Re: SQL Net

In comp.databases.oracle you write:

>We looking at using Oracle in a distributed environment. I've heard that
>this is accomplished using SQL net. But is it reliable? Is it a good product?
>Is it worth it. Are there any alternatives?

  Well, we've installed it, but aren't making much use of it, because it's   not a very good product(s), and not very reliable... We have Oracle   running on a Sun 4, connected to a PC with a Western Digital ethernet   card, and running Windows 3.1. The idea was to use Q+E (an Excel add in   that understands SQL*Net) to allow SQL queries from inside Excel to go to   the server.

  Okay, here's the data chain: SQL*Net (for the PC by Oracle) uses TCP/IP,   and requires one of four obscure versions of TCP/IP: all of which are   incompatible with our currentl IPX [Novell] / Packet Driver ethernet   system. We chose the 3Com version of TCP/IP, and had to obtain a patch   for the 3com software to work with the WD hardware (and it was still a   pain!).. After that you have to add window's patch's to get the channel   though windows... and though everything you need qemm to run your   memory... So we're tring to get a system working with stuff fro 6   different vendors: QuarterDeck (qemm), 3Com (tcp/ip), GTSI (patch to 3com   for WD), Oracle (sql*net, sql*tcp, and sqlwin.dll), Pioneer (Q+E), and   MicroSoft (Excel). Let me tell you-- it's a pain.

  After two weeks fussing (and dozens of calls to all of the above vendors)   with memory conflicts, IRQ link bugs, obscure protocol files, out of date   DLL's, new versions, newer versions, re-arranging interrupts, tracing   things though assembly language to see where they crashed-- we finally   got it working.

  However, you basically have to dedicate your machine to it: it doesn't   work with telnet or Novell, takes so much memory windows is crippled, and   is slow enough that it's generally easier to do the query in SQL on the   sun, use emacs to convert it to csv, and ftp it over.

  I don't know what those others who responded saying the system was okay   were doing-- but I found the whole thing a techno-nightmare, and informed   my management that while the technology made it possible, the   software just isn't ready yet.

• Ken Stillson, stillson_at_mitre.org

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