This chapter describes the tasks that you must complete before you start Oracle Universal Installer. It includes information about the following tasks:
Before you install the Oracle software, you must complete several tasks as the root
user. To log in as the root
user, complete the following procedure:
Log in to the system as a user that is a member of the admin
group.
Start a local terminal session (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal
).
If you are not logged in as the root
user, enter the following command to start a shell session with root
privileges:
$ sudo sh
When prompted, enter your password.
The system must meet the following minimum hardware requirements:
512 MB of physical RAM.
The following table describes the relationship between installed RAM and the configured swap space requirement.
Available RAM | Swap Space Required |
---|---|
Up to 512 MB | 2 times the size of RAM |
Between 513 MB and 726 MB | 1.5 times the size of RAM |
More than 726 MB | 0.75 times the size of RAM |
The minimum client install TMP
space required is 115 MB. The minimum disk space requirement in the /tmp
directory depends on the installation type you select. The following table lists the minimum disk space requirements for the /tmp
directory in each type of installation.
Client Installation Type | Disk Space Required for the /tmp Directory (MB) |
---|---|
Administrator | 850 |
Runtime | 470 |
Custom (all components selected) | 780 |
Instant | 150 |
Between 34 MB and 820 MB of disk space for the Oracle software, depending on the installation type.
To ensure that the system meets these requirements, follow these steps:
To determine the physical RAM size, use System Profiler (/Applications/Utilities/System Profiler
) or enter the following command:
# /usr/sbin/system_profiler SPHardwareDataType | grep Memory
If the size of the physical RAM is less than the required size, then you must install more memory before continuing.
To determine the size of the configured swap space, enter the following command:
# df -h /
Note:
Mac OS X dynamically creates swap files as required in/private/var/vm
directory. Ensure that you have at least 512 MB of available disk space on the root (/
) file system to accommodate newly created swap files.To determine the amount of disk space available in the /tmp
directory, enter the following command:
# df -k /tmp
To determine the amount of free disk space on the system, enter the following command:
# df -h
The following table shows the approximate disk space requirements for software files for each installation type:
Installation Type | Requirement for Software Files (MB) |
---|---|
Administrator | 870 |
Instant Client | 130 |
Runtime | 495 |
Custom (maximum) | 790 |
Note:
If you want to configure only the Instant Client Light component of Instant Client, you need 34 MB of disk space to store the related files. To configure Instant Client Light, refer to Configuring Instant Client LightTo determine whether the system architecture can run the software, enter the following command:
# uname -p
Note:
This command displays the processor type. The command output must bei386
. If you do not see the expected output, then you cannot install the software on this system.Depending on the products that you intend to install, verify that the following software is installed on the system. The procedure following the table describes how to verify whether these requirements are addressed.
Item | Requirement |
---|---|
Operating system | Apple Mac OS X Server 10.5.4 |
Tools |
|
Pro*C/C++, Oracle Call Interface, Oracle C++ Call Interface | The version of the GNU C and C++ compiler listed previously is supported for use with these products. |
Oracle JDBC/OCI Drivers | You must use the following JDK version with the Oracle JDBC/OCI drivers:
|
See Also:
If you plan to use GNU Compiler Collection as the primary compiler, then refer to Oracle Database Installation Guide for Apple Mac OS X (Intel) for instructions on configuring the primary compiler.To ensure that the system meets these requirements:
To determine the operating system version, enter the following command:
# sw_vers
The output of this command must be similar to the following:
ProductName: Mac OS X Server ProductVersion: 10.5.4 BuildVersion: 9E17
Note:
Only the versions listed in the previous table are supported. Do not install the software on other versions of Apple Mac OS X.To determine whether the required version of gcc is installed, enter the following command:
# gcc -v
This command returns output similar to the following:
Using built-in specs. Target: i686-apple-darwin9 Configured with: /var/tmp/gcc/gcc-5465~16/src/configure --disable-checking -enable-werror --prefix=/usr --mandir=/share/man --enable-languages=c,objc,c++,obj-c++ --program-transform-name=/^[cg][^.-]*$/s/$/-4.0/ --with-gxx-include-dir=/include/c++/4.0.0 --with-slibdir=/usr/lib --build=i686-apple-darwin9 --with-arch=apple --with-tune=generic --host=i686-apple-darwin9 --target=i686-apple-darwin9 Thread model: posix gcc version 4.0.1 (Apple Inc. build 5465)
If the required version (including the date and build number) or a later version is not installed, download and install Xcode 3.0 or later. You can download this software from the Apple Developer Connection Web site:
http://connect.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/MemberSite
After you log in, choose Download Software, then Developer Tools to display the download page.
In addition to the requirements described in the preceding section, if you plan to use Instant Client Light, then your applications must use the following languages and character sets:
Language: US English
Territory: Any territory that is supported by Oracle
Character sets:
The language, territory, and character sets are determined by the NLS_LANG
environment variable.
Depending on whether this is the first time Oracle software is being installed on this system and on the products that you are installing, you may need to create the following operating system group and user:
The Oracle Inventory group (typically, oinstall
)
You must create this group the first time you install Oracle software on the system. The usual name chosen for this group is oinstall
. This group owns the Oracle inventory, which is a catalog of all Oracle software installed on the system.
Note:
If Oracle software is already installed on the system, then the existing Oracle Inventory group must be the primary group of the operating system user that you use to install new Oracle software.The Oracle software owner user (typically, oracle
)
You must create this user the first time you install Oracle software on the system. This user owns all of the software installed during the installation. This user must have the Oracle Inventory group as its primary group.
Note:
In Oracle documentation, this user is referred to as theoracle
user.A single Oracle Inventory group is required for all installations of Oracle software on the system. After the first installation of Oracle software, you must use the same Oracle Inventory group for all subsequent Oracle software installations on that system. However, you can choose to create different Oracle software owner users for separate installations.
Note:
The following sections describe how to create local users and groups. As an alternative to creating local users and groups, you could create the appropriate users and groups in a directory service, for example, Network Information Services (NIS). For information about using directory services, contact your system administrator or refer to your operating system documentation.The following sections describe how to create the required operating system users and groups:
You must create the Oracle Inventory group if it does not exist. The following subsections describe how to determine the Oracle Inventory group name, if it exists, and how to create it if necessary.
Determining Whether the Oracle Inventory Group Exists
When you install Oracle software on the system for the first time, Oracle Universal Installer creates the oraInst.loc
file. This file identifies the name of the Oracle Inventory group and the path of the Oracle Inventory directory.
To determine whether the Oracle Inventory group exists, enter the following command:
# more /var/opt/oracle/oraInst.loc
If the output of this command shows the oinstall
group name, then the group exists.
If the oraInst.loc
file exists, then the output from this command is similar to the following:
inventory_loc=/u01/app/oracle/oraInventory inst_group=oinstall
The inst_group
parameter shows the name of the Oracle Inventory group, oinstall
.
Creating the Oracle Inventory Group
If the oraInst.loc
file does not exist, then create the Oracle Inventory group by using one of the following methods:
Use Workgroup Manager (/Applications/Server/Workgroup Manager
) to create a group called oinstall
.
Use command-line utilities to create the Oracle Inventory group:
Enter the following command to list existing groups and group IDs (GIDs):
# dscl . -list /groups gid name | more
Identify an unused GID for the Oracle Inventory group.
Enter commands similar to the following to create the oinstall
group:
# dscl . -create /groups/oinstall # dscl . -append /groups/oinstall gid gid_number # dscl . -append /groups/oinstall passwd "*"
You must create an Oracle software owner user in the following circumstances:
If an Oracle software owner user does not exist, for example, if this is the first installation of Oracle software on the system
If an Oracle software owner user exists, but you want to use a different operating system user
To determine whether an Oracle software owner user named oracle
exists, enter the following command:
# id oracle
If the oracle
user exists, then the output from this command is similar to the following:
uid=440(oracle) gid=200(oinstall) groups=201(dba),202(oper)
If the user exists, then determine whether you want to use the existing user or create another oracle
user. If you want to use the existing user, then ensure that the user's primary group is the Oracle Inventory group. Refer to the following sections for more information:
Note:
If necessary, contact your system administrator before using or modifying an existing user.If you want to use the existing Oracle software owner user, and the user's primary group is the Oracle Inventory group, then refer to "Identifying Required Software Directories".
To modify an existing user, refer to "Modifying an Oracle Software Owner User".
To create a user, refer to the following section.
If the Oracle software owner user does not exist or if you require another Oracle software owner user, then create it as follows. In the following procedure, use the user name oracle
unless a user with the same name exists.
Use Workgroup Manager to create a user with the following properties:
Property | Recommended Value |
---|---|
Name | Oracle Software Owner |
Short name | oracle |
Password | Specify and verify a password for the oracle user |
Primary group | oinstall |
Default shell | Any supported shell, for example /bin/tcsh or /bin/bash |
Home directory | A home directory consistent with other user home directories, for example /Users/oracle |
Use command-line utilities to create the Oracle software owner user:
Enter the following command to list existing users and user IDs (UIDs):
# dscl . -list /users uid name | more
Identify an unused UID for the Oracle software owner user.
Enter commands similar to the following to create the oracle user:
# dscl . -create /users/oracle # dscl . -append /users/oracle uid uid_number # dscl . -append /users/oracle gid oinstall_gid # dscl . -append /users/oracle shell /bin/bash # dscl . -append /users/oracle home /Users/oracle # dscl . -append /users/oracle realname "Oracle software owner"
Create the home directory for the oracle
user and change the owner and group on that directory:
# mkdir /Users/oracle # chown oracle:oinstall /Users/oracle
Set the password for the oracle
user:
# passwd oracle
Refer to "Identifying Required Software Directories" to continue.
If the oracle
user exists, but its primary group is not oinstall
, then use one of the following methods to modify it:
Use Workgroup Manager to modify the oracle
user, specifying oinstall
as the Primary group.
Use command-line utilities to modify the oracle
user:
Enter the following command to determine the GID of the oinstall
group:
# dscl . -list /groups/oinstall gid name | more
Enter the following command to change the GID of the oracle
user to the GID of the oinstall
group:
# dscl . -delete /users/oracle gid # dscl . -append /users/oracle gid oinstall_gid
You must identify or create the following directories for the Oracle software:
The Oracle base directory is a top-level directory for Oracle software installations. It is analogous to the C:\Oracle
directory used for Oracle software installations on Microsoft Windows systems. On Apple Mac OS X (Intel) systems, the Optimal Flexible Architecture (OFA) guidelines recommend that you use a path similar to the following for the Oracle base directory:
/mount_point/app/oracle_sw_owner
mount_point
is the mount point directory for the file system that contains the Oracle software.
The examples in this guide use /u01
for the mount point directory. However, you could choose another mount point directory, such as /oracle
or /opt/oracle
.
oracle_sw_owner
is the operating system user name of the Oracle software owner, for example oracle
.
You can use the same Oracle base directory for multiple installations or you can create separate Oracle base directories for different installations. If different operating system users install Oracle software on the same system, then each user must create a separate Oracle base directory. The following example Oracle base directories could all exist on the same system:
/u01/app/oracle /u01/app/orauser /opt/oracle/app/oracle
The following sections describe how to identify existing Oracle base directories that may be suitable for your installation and how to create an Oracle base directory if necessary.
Regardless of whether you create an Oracle base directory or decide to use an existing one, you must set the ORACLE_BASE
environment variable to specify the full path to this directory.
The Oracle Inventory directory (oraInventory
) stores an inventory of all software installed on the system. It is required by, and shared by, all Oracle software installations on a single system. The first time you install Oracle software on a system, Oracle Universal Installer prompts you to specify the path to this directory. Oracle recommends that you choose the following path:
oracle_base/oraInventory
Oracle Universal Installer creates the directory that you specify and sets the correct owner, group, and permissions for it. You must not create it.
Note:
All Oracle software installations rely on this directory. Ensure that you back it up regularly.Do not delete this directory unless you have completely removed all Oracle software from the system.
The Oracle home directory is the directory where you choose to install the software for a particular Oracle product. You must install different Oracle products, or different releases of the same Oracle product, in separate Oracle home directories. When you run Oracle Universal Installer, it prompts you to specify the path to this directory, and a name that identifies it. The directory that you specify must be a subdirectory of the Oracle base directory. Oracle recommends that you specify a path similar to the following for the Oracle home directory:
oracle_base/product/10.2.0/client_1
Oracle Universal Installer creates the directory path that you specify under the Oracle base directory. It also sets the correct owner, group, and permissions on it. You must not create this directory.
Caution:
During installation, you must not specify an existing directory that has predefined permissions applied to it as the Oracle home directory. If you do, then you may experience installation failure due to file and group ownership permission errors.Before starting the installation, you must either identify an existing Oracle base directory or if required, create one. This section contains information about the following:
Note:
You can create an Oracle base directory, even if other Oracle base directories exist on the system.Existing Oracle base directories may not have paths that follow OFA guidelines. However, if you identify an existing Oracle Inventory directory or existing Oracle home directories, then you can usually identify the Oracle base directories, as follows:
Identifying an existing Oracle Inventory directory
Enter the following command to view the contents of the oraInst.loc
file:
# more /var/opt/oracle/oraInst.loc
If the oraInst.loc
file exists, then the output from this command is similar to the following:
inventory_loc=/u01/app/oracle/oraInventory inst_group=oinstall
The inventory_loc
parameter identifies the Oracle Inventory directory (oraInventory
). The parent directory of the oraInventory
directory is typically an Oracle base directory. In the previous example, /u01/app/oracle
is an Oracle base directory.
Identifying existing Oracle home directories
Enter the following command to view the contents of the oratab
file:
# more /etc/oratab
If the oratab
file exists, then it contains lines similar to the following:
*:/u03/app/oracle/product/10.2.0/db_1:N *:/opt/orauser/infra_904:N *:/oracle/9.2.0:N
The directory paths specified on each line identify Oracle home directories. Directory paths that end with the user name of the Oracle software owner are valid choices for an Oracle base directory. If you intend to use the oracle
user to install the software, then you could choose one of the following directories from the previous example:
/u03/app/oracle /oracle
Note:
If possible, choose a directory path similar to the first (/u03/app/oracle
). This path complies with the OFA guidelines.To continue:
If an Oracle base directory exists and you want to use it, then refer to the "Configuring the oracle User's Environment" section.
When you configure the oracle
user's environment later in this chapter, set the ORACLE_BASE
environment variable to specify the directory you chose.
If an Oracle base directory does not exist on the system or if you want to create an Oracle base directory, then refer to the following section.
Before you create an Oracle base directory, you must identify an appropriate file system with disk space
To identify an appropriate file system:
Use the df -
h
command to determine the free disk space on each mounted file system.
From the display, identify a file system that has appropriate free space.
Note the name of the mount point directory for the file system that you identified.
To create the Oracle base directory and specify the correct owner, group, and permissions for it:
Enter commands similar to the following to create the recommended subdirectories in the mount point directory that you identified and set the appropriate owner, group, and permissions on them:
# mkdir -p /mount_point/app/oracle_sw_owner # chown -R oracle:oinstall /mount_point/app/oracle_sw_owner # chmod -R 775 /mount_point/app/oracle_sw_owner
For example, if the mount point you identify is /u01
and oracle
is the user name of the Oracle software owner, then the recommended Oracle base directory path is as follows:
/u01/app/oracle
When you configure the oracle
user's environment later in this chapter, set the ORACLE_BASE
environment variable to specify the Oracle base directory that you have created.
You run Oracle Universal Installer from the oracle
account. However, before you start Oracle Universal Installer you must configure the environment of the oracle
user. To configure the environment, you must:
To set the oracle
user's environment:
Start a new terminal session.
If you are not logged in to the system where you want to install the software, then log in to that system as the oracle
user.
If you are not logged in as the oracle
user, then switch user to oracle
:
$ su - oracle
To determine the default shell for the oracle
user, enter the following command:
$ echo $SHELL
Open the oracle
user's shell startup file in any text editor:
Bourne shell (sh
), Bash shell (bash
), or Korn shell (ksh
):
$ vi .bash_profile
Note:
If theoracle
user's shell is the Bash shell, open the .bash_profile
file, if it exists.C shell (csh
or tcsh
):
% vi .login
Enter or edit the following line, specifying a value of 022 for the default file mode creation mask:
umask 022
If the ORACLE_SID
, ORACLE_HOME
, or ORACLE_BASE
environment variable is set in the file, then remove the appropriate lines from the file.
Save the file, and exit from the editor.
To run the shell startup script, enter one of the following commands:
Bash shell:
$ . ./.bash_profile
Bourne or Korn shell:
$ . ./.profile
C shell:
% source ./.login
If you determined that the /tmp
directory has less than 400 MB of free disk space, then identify a file system with at least 400 MB of free space and set the TMP
and TMPDIR
environment variables to specify a temporary directory on this file system:
Use the df -h
command to identify a suitable file system with sufficient free space.
If necessary, enter commands similar to the following to create a temporary directory on the file system that you identified, and set the appropriate permissions on the directory:
$ sudo mkdir /mount_point/tmp $ sudo chmod a+wr /mount_point/tmp
Enter commands similar to the following to set the TEMP
and TMPDIR
environment variables:
Bourne, Bash, or Korn shell:
$ TEMP=/mount_point/tmp $ TMPDIR=/mount_point/tmp $ export TEMP TMPDIR
C shell:
% setenv TEMP /mount_point/tmp % setenv TMPDIR /mount_point/tmp
Enter commands similar to the following to set the ORACLE_BASE
environment variable:
Bourne, Bash, or Korn shell:
$ ORACLE_BASE=/u01/app/oracle $ export ORACLE_BASE
C shell:
% setenv ORACLE_BASE /u01/app/oracle
In these examples, /u01/app/oracle
is the Oracle base directory that you created or identified earlier.
Enter the following commands to ensure that the ORACLE_HOME
and TNS_ADMIN
environment variables are not set:
Bourne, Bash, or Korn shell:
$ unset ORACLE_HOME $ unset TNS_ADMIN
C shell:
% unsetenv ORACLE_HOME % unsetenv TNS_ADMIN
Note:
If theORACLE_HOME
environment variable is set, then Oracle Universal Installer uses the value that it specifies as the default path for the Oracle home directory. However, if you set the ORACLE_BASE
environment variable, then Oracle recommends that you unset the ORACLE_HOME
environment variable and choose the default path suggested by Oracle Universal Installer.To verify that the environment has been set correctly, enter the following commands:
$ umask $ env | more
Verify that the umask
command displays a value of 22
, 022
, or 0022
and the environment variables that you set in this section have the correct values.