B
Changes to Initialization Parameters

Version 8 supports new initialization parameters for use in the initsid.ora file, and some initialization parameters have been renamed or have become obsolete in version 8. This appendix lists the new, renamed, and obsolete parameters in version 8, and this appendix discusses compatibility issues with certain initialization parameters.

This appendix covers the following topics:

• Initialization Parameters Added in Version 8

• Initialization Parameters Renamed in Version 8

• Initialization Parameters Obsolete in Version 8

• Compatibility Issues with Initialization Parameters

  See Also: Oracle8i Reference for detailed information about the new and changed initialization parameters listed in this appendix.

  Note: Some of the parameters listed in this appendix are operating-system specific. See your operating-system specific Oracle documentation for more information about these initialization parameters.

Initialization Parameters Added in Version 8

The initialization parameters listed in this section are new in version 8.

Initialization Parameters Added in Release 8.0

The following parameters were added in release 8.0:

ALLOW_PARTIAL_SN_RESULTS	ALWAYS_SEMI_JOIN
AQ_TM_PROCESSES	ARCH_IO_SLAVES
BACKUP_DISK_IO_SLAVES	BACKUP_TAPE_IO_SLAVES
BUFFER_POOL_KEEP	BUFFER_POOL_RECYCLE
COMPLEX_VIEW_MERGING	CONTROL_FILE_RECORD_KEEP_TIME
DB_BLOCK_MAX_DIRTY_TARGET	DB_FILE_DIRECT_IO_COUNT
DB_FILE_NAME_CONVERT	DB_WRITER_PROCESSES
DBWR_IO_SLAVES	DISK_ASYNCH_IO
FAST_FULL_SCAN_ENABLED	FREEZE_DB_FOR_FAST_INSTANCE_RECOVERY
GC_DEFER_TIME	GC_LATCHES
HI_SHARED_MEMORY_ADDRESS	INSTANCE_GROUPS
LARGE_POOL_MIN_ALLOC	LARGE_POOL_SIZE
LGWR_IO_SLAVES	LM_LOCKS
LM_PROCS	LM_RESS
LOCAL_LISTENER	LOCK_NAME_SPACE
LOCK_SGA	LOCK_SGA_AREAS
LOG_ARCHIVE_DUPLEX_DEST	LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST
LOG_FILE_NAME_CONVERT	MTS_RATE_LOG_SIZE
MTS_RATE_SCALE	NLS_CALENDAR
O7_DICTIONARY_ACCESSIBILITY	OBJECT_CACHE_MAX_SIZE_PERCENT
OBJECT_CACHE_OPTIMAL_SIZE	OGMS_HOME
OPEN_LINKS_PER_INSTANCE	OPS_ADMIN_GROUP
OPTIMIZER_FEATURES_ENABLE	OPTIMIZER_INDEX_CACHING
OPTIMIZER_INDEX_COST_ADJ	OPTIMIZER_MAX_PERMUTATIONS
PARALLEL_ADAPTIVE_MULTI_USER	PARALLEL_BROADCAST_ENABLED
PARALLEL_EXECUTION_MESSAGE_SIZE	PARALLEL_INSTANCE_GROUP
PARALLEL_MIN_MESSAGE_POOL	PARALLEL_SERVER
PARALLEL_TRANSACTION_RESOURCE_TIMEOUT	PLSQL_V2_COMPATIBILITY
PUSH_JOIN_PREDICATE	READ_ONLY_OPEN_DELAYED
REPLICATION_DEPENDENCY_TRACKING	SERIAL_REUSE
SESSION_MAX_OPEN_FILES	SHARED_MEMORY_ADDRESS
STAR_TRANSFORMATION_ENABLED	TAPE_ASYNCH_IO
TIMED_OS_STATISTICS	TRANSACTION_AUDITING
USE_INDIRECT_DATA_BUFFERS

Initialization Parameters Added in Release 8.1

The following initialization parameters were added in release 8.1:

DB_BLOCK_CHECKING	ENT_DOMAIN_NAME
FAST_START_IO_TARGET	FAST_START_PARALLEL_ROLLBACK
HS_AUTOREGISTER	INSTANCE_NAME
JAVA_POOL_SIZE	LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_n
LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_STATE_n	LOG_ARCHIVE_MAX_PROCESSES
NLS_COMP	NLS_DUAL_CURRENCY
PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING	PARALLEL_SERVER_INSTANCES
PARALLEL_THREADS_PER_CPU	PLSQL_LOAD_WITHOUT_RECOMPILE
QUERY_REWRITE_ENABLED	QUERY_REWRITE_INTEGRITY
RESOURCE_MANAGER_PLAN	SERVICE_NAMES
SORT_MULTIBLOCK_READ_COUNT	STANDBY_ARCHIVE_DEST

Initialization Parameters Renamed in Version 8

The initialization parameters in this section have been renamed in version 8.

Initialization Parameters Renamed in Release 8.0

The following initialization parameters were renamed in release 8.0:

Table B-1 Initialization Parameters Renamed in Release 8.0

Pre-Release 8.0 Name	Release 8.0 Name
ASYNC_READ	DISK_ASYNCH_IO
ASYNC_WRITE	DISK_ASYNCH_IO
CCF_IO_SIZE *	DB_FILE_DIRECT_IO_COUNT *
DB_FILE_STANDBY_NAME_CONVERT	DB_FILE_NAME_CONVERT
DB_WRITERS	DBWR_IO_SLAVES
LOG_FILE_STANDBY_NAME_CONVERT	LOG_FILE_NAME_CONVERT
SNAPSHOT_REFRESH_INTERVAL	JOB_QUEUE_INTERVAL

* The units are different for CCF_IO_SIZE (bytes) and DB_FILE_DIRECT_IO_COUNT (database blocks).

Initialization Parameters Renamed in Release 8.1.4

The following initialization parameters were renamed in release 8.1.4:

Table B-2 Initialization Parameters Renamed in Release 8.1.4

Release 8.1.3 Name	Release 8.1.4 and Higher Name
MVIEW_REWRITE_ENABLED	QUERY_REWRITE_ENABLED
REWRITE_INTEGRITY	QUERY_REWRITE_INTEGRITY

Initialization Parameters Renamed in Release 8.1.5

The following initialization parameters were renamed in release 8.1.5:

Table B-3 Initialization Parameters Renamed in Release 8.1.5

Release 8.1.3 and 8.1.4 Name	Release 8.1.5 and Higher Name
NLS_UNION_CURRENCY	NLS_DUAL_CURRENCY
PARALLEL_TRANSACTION_RECOVERY	FAST_START_PARALLEL_ROLLBACK

Initialization Parameters Obsolete in Version 8

The initialization parameters in this section are obsolete in version 8.

Initialization Parameters Obsolete in Release 8.0

The following initialization parameters became obsolete in release 8.0 and cannot be used in release 8.0 and higher:

CHECKPOINT_PROCESS	FAST_CACHE_FLUSH
GC_DB_LOCKS	GC_FREELIST_GROUPS
GC_ROLLBACK_SEGMENTS	GC_SAVE_ROLLBACK_LOCKS
GC_SEGMENTS	GC_TABLESPACES
IO_TIMEOUT	INIT_SQL_FILES
IPQ_ADDRESS	IPQ_NET
LM_DOMAINS	LM_NON_FAULT_TOLERANT
MLS_LABEL_FORMAT	OPTIMIZER_PARALLEL_PASS
PARALLEL_DEFAULT_MAX_SCANS	PARALLEL_DEFAULT_SCAN_SIZE
POST_WAIT_DEVICE	SEQUENCE_CACHE_HASH_BUCKETS
UNLIMITED_ROLLBACK_SEGMENTS	USE_IPQ
USE_POST_WAIT_DRIVER	USE_READV
USE_SIGIO	V733_PLANS_ENABLED

Initialization Parameters Obsolete in Release 8.1

A relatively large number of initialization parameters were obsoleted in release 8.1 to simplify database administration. The following initialization parameters became obsolete in release 8.1 and cannot be used in release 8.1 and higher:

ALLOW_PARTIAL_SN_RESULTS	ARCH_IO_SLAVES
B_TREE_BITMAP_PLANS	BACKUP_DISK_IO_SLAVES
CACHE_SIZE_THRESHOLD	CLEANUP_ROLLBACK_ENTRIES
CLOSE_CACHED_OPEN_CURSORS	COMPATIBLE_NO_RECOVERY
COMPLEX_VIEW_MERGING	DB_BLOCK_CHECKPOINT_BATCH
DB_BLOCK_LRU_EXTENDED_STATISTICS	DB_BLOCK_LRU_STATISTICS
DB_FILE_SIMULTANEOUS_WRITES	DELAYED_LOGGING_BLOCK_CLEANOUTS
DISCRETE_TRANSACTIONS_ENABLED	DISTRIBUTED_LOCK_TIMEOUT
DISTRIBUTED_RECOVERY_CONNECTION_HOLD_TIME	FAST_FULL_SCAN_ENABLED
FREEZE_DB_FOR_FAST_INSTANCE_RECOVERY	GC_LATCHES
GC_LCK_PROCS	JOB_QUEUE_KEEP_CONNECTIONS
LARGE_POOL_MIN_ALLOC	LGWR_IO_SLAVES
LOCK_SGA_AREAS	LOG_ARCHIVE_BUFFER_SIZE
LOG_ARCHIVE_BUFFERS	LOG_BLOCK_CHECKSUM
LOG_FILES	LOG_SIMULTANEOUS_COPIES
LOG_SMALL_ENTRY_MAX_SIZE	MAX_TRANSACTION_BRANCHES
MTS_LISTENER_ADDRESS	MTS_MULTIPLE_LISTENERS
MTS_RATE_LOG_SIZE	MTS_RATE_SCALE
MTS_SERVICE	OGMS_HOME
OPS_ADMIN_GROUP	PARALLEL_DEFAULT_MAX_INSTANCES
PARALLEL_MIN_MESSAGE_POOL	PARALLEL_SERVER_IDLE_TIME
PARALLEL_TRANSACTION_RESOURCE_TIMEOUT	PUSH_JOIN_PREDICATE
REDUCE_ALARM	ROW_CACHE_CURSORS
SEQUENCE_CACHE_ENTRIES	SEQUENCE_CACHE_HASH_BUCKETS
SHARED_POOL_RESERVED_MIN_ALLOC	SNAPSHOT_REFRESH_KEEP_CONNECTIONS
SNAPSHOT_REFRESH_PROCESSES	SORT_DIRECT_WRITES
SORT_READ_FAC	SORT_SPACEMAP_SIZE
SORT_WRITE_BUFFER_SIZE	SORT_WRITE_BUFFERS
SPIN_COUNT	TEMPORARY_TABLE_LOCKS
TEXT_ENABLE	USE_ISM

Compatibility Issues with Initialization Parameters

The lists of new, changed, and obsolete initialization parameters earlier in this chapter show differences in initialization parameters across different releases of Oracle. However, certain initialization parameter changes require special attention because they may raise compatibility issues for your database. These parameter changes are described in this section.

New Default Value for LOG_CHECKPOINT_TIMEOUT

Starting in release 8.1.5, the LOG_CHECKPOINT_TIMEOUT initialization parameter has a new default value. In previous releases, the default value was zero seconds, but in release 8.1.5 and higher, the default value is 1800 seconds. See Oracle8i Reference for more information.

Data Dictionary Protection

O7_DICTIONARY_ACCESSIBILITY is the initialization parameter switch that continues Oracle7 data dictionary behavior. It is only a temporary expedient and is not planned for future Oracle8i releases.

The DML_LOCKS Parameter

Oracle8i systems typically consume more DML locks while performing DDL operations than are required for Oracle7 systems. Nevertheless, the Oracle7 DML_LOCKS parameter default settings usually are adequate for Oracle8i systems, even for DML-intensive applications.

The default value of DML_LOCKS is a multiple of the number of transactions, which is calculated from the number of rollback segments. However, in Oracle8i fewer transactions are used per rollback segment than are used in Oracle7. Consequently, DML_LOCKS has a lower default value in Oracle8i. Under some extreme test conditions, an Oracle8i system exceeded its (Oracle7) DML lock limit, and the DML_LOCKS parameter value had to be increased.

Also, you may need to adjust the TRANSACTION_PER_ROLLBACK_SEGMENT parameter setting, depending on the operating-system specific settings. An informational message about this change may be displayed during database startup operations.

The DB_DOMAIN Parameter

Beginning with release 8.1, if the DB_DOMAIN initialization parameter is unset, it is set to NULL by default. In prior releases of Oracle, the default setting was the following:

.WORLD

A NULL setting for DB_DOMAIN may cause database connection problems in some environments. Before you migrate or upgrade to release 8.1, make sure the DB_DOMAIN parameter in your initsid.ora file is set to one of the following:

• .WORLD

• a valid domain setting for your environment

If DB_DOMAIN is not set in your current database, set it to .WORLD before you migrate or upgrade to release 8.1.

If DB_DOMAIN is set to a valid domain for your environment in your current database, retain the setting in your initsid.ora file when you migrate or upgrade to release 8.1.

Parallel Execution Allocated from Large Pool

Starting with release 8.1, parallel execution message buffers are allocated from the large pool whenever PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING, a new initialization parameter, is set to TRUE. In past releases, this allocation was from the shared pool. If you are migrating or upgrading to release 8.1 and you choose to set PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING to TRUE, you can avoid problems by modifying the settings for the following initialization parameters:

• SHARED_POOL_SIZE

• LARGE_POOL_SIZE

Typically, you should reduce the setting for SHARED_POOL_SIZE and raise the setting for LARGE_POOL_SIZE to avoid problems. Alternatively, you can reduce the setting for SHARED_POOL_SIZE and let Oracle calculate the setting for LARGE_POOL_SIZE. Oracle calculates a default LARGE_POOL_SIZE only if PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING is set to TRUE and LARGE_POOL_SIZE is unset.

The calculation is based on the settings for the following initialization parameters:

• PARALLEL_MAX_SERVERS

• PARALLEL_THREADS_PER_CPU

• PARALLEL_SERVER_INSTANCES

• MTS_DISPATCHERS

• DBWR_IO_SLAVES

If PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING is unset or set to FALSE, and if LARGE_POOL_SIZE is unset, the value for LARGE_POOL_SIZE defaults to zero.

Note: When PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING is set to TRUE, the new behavior applies even if your COMPATIBLE parameter is set below 8.1.0.

See Also: Oracle8i Reference and Oracle8i Tuning for more information about other effects of the PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING initialization parameter.

The following scenarios illustrate the behavior that results from various initialization parameter settings when you migrate or upgrade to release 8.1.

Retaining Parameter Settings without Modifications

You do not alter the parameters from their previous settings:

Table B-4 Retaining Parameter Settings without Modifications

Parameter	Setting
PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING	Unset (defaults to FALSE).
SHARED_POOL_SIZE	Set to a large value, including the space required for parallel execution.
LARGE_POOL_SIZE	Unset (defaults to zero).

These settings are the most common scenario. In this case, you already have accounted for the space required for parallel execution in the shared pool.

Using PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING

You alter the parameters from their previous settings to the following settings:

Table B-5 Using PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING

Parameter	Setting
PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING	Set to TRUE.
SHARED_POOL_SIZE	Set to a small value that accounts for all clients except parallel execution.
LARGE_POOL_SIZE	Unset (defaults to a large value that includes the space required for parallel execution).

In this case, parallel execution allocates buffers from the large pool based on Oracle's automatic calculation. Buffer allocation is more efficient, and failures to allocate are isolated from the clients of the shared pool.

Using PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING and Setting LARGE_POOL_SIZE

You alter the parameters from their previous settings to the following settings:

Table B-6 Using PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING and Setting LARGE_POOL

Parameter	Setting
PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING	Set to TRUE.
SHARED_POOL_SIZE	Set to a small value that accounts for all clients except parallel execution.
LARGE_POOL_SIZE	Set to a value that includes the space required for parallel execution.

In this case, parallel execution allocates buffers from the large pool. After initial testing with LARGE_POOL_SIZE unset, you determined that the default calculation for LARGE_POOL_SIZE did not reflect your requirements for the large pool. Therefore, you decided to set LARGE_POOL_SIZE manually. After you set LARGE_POOL_SIZE properly, buffer allocation is more efficient, and failures to allocate are isolated from the clients of the shared pool.

Using PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING without Modifying SHARED_POOL_SIZE

You alter the parameters from their previous settings to the following settings:

Table B-7 Using PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING without Modifying SHARED_POOL_SIZE

Parameter	Setting
PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING	Set to TRUE.
SHARED_POOL_SIZE	Set to a large value, including the space required for parallel execution.
LARGE_POOL_SIZE	Unset (defaults to a large value that includes the space required for parallel execution).

In this case, parallel execution allocates buffers from the large pool, but because you did not modify SHARED_POOL_SIZE, it is likely that the SGA will be unnecessarily large, causing performance problems. Therefore, avoid setting PARALLEL_AUTOMATIC_TUNING to TRUE without modifying the settings of SHARED_POOL_SIZE and LARGE_POOL_SIZE appropriately.

Archive Log Destination Parameters

Release 8.1 supports new archive log destination parameters. After you migrate or upgrade to release 8.1, you can dynamically convert from the old pre-release 8.1 parameters (LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST and LOG_ARCHIVE_DUPLEX_DEST) to the new release 8.1 parameters (LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_n and LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_STATE_n). You also can dynamically revert to the old parameters.

Changing to the New Archive Log Destination Parameters

After you determine the new archive destinations, associated states, and options, complete the following steps to change from the old archive log destination parameters to the new ones:

1. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST to 1.

2. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set LOG_ARCHIVE_DUPLEX_DEST to NULL.

3. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST to NULL.

4. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set any LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_STATE_n parameters to "defer" or "enable" as required. Although enable is the default, Oracle Corporation recommends that you set a state for each destination explicitly.

5. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set at least one LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_n parameter to a value specifying a local destination.

6. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set other LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_n parameters as required.

7. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST to the required value.

For example, assume there are the following two destinations:

• /oracle/dbs/arclog

• /backup/dbs/arclog

Both destinations are mandatory (minimum succeed destination count is 2). The new destinations are the following:

• /oracle/dbs/arclog (local)

• stndby1 (a standby database)

• /backup/dbs/arclog

• /backup2/dbs/arclog

The first destination, the standby destination, and either of the backup destinations are mandatory (minimum succeed destination count is 3).

With these assumptions, issue the following SQL statements to change your old archive log destination parameters to the new ones:

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST = 1; 

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DUPLEX_DEST = ' '; 

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST = ' '; 

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_STATE_1 = 'enable'; 
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_STATE_2 = 'enable'; 
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_STATE_3 = 'enable'; 
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_STATE_4 = 'enable'; 

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_1 = 'LOCATION=/oracle/dbs/arclog MANDATORY';
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_2 = 'SERVICE=stndby1 MANDATORY'; 
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_3 = 'LOCATION=/backup/dbs/arclog OPTIONAL'; 
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_4 = 'LOCATION=/backup2/dbs/arclog OPTIONAL'; 
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST = 3; 

Changing Back to the Old Archive Log Destination Parameters

Complete the following steps to change back to the old archive log destination parameters:

1. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST to 1.

2. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set all LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_n parameters to NULL.

3. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set the LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST parameter to a value specifying a local destination.

4. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set the LOG_ARCHIVE_DUPLEX_DEST parameter as required.

5. Use ALTER SYSTEM to set LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST to the required value.

For example, assume there are the following two destinations:

• /oracle/dbs/arclog (LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_1)

• /backup/dbs/arclog (LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_4)

Both destinations are mandatory. The new destinations and minimum succeed count are the same.

With these assumptions, issue the following SQL statements to change your new archive log destination parameters to the old ones:

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST = 1; 

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_4 = ' '; 
ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST_1 = ' ';

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DEST = '/oracle/dbs/arclog'; 

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_DUPLEX_DEST = '/backup/dbs/arclog'; 

ALTER SYSTEM SET LOG_ARCHIVE_MIN_SUCCEED_DEST = 2; 

Note: If you plan to downgrade from release 8.1 to release 8.0, you should change back to the old archive log destination parameters by replacing the new parameters with the old ones in your initsid.ora file. Do not use the dynamic method if you are downgrading.

Possible Errors During the Transition in Parameters

When you follow the procedures described previously in this section for changing your archive destination parameters, you may encounter the following error messages in your log files if archiving is enabled:

• In the Alert log - "Archiving not possible: No available destinations"

• In the Trace log - "ARCH: INCOMPLETE, no available destinations"

You will not encounter these errors if archiving is disabled. The errors may occur during the procedure when there are no valid archive destinations. However, when the transition in parameters is complete, the errors should cease. You should not disable archiving during the transition to avoid these errors.

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