number of datafiles per tablespace: OS dependent = usually 1022
You can also by Limited size of database blocks and by the DB_FILES initialization parameter for a particular
instance. Bigfile tablespaces can contain only one file, but that file can have up to 4G blocks.
What is Latches and why they are used in oracle?

A latch is a serialization mechanism. It is used to gain access to shared data structure in order to latches the
structure that will prevent others from modifying it while you are modifying it.
Why it is not necessary to take UNDO backup?
In fact it is not necessary to take UNDO tablespace backup either with COLD or HOT backup scripts but
many of DBA include UNDO tablespace in their backup script.
You know when you do some transactions; redo entries will be generated and accepted! Just like that other
tablespace whenever any change happens to UNDO tablespace or UNDO segments oracle will generate
redo entries. So even you not backed up the UNDO tablespace, you have the redo entries through which you
can recover or rollback the transactions.
What should be effect on DB performance if virtual memory used to store SGA parameter?
For optimal performance in most systems, the entire SGA should fit in real memory. If it does not, and if
virtual memory is used to store parts of it, then overall database system performance can decrease
dramatically. The reason for this is that portions of the SGA are paged (written to and read from disk) by the
operating system.
What is the role of lock_sga parameter?
The LOCK_SGA parameter, when set to TRUE, locks the entire SGA into physical memory. This parameter
cannot be used with automatic memory management or automatic shared memory management.
What is CSSCAN?
CSSCAN (Database Character Set Scanner) is a SCAN tool that allows us to see the impact of a database
character set change or assist us to correct an incorrect database nls_characterset setup. This helps us to
determine the best approach for converting the database characterset.
Differentiate between co-related sub-query and nested query?
Co-related sub query is one in which inner query is evaluated only once and from that result your outer query
is evaluated where as Nested query is one in which Inner query is evaluated for multiple times for getting one
row of that outer query.
Example: Query used with IN() clause is Co-related query.
SELECT EMPLOYEE_NUMBER, LOAN_CODE, DOCUMENT_NUMBER, LOAN_AMOUNT
FROM PAY_LOAN_TRANS
WHERE EMPLOYEE_NUMBER IN (SELECT EMPLOYEE_NUMBER
FROM PAY_EMPLOYEE_PERSONAL_INFO
WHERE EMPLOYEE_NUMBER BETWEEN 1 AND 100);
Example: Query used with = operator is Nested query
SELECT * FROM PARTIAL_PAYMENT_SEQUENCE
WHERE SEQCOD = (SELECT MAX(SEQCOD) FROM PARTIAL_PAYMENT_SEQUENCE);
One after noon suddenly you get a call from your application user and complaining the database is
slow then what will be your first step to solve this issue?
High performance is common expectation for end user, in fact the database is never slow or fast in most of
the case session connected to the database slow down when they receives unexpected hit. Thus to solve
this issue you need to find those unexpected hit. To know exactly what the second session is doing join your
query with v$session_wait.

SELECT NVL(s.username, '(oracle)') AS username, s.sid, s.serial#,

sw.event, sw.wait_time, sw.seconds_in_wait, sw.state
FROM v$session_wait sw, v$session s
WHERE s.sid = sw.sid and s.username = 'HRMS'
ORDER BY sw.seconds_in_wait DESC;
Check the events that are waiting for something, try to find out the objects locks for that particular session.
Follow the link: Find Locks : Blockers
Locking is not only the cause to effects the performance. Disk I/O contention is another case. When a
session retrieves data from the database datafiles on disk to the buffer cache, it has to wait until the disk
sends the data. The wait event shows up for the session as db file sequential read (for index scan) or db
file scattered read (for full table scan). Query link: DB File Sequential Read Wait/ DB File Scattered
Read , DB Locks
When you see the event, you know that the session is waiting for I/O from the disk to complete. To improve
session performance, you have to reduce that waiting period. The exact step depends on specific situation,
but the first technique reducing the number of blocks retrieved by a SQL statement almost always works.

Reduce the number of blocks retrieved by the SQL statement. Examine the SQL statement to see if it

is doing a full-table scan when it should be using an index, if it is using a wrong index, or if it can be rewritten
to reduce the amount of data it retrieves.

Place the tables used in the SQL statement on a faster part of the disk.
Consider increasing the buffer cache to see if the expanded size will accommodate the additional

blocks, therefore reducing the I/O and the wait.

Tune the I/O subsystem to return data faster.

What is Oracle database firewall?

The database firewall has the ability to analyze SQL statements sent from database clients and determine
whether to pass, block, log, alert or substitute SQL statements, based on a defined policy. User can
set whitelist and blacklist policy to control the firewall. It can detect the injected SQLs and block them. The
database firewall can do the following:
Monitor and block SQL traffic on the network with whitelist, blacklist and exception list policies.
Protect against application bypass, SQL injection and similar threats.
Report on database activity.
Supports other database as well MS-SQL Server, IBM DB2 and Sybase.
However there are some key issues that it does not address. For Example privilege user can login to the OS
directly and make local connections to the database. This bypasses the database firewall. For these issues,
would need use of other security options such as Audit Vault, VPD etc.
What is Oracle RAC One Node?
Oracle RAC one Node is a single instance running on one node of the cluster while the 2 nd node is in cold
standby mode. If the instance fails for some reason then RAC one node detect it and restart the instance on
the same node or the instance is relocate to the 2 nd node incase there is failure or fault in 1st node. The
benefit of this feature is that it provides a cold failover solution and it automates the instance relocation
without any downtime and does not need a manual intervention. Oracle introduced this feature with the
release of 11gR2 (available with Enterprise Edition).
What are invalid objects in database?
Sometimes schema objects reference other objects such as a view contains a query that reference table or
other view and a PL/SQL subprogram invokes other subprograms or may reference another tables or views.
These references are established at compile time and if the compiler cannot resolve them, the dependent
object being compiled is marked invalid.
An invalid dependent object must be recompiled against the new definition of a referenced object before the
dependent object can be used. Recompilation occurs automatically when the invalid dependent object is
referenced
How can we check DATAPUMP file is corrupted or not?
Sometimes we may be in situation, to check whether the dumpfile exported long time back is VALID or not or
our application team is saying that the dumpfile provided by us is corrupted.
Use SQLFILE Parameter with import script to detect corruption. The use of this parameter will read the entire
datapump export dumpfile and will report if corruption is detected.
impdp system/*** directory=dump_dir dumpfile=expdp.dmp
logfile=corruption_check.log sqlfile=corruption_check.sql
This will write all DDL statements (which will be executed if an import is performed) into the file which we
mentioned in the command.
How can we find elapsed time for particular object during Datapump or Export?
We have an undocumented parameter metrics in DATAPUMP to check how much it took to export different
objects types.
Expdp system/oracle directory = dump_dir dumpfile = exp_full.dmp logfile =

exp_full.log full = y metrics = y;

How to check oracle database service is running in server?
DBA using this command on daily basis to find running oracle service on server
On Linux: ps -ef
On Windows: Tasklist /svc | find "oracle"
How can we find different OS block size?
In oracle we can say that database block size should be multiple of OS block size.
On Windows: fsutil fsinfo ntfsinfo c: | find /i "bytes"
On Linux: tune2fs -l
On Solaris: df -g /tmp
How to find location of OCR file when CRS is down?
If you need to find the location of OCR (Oracle Cluster Registry) but your CRS is down.
When the CRS is down:
Look into ocr.loc file, location of this file changes depending on the OS:
On Linux: /etc/oracle/ocr.loc
On Solaris: /var/opt/oracle/ocr.loc
When CRS is UP:
Set ASM environment or CRS environment then run the below command:
ocrcheck
How can you Test your Standby database is working properly or not?
To test your standby database, make a change to particular table on the production server, and commit the
change. Then manually switch a logfile so those changes are archived. Manually ship the newest archived
redolog file, and manually apply it on the standby database. Then open your standby database in read-only
mode, and select from your changed table to verify those changes are available. Once you have done,
shutdown your standby and startup again in standby mode.
What is Dataguard & what is the purpose of Data Guard?
Oracle Dataguard is a disaster recovery solution from Oracle Corporation that has been utilized in the
industry extensively at times of Primary site failure, failover, switchover scenarios.
a) Oracle Data Guard ensures high availability, data protection, and disaster recovery for enterprise data.
b) Data Guard provides a comprehensive set of services that create, maintain, manage, and monitor one or
more standby databases to enable production Oracle databases to survive disasters and data corruptions.
c) With Data Guard, administrators can optionally improve production database performance by offloading
resource-intensive backup and reporting operations to standby systems.
What is role of Redo Transport Services in Dataguard?
It controls the automated transfer of redo data from the production database to one or more archival
destinations. The redo transport services perform the following tasks:
a) Transmit redo data from the primary system to the standby systems in the configuration.

b) Manage the process of resolving any gaps in the archived redo log files due to a network failure.
c) Automatically detect missing or corrupted archived redo log files on a standby system and automatically
retrieve replacement archived redo log files from the
primary database or another standby database.
Is Opatch (utility) is also another type of patch?
OPatch is utility from oracle corp. (Java based utility) that helps you in applying interim patches to Oracle's
software and rolling back interim patches from Oracle's software. Opatch also able to Report already
installed interim patch and can detect conflict when already interim patch has been applied. This program
requires Java to be available on your system and requires installation of OUI. Thus from the above
discussion coming to your question it is not ideal to say OPATCH is another patch.
When we applying single Patch, can you use opatch utility?
Yes, you can use Opatch incase of single patch. The only type of patch that cannot be used with OPatch is a
patchset
When you applying Patchsets, You can use OUI.
Yes, Patcheset uses OUI. A patch set contains a large number of merged patches, to change the version of
the product or introduce new functionality. Patch sets are cumulative bug fixes that fix all bugs and consume
all patches since the last base release. Patch sets and the Patch Set Assistant are usually applied through
OUI-based product specific installers.
Can you Apply OPATCH without downtime?
As you know for apply patch your database and listener must be down. When you apply OPTACH it will
update your current ORACLE_HOME. Thus coming to your question to the point in fact it is not possible
without or zero downtime in case of single instance but in RAC you can Apply Opatch without downtime as
there will be more separate ORACLE_HOME and more separate instances (running once instance on each
ORACLE_HOME).
You have collection of patch (nearly 100 patches) or patchset. How can you apply only one patch
from it?
With Napply itself (by providing patch location and specific patch id) you can apply only one patch from a
collection of extracted patch. For more information check the opatch util NApply help. It will give you
clear picture.
For Example:
opatch util napply <patch_location> -id 9 -skip_subset -skip_duplicate
This will apply only the patch id 9 from the patch location and will skip duplicate and subset of patch installed
in your ORACLE_HOME.
If both CPU and PSU are available for given version which one, you will prefer to apply?
From the above discussion it is clear once you apply the PSU then the recommended way is to
apply the next PSU only. In fact, no need to apply CPU on the top of PSU as PSU contain CPU (If
you apply CPU over PSU will considered you are trying to rollback the PSU and will require more
effort in fact). So if you have not decided or applied any of the patches then, I will suggest you to go
to use PSU patches. For more details refer: Oracle Products [ID 1430923.1], ID 1446582.1
PSU is superset of CPU then why someone choose to apply a CPU rather than a PSU?

CPUs are smaller and more focused than PSU and mostly deal with security issues. It seems to be
theoretically more consecutive approach and can cause less trouble than PSU as it has less code changing
in it. Thus any one who is concerned only with security fixes and not functionality fixes, CPU may be good
approach.
Will Patch Application affect System Performance?
Sometimes applying certain patch could affect Application performance of SQL statements. Thus it is
recommended to collect a set of performance statistics that can serve as a baseline before we make any
major changes like applying a patch to the system.
What is your day to day activity as an Apps DBA?
As an Apps DBA we monitor the system for different alerts (Entreprise Manager or third party tools used for
configuring the Alerts) Tablespace Issues, CPU consumption, Database blocking sessions etc., Regular
maintenance activities like cloning, patching, custom code migrations (provided by developers) and Working
with user issues.
How often do you use patch in your organization?
Usually for non-production the patching request comes around weekly 4-6 and the same patches will be
applied to Production in the outage or maintenance window.
Production has weekly maintenance window (eg. Sat 6PM to 9PM) where all the changes (patches) will
applied on production.
How often do you use cloning in your organization?
Cloning happens weekly or monthly depending on the organization requirement. Generally when we need to
perform major task such as oracle financial annual closing etc.

What are the common Tasks or Responsibilities for a Core DBA?

DBA responsibilities are varied from organization to organization. It depends on the organization nature of
work. Following are the overall responsibility for a DBA:
1.User Management: Create new user, remove existing user and provide the rights as per the
requirement.
2.Manage database storage (Timely space management of Tablespace or datafile)
3.Administrator users and security.
4.Manage Schema object.
5.Monitor and Manage database performance.
6.Perform backup and recovery.
7.Schedule and automate jobs.
8.Taking database snapshot or health report.
9.Working with user issues for managing overall smooth running of database.
What are your day to day activities as an APPS DBA?
In compare to Core DBA Apps DBA include all the responsibilities of Core DBA Plus Upgrade, Cloning and
Patching. As an Apps DBA we monitor the system for different alerts (EM or third party tools used for
configuring the Alerts), Tablespace issues, CPU consumption, Database blocking session etc. Regular
maintenance activities like cloning, patching and custom code migration (provided by developer), working
with user issues.
What type of failure occurs when oracle fails due to OS or Hardware failure?
Instance Failure
An Oracle system change number (SCN):
A.is a value that is incremented whenever a dirty read occurs.
B.is incremented whenever a deadlock occurs.
C.is a value that keeps track of explicit locks
D.is a value that is incremented whenever database changes are made?
Answer: D
Which process read/write data from datafiles?
There is no background process which reads data from datafiles or database buffer. Oracle creates server
process to handle request from connected user processes. A server process communicates with the user
process and interacts with oracle to carry out request from the associated user process.
For example: If a user queries some data not already in database buffer of the SGA, then the associated
server process reads the proper data block from the datafiles into the SGA.
DBWR background process is responsible to writes modified (dirty block from buffer cache to the datafiles)
block permanently to disk.
Why RMAN incremental backup fails even though full backup exists?
If you have taken the RMAN full backup using the command Backup database, where as a level 0 backup is
physically identical to a full backup. The only difference is that the level 0 backup is recorded as
an incremental backup in the RMAN repository so it can be used as the parent for a level 1 backup. Simply

the full backup without level 0 can not be considered as a parent backup from which you can take level 1
backup.
How can you change or rename the database name?
SQL> ALTER DATABASE BACKUP CONTROLFILE TO TRACE;
The above command will create a text control file in user_dump_dest directory and change name of the
database in above file and also in init.orafile.
Now startup your database in nomount phase using the modified pfile and then run the modified controlfile
script.
SQL> STARTUP NOMOUNT;
SQL> @D:\Backup\controlfile.txt
SQL> ALTER DATABASE OPEN RESETLOGS;
You can use DBNEWID utility NID for this purpose. For more information: DBNEWID, Changing DBNAME
Temp Tablespace is 100% FULL and there is no space available to add datafiles to increase temp
tablespace. What can you do in that case to free up TEMP tablespace?
Try to close some of the idle sessions connected to the database will help you to free some TEMP space.
Otherwise you can also use Alter Tablespace PCTINCREASE 1 followed by Alter Tablespace
PCTINCREASE 0
What is the use of setting GLOBAL_NAMES equal to true?
Setting GLOBAL_NAMES indicates how you might connect to the database. This variable is either true or
false. If it is set to true enforces database link to have same link as the remote database to which they
are linking.
What is the purpose of fact and dimension table? What type of index is used with fact table?
Fact and dimension tables are involved in producing a star schema. A fact table contains measurements
while dimension table will contain data that will help to describe the fact table. A Bitmap index is used with
fact table.
If you got complain application is running very slow from your application user. Where do you start
looking first?
Below are some of very important step to identify the root cause of slowness in Application database.
Run TOP command in Linux to check CPU usage.
Run VMSTAT, SAR, PRSTAT command to get more information on CPU, memory usage and possible
blocking.
Run STATSPACK report to identify TOP 5 Events and Resource Intensive SQL statement.

If found poor written statements then run EXPLAIN PLAN on these statements and see whether new

index or use of HINT brings the cost of SQL down.

How do you add second or subsequent BLOCK SIZE to an existing database?
In fact the block size in an oracle database cannot be changed after the database is created. The reason is
because oracle track lot of information based on block number. If you change the block size all the block
number is changed and basically the database would have to re-create. But in the case when you need to
add second or subsequent BLOCK_SIZE for particular datafile then you have to re-create
the CONTROLFILE to specify the new block size for specific datafiles.

or Take the database OFFLINE, and then bring back online with a new BLOCK SIZE specification.
You need to restore from backup and do not have any control files. What will be your step to recover
the database?
Create a text based control files, saved on the disk same location where all the datafiles are located then
issue the recover command by using backup control file clause.
Shutdown abort;

-- if db still open

Startup nomount;
create controlfile
database <name>
logfile '<online redo log groups>'
noresetlogs|resetlogs
maxlogfiles 10
maxlogmembers <your value>
datafile '<names of all data files>'
maxdatafiles 254
archivelog;

SQL> alter database mount;

recover database [until cancel] [using backup controlfile];
alter database open [noresetlogs/resetlogs];

Use alter database open if you created the control file with NORESETLOGS and have
performed no recovery or a full recovery (without until cancel).

Use alter database open noresetlogs if you created the control file with NORESETLOGS and performed a
full recovery despite the use of the until cancel option.

Use alter database open resetlogs if you created the control file with RESETLOGS or when you performed
a partial recovery.
In below list which SQL phrase is NOT supported by oracle?
A.ON DELETE CASCADE
B.ON UPDATE CASCADE
C.CREATE SEQUENCE [SequenceName]
D.DROP SEQUENCE [SequenceName]
Answer: B
What is the effect on working with Report when flex/confine mode are ON?
When flex mode is ON, reports automatically resize the parent when the child is resized.
When the confine mode is ON, the object cannot be moved outside its parent in layout.
How will you enforce security using stored procedure?
Dont grant user access directly to tables within the application. Instead grant the ability to access the
procedure that accesses the tables. When procedure execute it will execute the privilege of procedures
owner. Users cannot access except via the procedure.
What is RAC? What is the benefit of RAC over single instance database?

In Real Application Clusters environments, all nodes concurrently execute transactions against the same
database. Real Application Clusters coordinates each node's access to the shared data to provide
consistency and integrity.
Benefits:

Improve response time

Improve throughput
High availability
Transparency

Can you configure primary server and standby server on different OS?
NO, Standby database must be on same version of database and same version of OS.
If you want users will change their passwords after every 60 days then how you will enforce this?
Oracle password security is implemented through oracle PROFILES which are assigned to
users. PASSWORD_LIFE_TIME parameter limits the number of days the same password can be used for
authentication.
You have to first create database PROFILE and then assign each user to this profile or if you have already
having PROFILE then you need to just alter the above parameter.
create profile Sadhan_users
limit
PASSWORD_LIFE_TIME 60
PASSWORD_GRACE_TIME 10
PASSWORD_REUSE_TIME UNLIMITED
PASSWORD_REUSE_MAX 0
FAILED_LOGIN_ATTEMPTS 3
PASSWORD_LOCK_TIME UNLIMITED;
Then create user or already created user assigned to this profile.
SQL> Create user HRMS identified by oracle profile sadhan_users;
If you have already assigned profile then you can directly modify the profile parameter:
SQL> Alter profile sadhan_users set PASSWORD_LIFE_TIME = 90;
What happens actually in case of instance Recovery?
While Oracle instance fails, Oracle performs an Instance Recovery when the associated database is being
re-started. Instance recovery occurs in two steps:

Cache recovery: Changes being made to a database are recorded in the database buffer cache as well as
redo log files simultaneously. When there are enough data in the database buffer cache, they are written to
data files. If an Oracle instance fails before these data are written to data files, Oracle uses online redo log
files to recover the lost data when the associated database is re-started. This process is called cache
recovery.

Transaction recovery: When a transaction modifies data in a database (the before image of the modified
data is stored in an undo segment which is used to restore the original values in case the transaction is rolled
back). At the time of an instance failure, the database may have uncommitted transactions. It is possible that
changes made by these uncommitted transactions have gotten saved in data files. To maintain read

consistency, Oracle rolls back all uncommitted transactions when the associated database is re-started.
Oracle uses the undo data stored in undo segments to accomplish this. This process is called transaction
recovery.
What is the main purpose of CHECKPOINT in oracle database?
A checkpoint is a database event, which synchronize the database blocks in memory with the datafiles on
disk. It has two main purposes: To establish a data consistency and enable faster database Recovery. For
more information: Discussion on Checkpoint and SCN
Can you change the Characterset of database?
No, you can not change the character set of database, you will need to re-create the database with
appropriate characterset.
What is Cascading standby database?
A CASCADING STANDBY is a standby database that receives its REDO information from another standby
database (not from primary database).
What the use of ANALYZE command?
To collect statistics about object used by the optimizer and store them in the data dictionary, delete statistics
about the object, validate the structure of the object and identify migrated and chained rows of the table or
cluster.
How will you check active shared memory segment?
ipcs -a
How will you check paging swapping in Linux?
vmstat s
prstat s
swap l
sar p
How do you check number of CPU installed on Linux server?
psrinfot v
When you moved oracle binary files from one ORACLE_HOME server to another server then which
oracle utility will be used to make this new ORACLE_HOME usable?
Relink all
In which months oracle release CPU patches?
JAN, APR, JUL, OCT
Oracle version 9.2.0.4.0 what does each number refers to?
Oracle version number refers:
9 Major database release number
2 Database Maintenance release number
0 Application server release number
4 Component Specific release number
0 Platform specific release number
What does database do during the mounting process?
While mounting the database oracle reads the data from controlfile which is used for verifying physical

database files during sanity check. Background processes are started before mounting the database only.
When having multiple oracle homes on a single server or client what is the parameter that points all
Oracle installs at one TNSNAMES.ORA file.
TNS_ADMIN
How to implement the multiple controlfile for existing database?
1.

Edit init.ora file, set controlfiles parameter with multiple location

2.

Shutdown immediate

3.

Copy controlfile to multiple locations & confirm from init.ora contolfiles parameter

4.

Start the database.

5.

Use the below query for changes confirmation

select name from v$controlfile;

Why we look for CHUNKS_FREE space while tracking fragmentation details query?
The CHUNK_FREE return the number of chunks of contiguous free space based on dba_free_space table.
The motive is to find the largest size chunks of free space within a tableapce. This is because as we know
oracle server allocates space for segments in unit of one extent. When the existing extent of segment is full,
the server allocates another extent for the segment.
In order to do oracle searches free space in the tablespace (contiguous set of data block sufficient to meet
the required extent). If sufficient space not found then an error is returned by the oracle server.
What is the impact of NLS/Characterset in database?
NLS is a National language support and encompasses how to display currency, whenever we use a comma
or a dot to separate numbers, how the name of the day is spelled etc.
Charactersets are how we store data.
For Example: US7ASCII is a 7bit characterset and WE8ISO8859P1 8 bit character set. It can store 2 times
as many characters as the 7bit characterset. If you try to export from 8 bit characterset database and import
into 7bit database then there is chance to loose data in 7bit characterset that have the high bit set and if you
try from 7bit to 8bit would not encounter any issues since the 7bit characterset is a subset of the 8bit
characterset and can hold more types of characters and can support many countries.
Can we perform RMAN level 1 backup without level 0?
If no level 0 is available, then the behavior depends upon the compatibility mode setting (oracle version). If
the compatibility mode less than 10.0.0, RMAN generates a level 0 backup of files contents at the time of
backup. If compatibility is greater than 10.0.0 RMAN copies all block changes since the file was created, and
stores the results as level 1 backup.
What will happen if ARCHIVE process cannot copy an archive redolog to a mandatory archive log
destination?
Oracle will continue with cycle to the other online redolog groups until it return to the group that the ARCH
process is trying to copy to the mandatory archive log destination. If the mandatory archive log destination
copy has not occurred, the database operation will suspend until the copy is successful or the DBA has
intervened to perform force log switching.
Can you differentiate between HOTBACKUP and RMAN backup?
For hotbackup we have to put database in begin backup mode, then take backup where as RMAN would not
put database in begin backup mode. In fact RMAN has a number of advantages over general backup. For
more information please check: Benefit of RMAN Backup
How to put Manual/User managed backup in RMAN?
In case of recovery catalog, you can put by using catalog command:
RMAN> CATALOG START WITH /oraback/backup.ctl;
When you put any SQL statement how oracle responds them internally?
First it will check the syntax and semantics in library cache, after that it will created execution plan. If already
data in buffer cache (in case of identical query) it will directly return to the client. If not it write the fetch to the
database buffer cache after that it will send server and finally server send to the client.
Can we use Same target database as Catalog?
No, the recovery catalog should not reside in the target database (database to be backed up) because the

database can not be recovered in the mounted state.

Differentiate the use of what are PGA and UGA?
When you are running dedicated server then process information stored inside the process global area
(PGA) and when you are using shared server then the process information stored inside user global area
(UGA).
How do you automatically force the oracle to perform a checkpoint?
The following are the parameter that will be used by DBA to adjust time or interval of how frequently its
checkpoint should occur in database.
LOG_CHECKPOINT_TIMEOUT = 3600;

# Every one hour

LOG_CHECKPOINT_INTERVAL = 1000; # number of OS blocks.

What is Cluster table in Oracle database?
A Cluster is a schema object that contains one or more tables that all have one or more common columns.
Rows of one or more tables that share the same value in these common columns are physically stored
together within the database. Generally, you should only cluster tables that are frequently joined on the
cluster key columns in SQL statements. Clustering multiple tables improves the performance of joins, but it is
likely to reduce the performance of full table scans, INSERT and UPDATE statements that modify cluster key
values.
Can you differentiate between complete and incomplete recovery?
An incomplete database recovery is a recovery that it does not reach to the point of failure. The recovery can
be either point of time or particular SCN or Particular archive log specially incase of missing archive log or
redolog failure where as a complete recovery recovers to the point of failure possibly when having all archive
log backup.
What is difference between RMAN and Traditional Backup?
RMAN is faster can perform incremental (changes only) backup, and does not place tablespace in hotbackup
mode. Check: Benefit of RMAN Backup
What are bind variables and why are they important?
With bind variable in SQL, oracle can cache queries in a single time in the SQL cache area. This avoids a
hard parse each time, which saves on various locking and latching resource we use to check object
existence and so on.
How to recover database without backup?
If flash recovery is enabled then we can recover database without having backup? Otherwise we cannot
recover database without backup.
How to write explicit cursor to avoid oracle exception: no_data_found and too_many_rows?
In PL/SQL if you try to write select statement with into clause it may return two
exception no_data_found and too_many_rows to avoid this exception you have to write explicit cursor.
Exception Block,
When no_data_found
// Put your code
When_too_many_rows
// put your code

When others then

// put your code
End;
What are differences between Reference cursor and cursor?
Reference cursor gives the address of the location instead of putting item directly. It holds the different type
of structures. Normal cursor holds one structure of table.
Reference cursor is a dynamic cursor where as normal cursor is static cursor. In dynamic cursor single
statement are process multiple select statement dynamically at run time where as in normal cursor we
process only one select statement.
What is Pipeline view?
In case of normal views whenever you call the view it will get data from the base table where as in case of
pipeline view if you call the view it will get data from another intermediate view.
How would you find the performance issue of SQL queries?

Enable the trace file before running your queries

Then check the trace file using tkprof create output file.
According to explain plan check the elapsed time for each query
Then tune them respectively.
What is difference between Recovery and Restoring of database?
Restoring means copying the database object from the backup media to the destination where actually it is
required where as recovery means to apply the database object copied earlier (roll forward) in order to bring
the database into consistent state.
What are the Jobs of SMON and PMON processes?
SMON System Monitor performs recovery after instance failure, monitor temporary segments and extents;
clean temp segment, coalesce free space. It is mandatory process of DB and starts by default.
PMON Process Monitor failed process resources. In shared server architecture monitor and restarts any
failed dispatcher or server process. It is mandatory process of DB and starts by default.
When you should rebuild index?
In fact in 90% case never. When the data in index is sparse (lot of holes in index, due to delete and updates)
and your query is usually ranged based. Also index BLEVEL is one of the key indicators of performance of
SQL queries doing index range scan.
What is key preserved table?
A table is set to be key preserved table if every key of the table can also be the key of the result of the join. It
guarantees to return only one copy of each row from the base table.
Which of the following is NOT an oracle supported trigger?
A.Before
B.During
C.After
D.Instead of
Answer: B

Which of the following is NOT true about modifying table column?

A.You can drop a column at any time.
B.You can add a column at any time as long as it is a NULL column.
C.You can increase the number of characters in character columns or number
of digits in numeric columns.
D.You can not increase or decrease the number of decimal places.
Answer: D
How can you find SQL of the Currently Active Sessions?
Compare tables V$SQL view by SQL_address with V$SESSION view of currently active sessions
If you have ASM database that used by different production systems immediately shutdown then
what happens to the production system?
In that case the other database would need to shutdown abort.
How do you move table from one tablespace to another tablespace?
You can use any of the below method to do this:
1.

Export the table, drop the table, create definition of table in new tablespace and then import the data

using (imp ignore=y).

2.

Create new table in new tablespace then drop the original table and rename temporary table with

original table name.

CREATE TABLE temp_name TABLESPACE new_tablespace as select * from
source_table;
DROP TABLE real_table;
RENAME temp_name to real_table;

How would you decide your backup strategy and timing for backup?
In fact backup strategy is purely depends upon your organization business need. If no downtime then
database must be run on archivelog mode and you have to take frequently or daily backup. If sufficient
downtime is there and loss of data would not affect your business then you can run your database in
archivelog mode and backup can be taken in-frequently or weekly or monthly.
In most of the case in an organization when no downtime then frequent inconsistent backup needed (daily
backup), multiplex online redo log files (multiple copies), different location for redo log files, database must
run in archivelog mode and dataguard can be implemented for extra bit of protection (to make less downtime
during recovery).
What is Jinitiator and what its purpose?
It is a java virtual machine provided for running web based oracle forms applications inside a client web
browser. It is implemented as a plug-in or ActiveX object, allows you to specify the use of oracle certified
JVM instead of relying on default JVM provided by browser. It is automatically downloaded to a client
machine from the application. Its installation and update is performed by standard plug-in mechanism
provided by the browser.
What is the use of large pool, which case you need to set the large pool?
You need to set large pool if you are using: MTS (Multi thread server) and RMAN Backups. Large pool
prevents RMAN & MTS from competing with other sub system for the same memory. RMAN uses the large
pool for backup & restore when you set the DBWR_IO_SLAVES or BACKUP_TAPE_IO_SLAVES
parameters to simulate asynchronous I/O. If neither of these parameters is enabled, then Oracle allocates
backup buffers from local process memory rather than shared memory. Then there is no use of large pool.
How can you audit system operations?
Sys connection can be audited by setting init.ora parameter AUDIT_SYS_OPERATIONS=TRUE
How can you implement Encryption in database?
Data with database can be encrypted and decrypted using package: DBMS_OBFUSCATION_TOOLKIT
How do you list the folder files with hidden file in Linux
s ltra
How to execute Linux command in Background?
Use the "&" at the end of command or use nohup command
What Linux command will control the default permission when file are created?
Umask
Give the command to display space usage on the LINUX file system?
df lk
What is the use of iostat/vmstat/netstat command in Linux?
Iostat reports on terminal, disk and tape I/O activity.
Vmstat reports on virtual memory statistics for processes, disk, tape and CPU activity.
Netstat reports on the contents of network data structures.
What are the steps to install oracle on Linux system. List two kernel parameter that effect oracle
installation?
Initially set up disks and kernel parameters, then create oracle user and DBA group, and finally run installer

to start the installation process. The SHMMAX & SHMMNI two kernel parameter required to set before
installation process.
__________ Parameter change will decrease Paging/Swapping?
Answer: Decrease_Shared_Pool_size
_______ Command is used to see the contents of SQL* Plus buffer
Answer: LIST
Transaction per rollback segment is derived from ________
Answer: Processes
LGWR process writes information into ___________
Answer: Redo log files.
A database over all structure is maintained in a file __________
Answer: Control files
What is the use of NVL function?
The NVL function is used to replace NULL values with another or given value.
For Example: NVL (Value, replace value);
What is WITH CHECK OPTION?
The WITH CHECK option clause specifies check level to be done in DML statements. It is used to prevent
changes to a view that would produce results that are not included in the sub query.
The concepts are different than previous concept in fact. In that case you can access the some of the
concept in your mind to achieve the target.
How can you track the password change for a user in oracle?
Oracle only tracks the date that the password will expire based on when it was latest changed. Thus listing
the view DBA_USERS.EXPIRY_DATE and subtracting PASSWORD_LIFE_TIME you can determine when
password was last changed. You can also check the last password change time directly from the PTIME
column in USER$ table (on which DBA_USERS view is based). But If you
have PASSWORD_REUSE_TIME and/orPASSWORD_REUSE_MAX set in a profile assigned to a user account
then you can reference dictionary table USER_HISTORY$ for when the password was changed for this
account.
SELECT user$.NAME, user$.PASSWORD, user$.ptime, user_history$.password_date
FROM SYS.user_history$, SYS.user$
WHERE user_history$.user# = user$.user#;
What is the difference between a data block/extent/segment?
A data block is the smallest unit of logical storage for a database object. As objects grow they take chunks of
additional storage that are composed of contiguous data blocks. These groupings of contiguous data blocks
are called extents. All the extents that an object takes when grouped together are considered the segment of
the database object.
What is the difference between SQL*loader and Import utilities?
Both these utilities are used for loading the data into the database. The difference is that the import utility
relies on the data being produced by another oracle utility Export while SQL*Loader is a high speed data
loading mechanism allows data to be loaded that has been produced by other utilities from different data

source. Import is mainly used reading and writing operating system files.
Can you list the Step how to create Standby database?
1.Take a full hot backup of Primary database
2.Create standby control file

3.Transfer full backup, init.ora, standby control file to standby node.

4.Modify init.ora file on standby node.
5.Restore database
6.Recover Standby database

7.(Alternatively, RMAN DUPLICATE DATABASE FOR STANDBY DO RECOVERY can be also used)
8.Setup FAL_CLIENT and FAL_SERVER parameters on both sides
9.Put Standby database in Managed Recover mode
How would you activate Physical Standby database in oracle 9i?
Perform below on primary database if available to transfer all pending archive logs to standby:
SQL> ALTER SYSTEM SWITCH LOGFILE;
SQL> ALTER SYSTEM SWITCH LOGFILE;
Now perform below on STANDBY database:
SQL> ALTER DATABASE ACTIVATE STANDBY DATABASE;
SQL> SHUTDOWN IMMEDIATE;
SQL> STARTUP;
Note: Once you start the Standby DB, your relation between primary databases to standby database has
been lost and at this time your standby database becomes primary database.
How to Switch from Primary to Physical Standby database?
Perform below step on Primary Database:
SQL> ALTER DATABASE COMMIT TO SWITCHOVER TO PHYSICAL STANDBY WITH SESSION
SHUTDOWN;
SQL> SHUTDOWN IMMEDIATE;
SQL> STARTUP NOMOUNT;
SQL> ALTER DATABASE

DATABASE;

SQL> RECOVER MANAGED STANDBY DATABASE DICONNECT FROM SESSION;

SQL> ALTER SYSEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_2_STATUS= DEFER SCOPE=SPFILE;
Perform below steps on Secondary Database:
SQL> ALTER DATABASE COMMIT TO SWITCHOVER TO PRIMARY;
SQL> SHUTDOWN IMMEDIATE;
SQL> STARTUP;
SQL> ALTER SYSEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_2_STATUS= ENABLE SCOPE=SPFILE;
How will you list only the empty lines in a file (using GREP)
GREP "^$" filename.txt
How will you shutdown your database if SHUTDOWN IMMEDIATE command is already tried and
failed to shutdown the database?

Kill the SMON process.

What is log switch?
The point at which oracle ends writing to one online redo log file and begins writing to another is called a log
switch. Sometimes you can force the log switch by using the command: ALTER SYSTEM LOG SWITCH.
How can you pass the HINTS to the SQL processor?
Using comment line with (+) sign you can pass the HINTS to the SQL engine: For Example: /*
+PARALLEL() */
Give Example of available DB administrator utilities with their functionality?
SQL * DBA It allows DBA to monitor and control an oracle database.
SQL * Loader It loads data from standard OS files or flat file in oracle database tables.
Export/Import It allows moving existing data in oracle format to and from oracle database.
Can you built indexes online?
YES. You can create and rebuild indexes online. This enables you to update base tables at the same time
you are building or rebuilding indexes on that table. You can perform DML operations while the index building
is taking place, but DDL operations are not allowed. Parallel execution is not supported when creating or
rebuilding an index online.
CREATE INDEX emp_name ON emp (mgr, emp1, emp2, emp3) ONLINE;
If an oracle database is crashed? How would you recover that transaction which is not in backup?
If the database is in archivelog we can recover that transaction otherwise we cannot recover that transaction
which is not in backup.
What is the benefit of running the DB in archivelog mode over no archivelog mode?
When a database is in no archivelog mode whenever log switch happens there will be a loss of some redoes
log information in order to avoid this, redo logs must be archived. This can be achieved by configuring the
database in archivelog mode.
What is SGA? Define structure of shared pool component of SGA?
The system global area is a group of shared memory area that is dedicated to oracle instance. All oracle
process uses the SGA to hold information. The SGA is used to store incoming data and internal control
information that is needed by the database. You can control the SGA memory by setting the
parameter db_cache_size, shared_pool_size and log_buffer.
Shared pool portion contain three major area: Library cache (parse SQL statement, cursor information and
execution plan), dictionary cache (contain cache, user account information, privilege user information,
segments and extent information, buffer for parallel execution message and control structure.
You have more than 3 instances running on the Linux box? How can you determine which shared
memory and semaphores are associated with which instance?
Oradebug is undocumented oracle supplied utility by oracle. The oradebug help command list the
command available with oracle.
SQL>oradebug setmypid
SQL>oradebug ipc
SQL>oradebug tracfile_name
How would you extract DDL of a table without using a GUI tool?

Select dbms_metadata.get_ddl('OBJECT','OBJECT_NAME') from dual;

If you are getting high Busy Buffer waits then how can you find the reason behind it?
Buffer busy wait means that the queries are waiting for the blocks to be read into the db cache. There could
be the reason when the block may be busy in the cache and session is waiting for it. It could be undo/data
block or segment header wait.
Run the below two query to find out the P1, P2 and P3 of a session causing buffer busy wait
then after another query by putting the above P1, P2 and P3 values.
SQL> Select p1 "File #",p2 "Block #",p3 "Reason Code" from v$session_wait Where
event = 'buffer busy waits';
SQL> Select owner, segment_name, segment_type from dba_extents
Where file_id = &P1 and &P2 between block_id and block_id + blocks -1;
Can flashback work on database without UNDO and with rollback segments?
No, flashback query enable us to query our data as it existed in a previous state. In other words, we can
query our data from a point in time before any other users made permanent changes to it.
Can we have same listener name for two databases?
No

Basic SQL Question with Answer

Differentiate SQL and SQL*plus?
1. SQL is a language where as ISQL*Plus is an environment only
2. SQL is an ANSI standard where ad ISQL*Plus is Oracle Proprietary only
3. In SQL keyword cannot be abbreviated where as in ISQL*Plus keyword can be
abbreviated.

4. Statements manipulate data and Table definition is possible where as incase of

ISQL*Plus statement does not manipulate data and table definition is also not possible.
Define Null in term of SQL?
A null is a value that is unassigned, unknown or inapplicable. A null is not the same as Zero.
Arithmetic expression containing null value evaluate to null.
How many types of Queries Types in SQL?
Selection, Projection, Join table
What is Constraints?
Constraints are used to restrict or bound inefficient data. Basically two types of constraints are
provided : column constraints are associated with a single column
Where as table constraints are typically associated with more than one column.
Integrity Constraints1:
1. Primary Key. [Unique + Not Null]
2. Not Null.[Cannot be Null]
3. Unique Key[Unique can be Null]
Difference between Primary and Unique key?
Primary Key Defines a column value Unique as well as Not Null where as Unique key defines a
column values only Unique. Means it can accept null value.
A Table may have only one primary key where as more than one unique key can be assigned
within a table.
List the Difference between Delete and Truncate?
DELETE:
1. DELETE is a DML Command.
2. DELETE statement is executed using a row lock, each row in the table is locked for deletion.
3. We can specify filters in where clause
4. It deletes specified data if where condition exists.
5. Delete activates a trigger because the operations are logged individually.
6. Slower than truncate because, it keeps logs.
7. Rollback is possible.
TRUNCATE:
1. TRUNCATE is a DDL command.
2. TRUNCATE TABLE always locks the table and page but not each row.
3. Cannot use Where Condition.

4. It removes all the data.

5. TRUNCATE TABLE cannot activate a trigger because the operation does not log individual row deletions.
6. Faster in performance wise, because it doesn't keep any logs.
7. Rollback is not possible.
Difference Commit or Internal Commit?
As long as the user has not issued the commit statement, it is possible to undo all
modifications since the last commit. To undo modifications, one has to issue the
statement rollback; Note that any data definition command such as create tableresults in an
internal commit. A commit is also implicitly executed when the user terminates
an Oracle session.
What is Outer Join?
View data that does not generally meet a join condition by using outer join.
Difference between Equijoin and Non-Equijoin?
Equijoin is possible when same column name appears in more than one table thus there is a
need of primary key or foreign key where as in case of Non equijoin there is no need of same
column in both the table.
Equijoin possible for more than 2 table where as limit for only 2 table.
What is Natural Join?
It based on all columns in two tables that have the same name or if the column having the
same name but its data type is different then it returns an error.
What is Using Clause join?
If the column have the same name but data type is different incase using clause is
implemented. It can match only for one column incase more than one column are same.
Difference Inner vs Outer Join?
The join of two tables that return only matched result is known as inner join
Where as outer join returns the inner matched result of inner join as well as unmatched return
of left and right table.
Define SQL function? Differentiate between Single row Function vs Multiple Row
Function?
Multiple functions can manipulate on group of rows to give one result per group of rows where
as a single row function can operate on a single row only and return one result per row. Single
row function is used to manipulate data item. They accept one or more data item and return
one value for each row. The single row function can be nested. Nesting can be evaluated from
deeper to higher. Types of Single Row functions
1. Character Functions
a) Case Manipulation Function
LOWER, UPPER, INITCAP
b) Character Manipulation Function
CONCAT,SUBSTR,LENGTH,INSTR,LPAD, RPAD,TRIM,REPLACE
2. Number Functions

ROUND, TRUNC, MOD

3. Date Functions
SYSDATE,MONTHS_BETWEEN,ADD_MONTHS,NEXT_DAY,LAST_DAY,ROUND,TRUNC
4. Conversion
a) Implicit Data type Conversion
VARCHAR OR CHAR TO NUMBER,VARCHAR OR CHAR TO DATE
b) Explicit Data type Conversion
TO_NUMBER,TO_CHAR,TO_DATE
5. General Functions
NVL,NVL2,NULLIF,COALESCE,DECODE,CASE
NVL FUNCTION
The NVL function is used to convert null values to actual values, data type must match incase
of NVL function. The date, char and number data type can be used in case of NVL.
NVL2 FUNCTION
The NVL2 function examines the first expression, if the first expression is not null then the NV2
function returns the second expression. If the first expression is null then it return the third
expression.
NULLIF FUNCTION
The NULLIF function compares the two expression if they are equal then return null otherwise
it return the first expression.
COALESCE FUNCTION
The COALESCE FUNCTION takes n number of arguments. It returns the 1 st expression if it is
not null. It returns the 2ndexpression if the first expression is null and 2nd expression is not
null. It returns the nth expression if all of the above expression is null and last expression is
not null.
CASE FUNCTION
CASE Expression facilitates conditional inquiries by doing the work of an IF THEN ELSE
statement. It compares the expression if the condition is matched return that expression. If
none of then match the condition it return the else part. This function worked on ANSI
standard. This feature introduce in oracle 9i.
DECODE FUNCTION
Decode function is the similar to CASE function only difference of syntax.
It also worked as IF then else statement.
To see current user name
Sql> show user;
Change SQL prompt name
SQL> set sqlprompt Manimara >
Manimara >
Switch to DOS prompt
SQL> host

How do I eliminate the duplicate rows from a table?

SQL> delete from table_name where rowid not in (select max(rowid) from table group by
duplicate_values_field_name);
or
SQL> delete duplicate_values_field_name dv from table_name ta where rowid <(select
min(rowid) from table_name tb where ta.dv=tb.dv);
SQL> delete ename from emp a where rowid < ( select min(rowid) from emp b where
a.ename = b.ename);
How do I display row number with records?
SQL> select rownum, ename from emp;
Display the records between two range
select rownum, empno, ename from emp where rowid in
(select rowid from emp where rownum <=&upto
minus
select rowid from emp where rownum<&Start);
Enter value for upto: 10
Enter value for Start: 7
The nvl function only allows the same data type (ie. number or char or date
Nvl(comm, 0)), if commission is null then the text Not Applicable want to display,
instead of blank space. How do I write the query?
SQL> select nvl(to_char(comm.),'NA') from emp;
Output :
NVL(TO_CHAR(COMM),'NA')
----------------------NA
300
500
NA
Diffrence between Implicit & Explicit cursors ?
For SQL queries returning a single row, PL/SQL declares all implicit cursors.
For queries that returning more than one row, the cursor needs to be explicitly declared.
Find out nth highest salary from emp table
SELECT DISTINCT (a.sal) FROM EMP A WHERE &N = (SELECT COUNT (DISTINCT (b.sal))
FROM EMP B WHERE a.sal<=b.sal);
Enter value for n: 2
SAL
--------3700
To view installed Oracle version information
SQL> select banner from v$version;

Display the number value in Words

SQL> select sal, (to_char(to_date(sal,'j'), 'jsp')) from emp;
SAL (TO_CHAR(TO_DATE(SAL,'J'),'JSP'))
--------- ----------------------------------------------------800 eight hundred
1600 one thousand six hundred
1250 one thousand two hundred fifty
If you want to add some text like,
Rs. Three Thousand only.
SQL> select sal "Salary ", (' Rs. '|| (to_char(to_date(sal,'j'), 'Jsp'))|| ' only.'))
"Sal in Words" from emp;
Salary Sal in Words
------- -----------------------------------------------------800 Rs. Eight Hundred only.
1600 Rs. One Thousand Six Hundred only.
1250 Rs. One Thousand Two Hundred Fifty only.
14. Display Odd/ Even number of records
Find Odd number of records?
select * from emp where (rowid,1) in (select rowid, mod(rownum,2) from emp);
Find Even number of records?
select * from emp where (rowid,0) in (select rowid, mod(rownum,2) from emp)
Which date function returns number value?
months_between
Any three PL/SQL Exceptions?
Too_many_rows, No_Data_Found, Value_Error, Zero_Error, Others
What are PL/SQL Cursor Exceptions?
Cursor_Already_Open, Invalid_Cursor
Other way to replace query result null value with a text
SQL> Set NULL N/A
to reset SQL> Set NULL
What are the more common pseudo-columns?
SYSDATE, USER , UID, CURVAL, NEXTVAL, ROWID, ROWNUM
What is the output of SIGN function?
1 for positive value,
0 for Zero,
-1 for Negative value.
What is the maximum number of triggers, can apply to a single table?
12 triggers.
What are Synonyms?
Synonym is the alias or alternative name for table, views, sequences & procedures and other

database object. It is created for reasons of Security and Convenience. Two levels of security
are Public - created by DBA & accessible to all the users. Private - Accessible to creator only.
Advantages are referencing without specifying the owner and Flexibility to customize a more
meaningful naming convention.
What are Sequences?
Sequences are used for generating sequence numbers without any overhead of locking.
Drawback is that after generating a sequence number if the transaction is rolled back, then
that sequence number is lost.
What is the difference between view and synonym in oracle?
A view is a stored query you can access as a (read-only) table. It is often used as an interface
to other modules/programs. The view stays the same (name, columns, etc.) but the underlying
query and/or tables can change without affecting the calling module.
A synonym is just that another name for an existing object (table, view, stored procedure) in
oracle. You usually create public synonyms to access objects in another schema without
referencing the schema.
How do you implement one-to-one, one-to-many and many-to-many relationships
while designing tables?
One-to-One relationship can be implemented as a single table and rarely as two tables with
primary and foreign key relationships. One-to-Many relationships are implemented by splitting
the data into two tables with primary key and foreign key relationships. Many-to-Many
relationships are implemented using a junction table with the keys from both the tables
forming the composite primary key of the junction table.
Define candidate key, alternate key and Composite key?
A candidate key is one that can identify each row of a table uniquely. Generally a candidate key
becomes the primary key of the table. If the table has more than one candidate key, one of
them will become the primary key, and the rest are called alternate keys. A key formed by
combining at least two or more columns is called composite key.
Explain different isolation levels?
An isolation level determines the degree of isolation of data between concurrent transactions.
The default SQL Server isolation level is Read Committed. Here are the other isolation levels
(in the ascending order of isolation): Read Uncommitted, Read Committed, Repeatable Read,
and Serializable.
What is an index? What are the types of indexes? How many clustered indexes can
be created on a table? I create a separate index on each column of a table. What are
the advantages and disadvantages of this approach?
Index in oracle helps to trace the information faster just like and index in book. It is a pointer
to the location of data purpose to make SQL queries run faster. There is several type of index
in oracle such as: b*tree indexes, b*tree cluster indexes, hash cluster indexes, reverse key
indexes, bitmap indexes, partitioned indexes, function-based indexes
What is blocking and how would you troubleshoot it?

Blocking happens when one connection from an application holds a lock and a second
connection requires a conflicting lock type. This forces the second connection to wait, blocked
on the first. How to find whose lock is blocking in oracle
link:http://shahiddba.blogspot.com/2012/04/find-whose-lock-is-blocking.html

Discussion: Import/Export Utility?

Export (exp), Import (imp) are Oracle utilities which allow you to write data in an ORACLE-binary format from
the database into operating system files and to read data back from those operating system files.
A simple automated script to export full database
SET ORACLE_SID=ORCL3
Column instnc new_value v_inst noprint
column instdate new_value v_instdate noprint
SELECT TO_CHAR(sysdate,'DDMMYYHH24') instdate FROM dual;
host exp system/oracle@orcl3 full=y consistent=y
file=D:\BACKUP\dump&&v_instdate..dmp log=D:\BACKUP\dump&&v_instdate..log
exit
Which are the Import/Export modes?
Full export/export:
The EXP_FULL_DATABASE & IMP_FULL_DATABASE, respectively, are needed to perform a full export.
Use the full export parameter for a full export.
Tablespace:
Use the tablespaces export parameter for a tablespace export.
User:
This mode can be used to export and import all objects that belong to a user. Use the owner export
parameter and the FROMUSER import parameter for a user (owner) export-import.
Table:
Specific tables (or partitions) can be Exported/Imported with table export mode. Use the tables export
parameter for a table Export/ Import mode.
For more details example follow the other post: Using Import/Export
Is it possible to exp/ imp to multiple files?
Yes, is possible. Here is an example:
exp SCOTT/TIGER FILE=C:\backup\File1.dmp,C:\backup\File2.dmp
LOG=C:\backup\scott.log
How we can use exp/ imp when we have 2 different Oracle database versions?
exp must be of the lower version
imp must match the target version
What I have to do before importing database Objects?
Before importing database objects, we have to drop or truncate the objects, if not, the data will be added to
the objects. If the sequences are not dropped, the sequences will generate inconsistent values. If there are
any constraints on the target table, the constraints should be disabled during the import and enabled after
import.
Is it possible to import a table in a different tablespace?
By default, NO. Because there is no tablespace parameter for the import operation. However this could be
done in the following manner:
(Re) create the table in another tablespace (the table will be empty)

Import the table using INDEXFILE parameter (the import is not done, but a file which contains the
indexes creation is generated)
Modify this script to create the indexes in the tablespace we want
Import the table using IGNORE=y option (because the table exists)
Recreate the indexes
In which cases imp/exp is used?
Eliminate database fragmentation
Schema refresh (move the schema from one database to another)
Detect database corruption. Ensure that all the data can be read (if the data can be read that means
there is no block corruption)
Transporting tablespaces between databases
Backup database objects
How we can improve the EXP Performance?
Set the BUFFER parameter to a high value (e.g. 2M)
If you run multiple export sessions, ensure they write to different physical disks.
How we can improve the IMP performance?
Import the table using INDEXFILE parameter (the import is not done, but a file which contains the
indexes creation is generated), import the data and recreate the indexes
Store the dump file to be imported on a separate physical disk from the oracle data files
If there are any constraints on the target table, the constraints should be disabled during the
import and enabled after import
Set the BUFFER parameter to a high value (ex. BUFFER=30000000 (~30MB) ) and COMMIT =y or
set COMMIT=n (is the default behavior: import commits after each table is loaded, however, this use a
lot of the rollback segments or undo space for huge tables.)
Use the direct path to import the data (DIRECT=y)
(if possible) Increase DB_CACHE_SIZE (DB_BLOCK_BUFFERS prior to 9i) considerably in the
init<SID>.ora file
(if possible) Set the LOG_BUFFER to a big value and restart oracle.
Which are the common IMP/EXP problems?
ORA-00001: Unique constraint ... violated - Perhaps you are importing duplicate rows. Use IGNORE=N to
skip tables that already exist (imp will give an error if the object is re-created) or the table could be dropped/
truncated and re-imported if we need to do a table refresh..
IMP-00015: Statement failed ... object already exists... - Use the IGNORE=Y import parameter to ignore
these errors, but be careful as you might end up with duplicate rows.
ORA-01555: Snapshot too old - Ask your users to STOP working while you are exporting or use parameter
CONSISTENT=NO (However this option could create possible referential problems, because the tables are
not exported from one snapshot in time).
ORA-01562: Failed to extend rollback segment - Create bigger rollback segments or set parameter
COMMIT=Y (with an appropriate BUFFER parameter) while importing.
Import/Export Related Post:

Export/Import Table using Toad

Schema Refresh using Toad
Schema Refreshing without Toad
Migrating data Oracle 9i to 10g

Discussion on SCN and Checkpoint in Oracle

What is SCN and why it is used? What happens if the SCN in datafile header is not
matching with the Control file?
The system change number (SCN) is Oracle's clock, every time we commit the clock
increments. The SCN just marks a consistent point in time in the database. The checkpoint
SCN in datafile headers are updated after checkpoint. The SCN is incremented whenever a
transaction commits. Suppose i do update in one table which is stored in two different datafiles
it will update all datafiles header & write information in control file after commit. Before
opening the database SMON will check the control file & datafile headers for the same SCN. If
the SCN in datafile header is not matching with the Control file that means datafile need
recovery.
How to find Current SCN?
SQL> select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number from dual; VER. Oracle 9i
SQL> select to_char(current_scn) from v$database;

VER. Oracle 10g

What is checkpoint? Is checkpoint is related to SCN? Why checkpoint numbers get

increased non sequence to higher value?
LGWR or CKPT writes the redo log sequence to the datafile headers and control files and tells
the DBWR to write dirty buffers from the dirty buffer write queue (buffer cache) to disk. It is a
record indicating the point in the redo log where all DB changes prior to this point have been
saved in the datafiles.
The database ALWAYS has transactions going on, ALWAYS. SMON and many other background
processes are always doing work, the database (unless it is opened read only) is always doing
transactions. Now, since the database never sleeps. Most of those other programs do
transactions and commit. SQL>select username, program from v$session;
The justification against the question, is SCN number, is it a number to identify a
committed transaction? or is it a number just to identify the sequence of statements
executed against the database ?
SQL> create table s ( x int );
Table created.
SQL> Select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual;
SCN
---------79178265
SQL> begin
for i in 1 .. 1000
insert into s values ( i );
end loop;
end;
/

PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.

SQL> select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number - &SCN from dual;
DBMS_FLASHBACK.GET_SYSTEM_CHANGE_NUMBER-79178265
-----------------------------------------------5
It only advanced by 5 - but we did over 1,000 DML statements thus the SCN is not assigned to
a SQL statement. The SCN is incremented upon commit.
SQL>
SQL> select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual;
SCN
---------79178271
SQL> begin
for i in 1 .. 1000
loop
insert into s values ( i );
COMMIT;
end loop;
end;
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.
SQL> select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number - &SCN from dual;
DBMS_FLASHBACK.GET_SYSTEM_CHANGE_NUMBER-79178271
-----------------------------------------------1016
See, now if you COMMIT 1,000 times, the SCN does jump by 1,000 (the other jumps are the
background processes, they are always doing stuff - SMON, MMON, PMON, etc. they do SQL all
of the time - the database never rests
Is there a limitation on the number of SCN that can be generated in a second?
It is depends upon number of commit you are doing
How can we check precision of SCN Timing?
SQL> select time_mp,time_dp, scn_wrp, scn_bas from smon_scn_time;
It is internally done if you look at that table all of the columns - there is a field TIM_SCN_MAP,
it is hidden in there, by using the APIs you can access that information.
SQL>select scn_to_timestamp(scn) ts, min(scn), max(scn)
from (
select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number()-level scn
from dual
connect by level <= 100
)
Group by scn_to_timestamp(SCN);

Order by scn_to_timestamp(SCN);
What if the transaction is rolled-back? Does the SCN again increase?
Yes it is, check out this Example
SQL> CREATE TABLE S1 (ENO NUMBER(4), ENAME VARCHAR2(20));
Table created.
SQL> Select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual;
SCN
---------8806085
SQL> begin
for i in 1 .. 1000
loop
insert into S1 values ( 1, 'SHAAN' );
rollback;
end loop;
end;
/
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.
SQL> select scn, scn-8806085 from (
select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual
);
SCN SCN-8806085
---------- ------------8806085

2014

SQL> Select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual;

SCN
---------8806085
SQL> begin
for i in 1 .. 10000
loop
insert into S1 values ( 1, 'SHAAN' );
rollback;
end loop;
end;
/
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.
SQL> select scn, scn-8806085 from (
select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual
);

SCN SCN-8806085
---------- ------------155317184

20180

Even more than if you do not rollback but commit instead

SQL> Create table S2 ( eno number(4));
Table created.
SQL> select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual;
SCN
---------8828432
SQL> begin
for i in 1 .. 1000
loop
insert into s2 values ( i );
commit;
end loop;
end;
/
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.
SQL> select scn, scn-8828432 from (
select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual
);
SCN SCN-8828432
---------- ------------8830391

1959

SQL> select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual;

SCN
---------8830447
SQL> begin
for i in 1 .. 1000
loop
insert into s2 values ( i );
commit;
end loop;
end;
/
PL/SQL procedure successfully completed.
SQL> select scn, scn-8830447 from (
select dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual

);
SCN SCN-8830447
---------- ------------8842825

12378

Is there any difference between select CURRENT_SCN from v$database and select
dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number scn from dual?
For a "normal" database (not standby) they are for all intents and purposes the same. They
could be a LITTLE different if you do something like:
SQL>select current_scn, dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number from v$database; since
they would be evaluated at two slightly different points in time, but consider them "the same"
What is the difference or similarity between SCN and ORA_ROWSCN? Where does
oracle store SCN?
The SCN is like a clock - it is always advancing (use the command
dbms_flashback.get_system_change_number and wait for few seconds, print it again, it will
have advanced). So, just think of the SCN like a ticker, like time - every time a transaction
ends - another unit of time is added, like adding seconds to time where as ora_rowscn is an
observed point in time. The ora_rowscn is a value associated to a block or a row on a block
that represents the time the block/row was last modified.
When alter system checkpoint command is used?
When we have few dirty buffers of one table in the buffer cache and we issue the command
The checkpoint SCN of the data block is updated and ITL is also updated as:
Itl

Xid

Uba

Flag

Lck

Scn/Fsc

0x01

0x0005.020.00002b46

0x00c00235.0d0f.15

--U-

fsc 0x0000.00ddffee

0x02

0x0001.012.00002088

0x00c0021d.0b70.07

--U-

fsc 0x0000.00df1407

But the header block (after we dump and see) of the file still contains the same SCN as before
irrespective of the change in the data block
Where the SCN number resides? Does archive and redo logs also contain SCN
numbers?
SCN doe not really reside anywhere, it is like time itself. A value of the SCN, taken at various
times, representing the time something happened is stored in many places, sort of like a
timestamp would be. Datafiles have SCNs associated with them (times of various operations)
control files have them (times of various operations) log files have them (to record times of
various operations) undo segments have them (......) they are littered all over the place, they
are like timestamps.
Overview DATA DICTIONARY: CHECKPOINT
V$INSTANCE_RECOVERY, V$LOG, V$LOG_HISTORY
V$INSTANCE_RECOVERY: lowest value in last four columns controls checkpoints
redo log file size, log_checkpoint_timeout, log_checkpoint_interval, fast_start_io_target
init parameter: log_checkpoint_interval, log_checkpoint_timeout, log_checkpoints_to_alert
log_checkpoint_interval

 redo log blocks (OS blocks not DB blocks) written before a checkpoint
If set greater than redo log file size, checkpoints occur at log switches
Ignored if set to zero.
log_checkpoint_timeout

number of seconds since last checkpoint before another is performed

ignored if set to zero
default = 1800 seconds (30 minutes)
log_checkpoints_to_alert if true, write checkpoints to alert log
To decrease checkpoints:

set log_checkpoint_interval larger than the size of the online redo logs
eliminate time-based checkpoints by setting log_checkpoint_timeout = 0
increase size of online redo logs
Note: checkpoints DO NOT cause log switches, but log switches cause checkpoints. For Manual
check point use alter system checkpoint.

Important Points to be considered before webcam interview

Recruitment radius of many companies is not just limited to their own city or country. They
now search for valuable human resource across the globe. Overseas companies conduct
interviews over the telephones, and with the advent of improved technology, are now making
more use of the webcams for their interviews. Job seekers, however, should not think that a
webcam
interview is just like a webcam chat. There are several important considerations to be made
before your webcam interview.
Even though it is very similar to an in-person interview, many people are not comfortable of
being in front of the camera. To overcome these fears, you can start by using the webcam to
chat with your friends and family.
The webcam that you choose should be of very good quality. Buy the one from a reputed brand
and beware of cheap imitations. Also make sure that the specifications of the webcam are
supported by your computer. While most webcams come with a built-in mic, it is better to have
a solo one as
these have a more focused sound radius.
Positioning yourself before the webcam is also very important. While in a casual webcam chat,
you make sure the position of the camera enhances the features of your face, in an interview it
is best if you sit straight in front of it, making the interviewer feel you are looking into their
eyes.
The background should be clear of anything inappropriate. These might include clothes
hanging out of a wardrobe, unwashed dishes on the dining table. Preferably have your back to
a wall, just like you would have in any formal meeting. Similarly, you need to dress up just like
you would
for any job interview. Even if you are wearing something casual, make sure it clean and tidy.
Appropriate lighting is vital during a webcam interview. When in front of the camera, pale
lights are better than plain white light. You can have a lamp placed close to you but not behind
you as that would produce a darker image.
Lastly, keep some of the important things close by, such as your resume, any certificates, bank
papers and pen, glass of water and some tissue papers. Preparation for a webcam interview is
the same as that of an in-person interview, except that you cannot shake the hand of
the interviewer before and after the interview. Do your research of the role and the company
before your interview. Once the interview is complete, do thank the interviewer for their time
and consideration.

How to Check Why Shutdown Immediate hangs or taking

longer time?
Ref. Doc ID 164504.1
In order to check reason why shutdown immediate hangs
SQL>connect / as SYSDBA
SQL>Select * from x$ktuxe where ktuxecfl = 'DEAD';
This shows dead transactions that SMON is looking to rollback.
Now Plan to shutdown again and gather some information. Before issuing the shutdown immediate
command set some events as follows:
SQL>alter session set events '10046 trace name context forever, level 12';
SQL>alter session set events '10400 trace name context forever, level 1';
SQL>shutdown immediate;
10046 turns on extended SQL_TRACE for the shutdown process.
10400 dumps a system state every 5 minutes.
The trace files should show where the time is going. To check the progress of SMON is very important in this
case. You can find it with the below query.
SELECT r.NAME "RB Segment Name", dba_seg.size_mb,
DECODE(TRUNC(SYSDATE - LOGON_TIME), 0, NULL, TRUNC(SYSDATE - LOGON_TIME) || ' Days' || '
+ ') || TO_CHAR(TO_DATE(TRUNC(MOD(SYSDATE-LOGON_TIME,1) * 86400), 'SSSSS'), 'HH24:MI:SS')
LOGON, v$session.SID, v$session.SERIAL#, p.SPID, v$session.process,
v$session.USERNAME, v$session.STATUS, v$session.OSUSER, v$session.MACHINE,
v$session.PROGRAM, v$session.module, action
FROM v$lock l, v$process p, v$rollname r, v$session,
(SELECT segment_name, ROUND(bytes/(1024*1024),2) size_mb FROM dba_segments
WHERE segment_type = 'TYPE2 UNDO' ORDER BY bytes DESC) dba_seg
WHERE l.SID = p.pid(+) AND v$session.SID = l.SID AND
TRUNC (l.id1(+)/65536)=r.usn
-- AND l.TYPE(+) = 'TX' AND
-- l.lmode(+) = 6
AND r.NAME = dba_seg.segment_name
--AND v$session.username = 'SYSTEM'
--AND status = 'INACTIVE'
ORDER BY size_mb DESC;

Reason: Shut down immediate may hang because of various reasons.

Processes still continue to be connected to the database and do not terminate.

SMON is cleaning temp segments or performing delayed block cleanouts.

Uncommitted transactions are being rolled back.

Debugging a hung database in oracle version 11g
Back in oracle 10g a hung database was real problem, especially could not connect via SQL*plus release the
source of the hanging. There is a new feature in Oracle 11g SQL*Plus called the prelim option. This option
is very useful for running oradebug and other utilities that do not require a real connection to the database.
C:\>sqlplus prelim
-or- in SQL you can set
SQL>Set _prelim on
SQL>connect / as sysdba
Now you are able to run oradebug commands to diagnose a hung database issue:
SQL> oradebug hanganalyze 3
Wait at least 2 minutes to give time to identify process state changes.

SQL>oradebug hanganalyze 3
Open a separate SQL session and immediately generate a system state dump.
SQL>alter session set events 'immediate trace name SYSTEMSTATE level 10';
How to Check why shutdown immediate taking longer time to shutdown?
Ref. 1076161.6: Shutdown immediate or shutdown hangs. SMON disabling TX recovery
Ref. Note 375935.1: What to do and not to do when shutdown immediate hangs.
Ref. Note 428688.1: Shutdown immediate very slow to close database.
When shutdown immediate taking longer time as compare to the normal time usually it is taking. You must
perform following task before performing actual shutdown immediate.
1. All active session.
2. Temporary Tablespace Recover.
3. Long Running Query in Database.
4. Large Transaction.
5. Progress of the Transaction that oracle is recovering.
6. Parallel Transaction Recovery.
SQL> Select sid, serial#, username, status, schemaname, logon_time from
v$session where status='ACTIVE' and username is not null;
If Active session is exist then, try to find out what is doing in the database by this session. Active session
makeshutdown slower
SQL> Select f.R "Recovered", u.nr "Need Recovered" from (select
count(block#) R , 1 ch from sys.fet$ ) f,(selectcount(block#) NR, 1 ch from
sys.uet$) u where f.ch=u.ch;
Check to see any long query is running into the database while you are trying to shutdown the database.
SQL> Select * from v$session_longops where time_remaining>0 order by username;
Check to ensure large transaction is not going on while you are trying to shutdown the database.
SQL>Select sum(used_ublk) from v$transaction;
Check the progress of the transaction that oracle is recovering.
SQL>Select * from v$fast_start_transactions;
Check to ensure that any parallel transaction recovery is going on before performing shutdown immediate.
SQL>Select * from v$fast_start_servers;
Finally if you do not understand the reason why the shutdown is hanging or taking longer time to shutdown
then try to shutdown your database with abort option and startup with restrict option and try shutdown with
immediate option.
Check the alert.log, if you find any error related Thread 1 cannot allocate new log, sequence
then you need to enable your archival process. Your archival is disable due to any reason.
Process:
1. In command prompt set the oracle_sid first
C:\SET ORACLE_SID = your db_name
2. Now start the SQL*plus:
C:\sqlplus /nolog
SQL>connect sys/***@instance_name
SQL>Select instance_name from v$instance;
3. Try to checkpoint before shutdown abort
SQL>alter system checkpoint;
SQL> shutdown abort;
4. Start the database with restrict option so that no other user is able to connect you in the mean time.
SQL>startup restrict;
SQL>select logins from v$instance;

RESTRICTED
SQL>shutdown immediate;
5. Mount the database and ensure archive process is enabling by using archive log list command. If it is
disabling then enable it.
SQL>startup mount;
SQL> archive log list; --if disable then enable it
SQL>Alter database archivelog;
SQL> Alter system archive log start;
Note: If your archivelog destination and format is already set no need to set again. After setting check with
the archive log list command archival is enable or not.
SQL> alter database open;
Now check if your database is still in restricted mode then remove the restriction.
SQL>select logins from v$instance;
SQL>alter system disable restricted session;
Note: Now try to generate archivelog with any command
SQL>alter system archivelog current;
SQL>alter system switch logfile;
Now try to check or perform normal shutdown and startup with the database.