Re: Get database name in OCI or PL/SQL

Jim, TurkBear, David and Cliff,

Thank you for your help. You all suggested using the v$database and 2 other v$ views to get the database name. The problem with me is that I am writing a generic shrink-wrap software that will be distributed to a large number of customers, and the program may be run using any account with any priviledges. It is not practical at all to ask all DBAs to grant public access to these security sensitive v$ views, or create a pre-defined synonym and hardcode such synonym into my program.

I am hoping to find a generic and definitive way to get the database name, so that my program can make uses of database attributes. Otherwise, it is fair to say that OCI is very poorly designed in this particular feature. Actually, the whole OCIDescribeAny and attribute hierachy thing are poorly designed and unprofessionally documented.

Thank you

--Michael

"Michael Chen" <michaelc7_at_earthlink.net> wrote in message news:Q61m9.1053$OB5.100694_at_newsread2.prod.itd.earthlink.net...
> Hello,
>
> In Oracle 8i, function OCIDescribeAny can return OCI_PTYPE_DATABASE type
> information such as OCI_ATTR_CURSOR_COMMIT_BEHAVIOR and
> OCI_ATTR_LIST_SCHEMAS. To get the handle from OCIDescribeAny for a
> database, you need to pass the database name:
>
>
>

http://download-west.oracle.com/otndoc/oracle9i/901_doc/appdev.901/a89857/oc
> i15r32.htm
> also
>
>

http://download-west.oracle.com/otndoc/oracle9i/901_doc/appdev.901/a89857/oc
> i06des.htm#444119
>
> The problem is my OCI connection may not have prior knowledge of the
> database name. What is passed to function OCIServerAttach may be just the
> TNS alias name defined in tnsnames.ora. Is there any way in OCI or
> PL/SQL for me to get the database name after the connection is
> established?
>
> Thank for your help.
>
> --Michael
>
Received on Tue Oct 01 2002 - 15:55:19 CDT