DBMS_STATS gather stale option

I use DBMS_STATS to gather statistics for all tables in an Oracle 8.1.7.3 database. I would like use the GATHER STALE option of GATHER_SCHEMA_STATS to automatically collect statistics. However, the tables in this database vary widely in size and there is also a partitioned table.

If I execute DBMS_STATS.GATHER_SCHEMA_STATS with the GATHER STALE option, will it gather statistics based on how statistics were gathered previously on each table (compute, estimate, and partition), or will it compute statistics on all tables no matter the type or size of the table? There is no GATHER STALE option associated with GATHER_TABLE_STATS. Thanks for your help.

Gail

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