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From: postbus@sybrandb.demon.nl (Sybrand Bakker)
Newsgroups: comp.databases.oracle.server
Subject: Re: Strange ORA-12154
Date: Wed, 20 Oct 1999 18:10:22 GMT
Message-ID: <380e04da.21983374@news.demon.nl>
References: <7uknu9$ark$1@nnrp1.deja.com>
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On Wed, 20 Oct 1999 15:43:09 GMT, Ed Stevens
<Ed.Stevens@nmm.nissan-usa.com> wrote:

>We have an NT4.0 server running as a test web server (using IIS) with
>two versions of  Oracle client software to allow web apps to access our
>Oracle databases.  The two versions of Oracle installed are 8.0.5.0.0
>(installed in d:\orant) and 8.1.5.0.0 (installed in d:\orant8I).  The
>databases are on other NT servers.  The applications are ASP’s that
>access the Oracle db’s via the Microsoft ODBC driver for Oracle.
>
>Since we also have around 1000 desktop Oracle clients in addition to
>the web servers, we maintain a single TNSNAMES file for use by all
>clients, be they desktops, web servers, or dedicated application
>devices.  This TNSNAMES is kept in its own directory on one of the DB
>servers, and all clients have TNS_ADMIN entry in their registry to
>point to this central TNSNAMES.
>
>All of this is working fine for all desktop apps and all but one web
>app.  This one app continues to get an ORA-12154 unless it can resolve
>connect strings from a TNSNAMES file located in its own
>oracle_home\net80\admin directory.  It’s as if it is completely
>ignoring the TNS_ADMIN entry in the registry.  Other web apps,
>executing on the same web server and using the same ODBC driver, are
>having no problems.
>
>As part of my testing I sat at the web server in question and tried
>connecting with SQLPlus.  I put a unique entry in the central TNSNAMES
>file, so that I would know for sure that it was that file being used to
>resolve the names.  I found that if I used the version from the 8.0
>directory it was able to connect using the central TNSNAMES, but if I
>used the version from the 8I drectory it was unable to connect.  This
>held true regardless of  which home was selected with the “home
>selector” utility.
>
>We also observed that if the local TNSNAMES was removed, the
>application would continue to work for a few minutes before failing
>with the ORA-12154.  After failures, if we restored the local TNSNAMES,
>the app would begin working immediately.
>
>Given all these clues, does anyone have any explanation for the
>behavior we’re seeing?
>
>
>
>Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
>Before you buy.


I would recommend making sure the trace_level_client of both your
sqlnet.ora's (ie in TNS_ADMIN and locally is set to 16).
also make sure trace_directory_client is set to something meaningful
and trace_unique_client to true.
This will provide you with an exact dump of all net8 activity,
including the location and contents of tnsnames.ora


Sybrand Bakker, Oracle DBA