Re: spfile vs pfile in 9i

Howard J. Rogers wrote:
> Niall Litchfield wrote:

<snip>
> Agree, though Pete Sharman used to tear me off a strip for saying it!

hmmm, the list of people with whom I am (a bit) at odds makes it increasingly likely that I am incorrect.

> But whilst it's fine for you to edit a text file, we won't be able to
have
> all the wonders of SQL Server.., er, I mean, a "self-tuning
database",
> unless we let the instance edit it. Which means hello binary, good
bye
> humans.

This I don't get at all. It means a file in a known accessible location for the instance. I don't see why it dictates binary rather than text at all. The Instance already at least writes to text files (though I understand at least one author regards some of them as binary!). I can't for the life of me see why it couldn't edit a well formed text file.

RAW may well imply binary (don't know enough to dispute that issue), but even where the db uses RAW volumes the instance will require accessible file systems on which text files could be placed.

Niall Litchfield
Oracle DBA
http://www.niall.litchfield.dial.pipex.com

P.S. just noticed that Google describes my post as being in English/Other which sounds about right. Received on Wed Oct 27 2004 - 11:33:29 CDT