4
Configuring the PL/SQL Gateway

The PL/SQL Gateway provides a Web page for configuring Database Access Descriptors (DADs). A DAD is a set of values that specify how the PL/SQL Gateway connects to a database server to fulfill an HTTP request.

4.1 Global Settings

Access the Gateway Configuration Menu at:

http://<hostname>:<port>/pls/admin_/gateway.htm


From this page, access the Global Settings page by clicking the Gateway Global Settings link. Or access the Global Settings page directly at:

http://<hostname>:<port>/pls/admin_/globalsettings.htm

The Global Settings page is shown below.

Table 4-1 Global Setting through the Gateway Configuration Page

Global Setting	Description
Default Database Access Descriptor (DAD)	Specifies a path that points to the default DAD. If the end user enters a URL without specifying the DAD name, the home page for the default DAD is displayed. Default = none Change the DAD name by typing a new one in this field.

4.1.1 Global Setting Accessible through the Configuration File

Access the following settings through the wdbsvr.app configuration file (not through the Gateway Configuration page). This configuration file describes settings for the PL/SQL Gateway module. For UNIX it is located at:

<ORACLE_HOME>/Apache/modplsql/cfg/wdbsvr.app

For NT, it is located at:

<ORACLE_HOME>\Apache\modplsql\cfg\wdbsvr.app

where <ORACLE_HOME> is the location of your Oracle9i Application Server installation.

Table 4-2 Global Settings in the Configuration File

Global Settings	Description
Administrators (administrators)	Specifies who can view the admin pages. By default, this is set to ALL. Change this to a comma separated list of users to enforce security on the admin pages. For example scott, mike where scott and mike are local database user names. Or, scott, mike@orcl where orcl is a connect string for a remote database. Refer to "Protecting the Administration pages" for more information.
Admin Path (adminPath)	Specifies the URL path element that identifies an admin page. Usually this is left unchanged as /admin_/.
Admin DAD (admindad)	Specifies the DAD to authenticate the user who can view the admin pages. Refer to "Protecting the Administration pages" for more information.

4.2 Database Access Descriptor settings

You can access the Database Access Descriptor Settings page from the Gateway Database Access Descriptor Settings link on the Gateway Configuration Menu page, or directly at:

http://<hostname>:<port>/pls/admin_/dadentries.htm

A section of the Database Access Descriptor Settings page is shown below.

Table 4-3 DAD Settings through the Gateway Configuration Page

DAD Settings	Description
Database Access Descriptor Name	Displays the name for this DAD. The name is set at installation or during the creation of new web sites. Change the name by typing a new one in this field.
Oracle User Name	Displays the Oracle database account user name. The user name is typically set at installation or during the creation of new web sites. Change it by typing a new name in this field.
Oracle Password	Displays the Oracle database account password. The password is typically set at installation, but you can change it by typing a new password in this field. Note: The Oracle User Name and Password are the default user name and password for logging in to a Web site or page. If you leave the Oracle User Name and Oracle Password fields blank, the user is prompted to enter a user name and password when first logging in.
Oracle Connect String	Enter a Net8 alias if you are using a remote database. Leave this field blank if the database is local.
Authentication Mode	This parameter can be set to one of the following values: Basic - authentication is performed using Basic HTTP Authentication. Most applications use Basic Authentication. Global Owa - authorization id performed in the OWA package schema. Custom Owa - authorization is performed using packages and procedures in the user's schema, or if not found, in the OWA package schema PerPackage - authentication is performed using packages and procedures in the user's schema Single Sign-On - authentication is performed using the Oracle Single Sign-On feature of the Login Server. Use this mode only if your application is set up to work with the Login Server.
Session Cookie Name	Enter a session cookie name only for Oracle Portal 3.X installations that participate in a distributed environment.
Create a Stateful Session?	Choose Yes to preserve the database package/session state for each database request. Choose No to reset it after each request. For the PL/SQL Gateway, this parameter must be set to No.
Keep Database Connection Open Between Requests?	Choose whether, after processing one URL request, the database connection stays open to process future requests. In most configurations, choose Yes for maximum performance. The PL/SQL Gateway cleanup thread cleans up database sessions that have not been used for 15 minutes.
Default (Home) Page	Enter the PL/SQL procedure that is invoked when one is not specified as part of the URL. For example, if you specify a default home page of myapp.home and an end user enters this URL in a browser: http://myapp.myserver.com:2000/pls/myapp/ It automatically updates the URL to: http://myapp.myserver.com:2000/pls/ myapp/myapp.home
Document Table	Enter the name of the database table where files uploaded through a web browser will be stored. Refer to "File Upload and Download" for more information.
Document Access Path	Enter a path in the URL installation that is used to indicate a document is being referenced. In the following URL, for example: http://myapp.myserver.com:2000/pls/my_site/ docs/folder1/presentation.htm docs is the document access path.
Document Access Procedure	Enter the procedure for uploading and downloading documents.
Extensions to be Uploaded as LONGRAW	Specify extensions for files to be uploaded as LONGRAW.
Path Alias	To be used by PL/SQL applications for path aliasing. WebDB 2.X Note: Leave this field blank if the DAD is for an existing WebDB 2.x Web site. Refer to "Path Aliasing (Direct Access URLs)" for more information.
Path Alias Procedure	To be used by PL/SQL applications for path aliasing. WebDB 2.X Note: Leave this field blank if the DAD is for an existing WebDB 2.x Web site. Refer to "Path Aliasing (Direct Access URLs)" for more information

4.2.1 DAD Settings Accessible through the Configuration File

Access the following settings through the wdbsvr.app configuration file (not through the Gateway Configuration page). This configuration file describes settings for the PL/SQL Gateway module. For UNIX it is located at:

<ORACLE_HOME>/Apache/modplsql/cfg/wdbsvr.app

For NT, it is located at:

<ORACLE_HOME>\Apache\modplsql\cfg\wdbsvr.app

where <ORACLE_HOME> is the location of your Oracle9i Application Server installation.

.

Table 4-4 DAD Settings in the Configuration File

DAD Settings	Description
Environment List (cgi_env_list)	Specifies overriding and/or new CGI environment variables. This is a comma separated list of name and value pairs of environment variables to be added or overridden. Refer to "Overriding CGI Environment Variables".
Exclusion List (exclusion_list)	Specifies the procedures/packages/schema names which are forbidden to be directly executed from a browser. This is a comma separated list in which each string in the list is case insensitive and can accept wildcards. If this parameter is not specified, the default procedures are used. Refer to "Protecting the PL/SQL Procedures Granted to PUBLIC" for examples.
Response Array Size (response_array_size)	Specifies the number of rows of content to fetch from the database for each trip. This performance tuning parameter can affect the response time of each request. For large generated pages, setting this parameter higher can decrease the number of trips to the database to fetch the content. However, the memory usage increases. The minimum is 28 rows. The default is 128 rows.

4.3 Cache settings

Access the Cache Settings page from the Cache Settings link on the Gateway Configuration Menu page, or directly at:

http://<hostname>:<port>/pls/admin_/cache.htm

This page is split into two subsections for the two types of caching: PL/SQL caching and Session Cookie caching.

A section of the Cache Settings page is shown below.

4.3.1 PL/SQL Caching

Table 4-5 PL/SQL Cache Settings

PL/SQL Cache Settings	Description
Enable PL/SQL Caching	Yes enables PL/SQL caching for maximum performance. Choose No if there are problems relating to this feature.
Cache Directory	Enter a directory that PL/SQL caching uses to store cached content files. Note: Ensure that this directory exists and has permissions that allow the PL/SQL Gateway to read and write files to and from it.
Total Cache Size (in bytes)	Specifies the total amount of disk space PL/SQL caching can use. Note: This is setting is not a hard limit. The cache may exceed this limit temporarily.
Maximum Cacheable File Size (in bytes)	Specifies the maximum size for all cached files. Any dynamically generated content that exceeds this limit is not cached.
Total Cleanup Limit Size (in bytes)	Specifies the total size of the cache to maintain after the cleanup has occurred. This ensures that frequently accessed contents stay in the cache after cleanup is over.
Cleanup Interval (in seconds)	Specifies the number of seconds the cleanup takes. A high number improves performance, but total cache size may be exceeded. A low number decreases performance, but total cache size is not exceeded.

4.3.2 Session Cookie Caching

Table 4-6 Session Cookie Cache Settings

Session Cookie Cache Settings	Description
Enable PL/SQL Caching	Choose Yes to enable session cookie caching for maximum performance. Choose No if there are problems relating to this feature.
Cache Directory	Enter a directory that session cookie caching uses to store cached content files. Note: Ensure that this directory exists and has permissions that allow the PL/SQL Gateway to read and write files to and from it.
Total Cache Size (in bytes)	Specifies the total amount of disk space session cookie caching can use. Note: This is setting is not a hard limit. The cache may exceed this limit temporarily.
Total Cleanup Limit Size (in bytes)	Specifies the total size of the cache to maintain after the cleanup has occurred. This ensures that frequently accessed contents stay in the cache after cleanup is over.
Cleanup Interval (in seconds)	Specifies the number of seconds the cleanup takes. A high number improves performance, but total cache size may be exceeded. A low number decreases performance, but total cache size is not exceeded.