Understanding SQL*Net
Prepare to Use the Network Manager
Oracle Network Manager is a product included with SQL*Net version 2.1 and later that enables you to create configuration files without having to type in the precise syntax of the files manually. Oracle Network Manager generates the files based upon standard defaults and the unique information you provide through its graphical user interface. Unless you are using Oracle Names and the Dynamic Discovery Option, you must use Network Manager to create the configuration files.
To use the Network Manager effectively you must have detailed information about the network at hand. This section describes the information you must have ready.
Note: You must use Network Manager to create all SQL*Net configuration files (except PROTOCOL.ORA, which must be created by hand). Configuration files created manually are not supported by Oracle Corporation. You can edit most values in the SQLNET.ORA file using the SQLNET.ORA Editor.
Know the Network
The Network Manager knows the syntax of the configuration files and it knows the default values for parameters in those files. However, it knows nothing about your network until you supply the information. In fact, supplying accurate information to the tool is your main task in using it.
Names
Choose names for the following:
- all domains (unless you are using only one domain--WORLD)
- all network listeners, and the computers (nodes) on which they run
Note: As of SQL*Net release 2.1 and the Oracle Server release 7.1, the service names you provide must match precisely the unique global database names assigned by the database administrator. To achieve this, it may be necessary to change some of the service names you have been using. For example, if your previously defined SQL*Net release 2.0 network has service names that do not match the global database names, those service names must be changed. Similarly, if the network includes some databases that were named before you established your current domain names, their global database names and service names must reflect the current domain structure.
- all Interchanges, if any, and the computers (nodes) on which they run
- all Names Servers, if any, and the computers (nodes) on which they run
- all client profiles (A client profile or client type is a group of clients with the same communication requirements.)
Note: Network Manager automatically generates names for Interchanges, Names Servers, and client profiles. You do not need to supply names for them unless you want to change the Network Manager-generated defaults.
Note that even if you have a one-protocol network, that is to say, a one community network, you must supply a name for that community. The community names should follow global naming conventions. See the section "Naming Considerations" earlier in this chapter. The name of each component within the network must be unique.
Addresses
Define addresses for the following:
- all Names Servers, if any
The addresses for these components consist of the names of the communities of which they are a part and protocol-specific information.
Protocol Specific Information
Different protocols require different protocol-specific information. The following table summarizes the keywords for the protocols currently supported in a TNS network.
Protocol Keywords
AppleTalk SERVICE
ASYNC PHONENUMBER
ASYNC_SERVER
LOCAL_LOOKUP
Banyan ITEM
GROUP
ORGANIZATION
DECNet NODE
OBJECT
DCE SERVICE
SERVER_PRINCIPAL
CELL_NAME (optional)
LU6.2/APPC LU_NAME
LOCAL_LOOKUP
TP_NAME
Named Pipes PIPE
SERVER
NetBIOS NTBNAME
OSI NSAP
TSEL
or
HOST
SERVICE
SPX/IPX SERVICE
TCP/IP HOST
PORT
The Network Manager provides default values for many of these protocol-specific keywords. See the Oracle operating system-specific documentation for your platforms for information on what values to supply for the protocol keywords.
Connect Data
You must also provide the system identifiers (SIDs) for database servers. SID names typically match the database name; however, this is not a requirement.
SQL*Net V1 Connect Strings
If your network includes both SQL*Net version 1 and version 2, have available the names of the files that hold the Version 1 connect strings and their aliases, and know where in the file system they are stored.
Parameters
The LISTENER.ORA file includes a number of required and optional parameters that describe the listener. You should gather the parameter information and have it ready to use in the Network Manager. The parameters for LISTENER.ORA are described in Appendix A, "Contents of the Configuration Files."
MultiProtocol Interchange Information
The Network Manager creates configuration files for the Interchanges in your network, if you have them, based on information you supply. The files are described in Appendix A of the MultiProtocol Interchange Administrator's Guide.
Names Servers
If you are using Oracle Names without the Dynamic Discovery Option, the Network Manager creates a NAMES.ORA configuration file for each of the Names Servers in your network. See the Oracle Names Administrator's Guide for information about this file.
Multiple Network Managers
If your network includes Oracle Names, you may want to provide further information about the naming structure of your network. You may want to include delegated administrative regions, so that widely separated parts of your network have some autonomy in their administration. See the Oracle Names Administrator's Guide for further information.
Database Links
If you are using Oracle Names, you may want to specify additional information such as username and password for the global database link that is automatically created for each database defined in Network Manager. See Chapter 5, "Using SQL*Net," in this manual, and Chapter 5, "Entering Component Information" in the Oracle Network Manager Administrator's Guide, and Oracle7 Server Distributed Systems, Volume I and the Oracle Names Administrator's Guide for information on global database links.