01 02 03Database Outsourcing Experts

Oracle 10g release 2

Administration

ASM Command Line UtilityYou can now interact directly with ASM �les and disk groups using the new ASMCMD command line tool. This uses Unix-like commands for the manipulation of these �les so you don’t have to use SQL or the Enterprise Manager.

Direct SGA AccessIn the case of a hung system when you can’t even login, the Grid Control software can attach directly to the SGA and retrieve process and system information to help to troubleshoot a problem.

RMAN - Convert DatabaseThe feature introduced to convert data�les between operating systems has been extended so that you can copy an entire database with the RMAN “convert database” command.

Segment Shrink EnhancementsThis feature now supports LOBs.

Transparent Data EncryptionData can now be encrypted right down to the table level, meaning only those with the right encryption key can even make sense of data stored in a table.

RMAN - Convert DatabaseThe feature introduced to convert data�les between operating systems has been extended so that you can copy an entire database with the RMAN “convert database” command.

Segment Shrink EnhancementsThis feature now supports LOBs.

Transparent Data EncryptionData can now be encrypted right down to the table level, meaning only those with the right encryption key can even make sense of data stored in a table.

Automatic Resource ManagementThe enqueue_resources and db_�le_multiblock_read_count init.ora parameters are now self tuning and do not need to be set.

Online Table Rede�nitionNow supports partitions, clusters, queue tables and object data types.

Segment AdvisorThis now runs every night during the maintenance window along with the statistics gather-ing job.

Streams Pool Management ChangesThis is now managed within SGA_TARGET.

Transportable TablespaceNow supports XML type.

01 02 03Database Outsourcing Experts

Oracle 10g release 2

Backup & Recovery

Flashback EnhancementsYou can now �ashback the database through a resetlogs operation. This is especially useful with Standby databases as it means you can �ashback to before an activate command was issued. You can also set up guaranteed restore points which tell Oracle to make sure it has enough �ashback data to go back to a particular SCN.

RMAN - Encrypted BackupsNow you can encrypt backups using passwords or other forms of transparent wallet-based encryption.

Oracle Secure Backup10g Release 2 saw the release of this tool which aims to remove the need for 3rd party media management tools when writing backups directly to tape. It can also be used to back up the host �le systems and so provides a one-stop shop for all the server’s backup needs.

Business Intelligence

Partition Change Tracking EnhancementsMaterialized view logs are no longer needed to enable partition change tracking meaning all materialized view types can be fast refreshed without MV logs.

Query Re-write EnhancementsThis can now use multiple materialized views to re-write a query.

Signi�cantly Enhanced Oracle Discoverer in Application Server 10gR2Application Server Release 2 brings many much called for enhancements to Oracle Discoverer Viewer and Discoverer Plus, making them true Business Intelligence tools.

High Availability

RAC - OCR MirroringThe Oracle Cluster Registry (OCR) is now automatically mirrored to various locations meaning it is less likely you’ll need to go to a backup if there is any corruption.

RAC - Connection FailoverFast Connection Failover is now available for JDBC, OCI & ODP using events.

RAC - Name ChangesCluster ready Services (CRS) has been reborn as Oracle Clusterware.

Real-time Apply EnhancementsIt’s no longer necessary for a log switch to occur to apply data to a standby using the SQL apply method.

RAC - Cluster Verify Utility (cluvfy)Even though this utility comes with Release 2, it can be independently downloaded and used with Release 1. This utility can be used to verify the set-up of the server before attempting to install the clusterware and very the set-up of RAC at various stages throughout the installa-tion process. It can also be used to check system integrity after installation and is a very handy tool.

RAC - crsctl UtilityThis new utility can be used to start and stop the entire clusterware stack and its resources in a single command. It can also be used to check various aspects of the cluster con�guration.

01 02 03Database Outsourcing Experts

Oracle 10g release 2

High Availability

RAC - Node CloningEnterprise Manager Grid Control can be used to create new nodes by cloning existing nodes. All you need to do is set up access to the new node and it takes care of the rest.

Recovery through Incremental BackupsIncremental RMAN backup sets can now be used to roll forward a standby database.

Application Programming

Asynchronous CommitYou can now change the way Oracle works when committing data, either through a new init.ora parameter or via an SQL statement. Amongst other options, COMMIT NOWAIT returns control to the application even though the data has not yet been committed to the redo logs.

DML Error LoggingYou can now create error logs for DML statements, meaning that in a batch of updates you can just log an error and move on without it rolling back the whole process.

XML DB Web ServicesDevelopers can write and deploy web services that can query the database with SQL or XQuery or execute stored procedures and you can access web services through the Oracle XML DB listener.

Database Change Noti�cationThis enables client applications to receive noti�cations when the result set of a registered query changes. For example, if the client registers a query on a table, then the application can receive a database change noti�cation when a new row is added to the table.

Regular Expression EnhancementsSQL support for common Perl-based extensions has been added.