(Fwd) RE: SQLLoader and DBF files

(came in after I sent the last thing previously)

• Forwarded message follows ------- Date sent: Tue, 13 Jun 2000 07:33:25 -0800 To: Multiple recipients of list ODTUG-DEV2K-L <ODTUG-DEV2K-L_at_fatcity.com> Send reply to: ODTUG-DEV2K-L_at_fatcity.com From: "May, Kevin" <K_May_at_wfec.com> Subject: RE: SQLLoader and DBF files Organization: Fat City Network Services, San Diego, California

Eric,

Thank you for the information. Unfortunately, the application that we are using is a highly specialized piece of software that for some reason doesn't support ODBC. What we are currently doing is what you describe; dumping to text and loading that. This would work OK but the software is really flaky and the order of the columns in the dbf file is not always the same so the use of any predefined ctl file is not practical.

As for the older method, it sounds like it won't work for NT.

Thanks anyway.

Kevin

-----Original Message-----
Sent: Monday, June 12, 2000 8:09 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list ODTUG-DEV2K-L

Kevin,

If .dbf=dBase (and descendants), read on.

The standard answer (I've never used it, maybe someone that has can give more detail): ODBC connectivity to Oracle from the Foxpro (etc.) application. You don't need SQL*Loader.

If you don't want to do that, dump the .dbf file to text, and then use SQL*Loader on the text dump. Problem: you need to manually do the DDL first (create table...), then manually build a regular .ctl file for each .dbf file.

• - -

The previous standard answer: the Netware version of Oracle (v6/ &v7?) DOS client had a .dbf file "prep" utility, called, amazingly, DB3PREP.exe. IIRC, it created *both* a .sql (DDL) file, and the .ctl file.

You can't use DB#PREP.exe in Win9x because it required a special Oracle DOS memory manager that was incompatible with Win9x memory management (and is probably incompatible with SQL*Net v2 & Net8 anyway).

(If you want to look at them for some reason, I still have the example .dbf/.sql/.ctl files that Oracle provided with DB3PREP.exe, and I can provide them off-list.)

I even have a small legacy app still running with a DOS client and Oracle 7.3 (*gasp*), so theoretically, if you sent me an empty copy of one of your .dbf files, I could run DB3PREP.exe on it, and send you the .sql/.ctl output files back. I don't know for sure that they would run on "modern" versions of SQL*Loader.

regards,
ep

Date sent:      	Mon, 12 Jun 2000 12:45:34 -0800
To:             	Multiple recipients of list ODTUG-DEV2K-L
<ODTUG-DEV2K-L_at_fatcity.com>
Send reply to:  	ODTUG-DEV2K-L_at_fatcity.com

> Does anyone know if there is an option in SQLLoader to read in DBF files?
> If so, an example of a CTL file would be great.

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Author: May, Kevin
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