Script to CHeck if the database is Up

Hi:

        I would like to have a script (on UNIX) that would attempt to login to the (7.2) database. If it fails, it should page me. Could I invoke a sqlplus script that did "exit" and then echo $? to check the return of the previous command - is this reliable? I dont want to do a ps to look for the dbwriter and conclude that the database is up - for some reason, the shutdown could have failed and the database could be hung...(I can dream on).

        How else would this be reliably done?

thanks a lot,

-Badri Received on Wed Apr 17 1996 - 00:00:00 CEST