using ifile in the tnsnames.ora file

Do you use an IFILE parameter in a network configuration file (tnsnames.ora, sqlnet.ora, other) to consolidate entries in a central location? I guess it's an obsolete practice and I should stop.

I've been using IFILE parametes in the tnsnames.ora file for as long as I've been using Oracle. Recently however, when creating database links, I noticed that the database link was using an alias that is coming from an "ifile" in the tnsnames.ora, even though SQL*Plus on the server could use that entry. I've never had problems using an IFILE in the tnsnames.ora except the one I recently encountered with database links.

Imagine my surprise when I saw this on Tom Kyte's website:

http://asktom.oracle.com/pls/asktom/f?p=100:11:0::::P11_QUESTION_ID:489021635775

Quoter: "IFILE is not supported for tnsnames/listener/sqlnet/protocol.ora files."

I checked the network administration / reference manuals for 8.0.6, 8.1.7, 9.0, 9.2, 10.1, the "ifile" parameter is never mentioned for the network configuration files (sqlnet.ora, tnsnames.ora, listener.ora, cman.ora, names.ora, ldap.ora) - but it is mentioned in the server reference manual as a valid parameter for the init.ora file.

Is this a new limitation? For example I quickly found Metalink note 1017689.102 that tells me I can use ifile in the tnsnames.ora and listener.ora files with an Oracle 8.0 listener.

I found a couple of recent notes that mentioned a tnsnames.ora containing an ifile (Notes 397684.1 and 397567.1) but both of these notes had the comment "This document is being delivered to you via Oracle Support's Rapid Visibility (RaV) process, and therefore has not been subject to an independent technical review."

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