Setting Up Table Sources

A table source enables users to search a table or view in a relational database.

See Also:

"Choosing Between Table and Database Sources" for a comparison of the benefits and limitations of database sources and table sources.

Database object names may be represented with a quoted identifier. A quoted identifier is case-sensitive and begins and ends with double quotation marks ("). If the database object is represented with a quoted identifier, then you must use the double quotation marks and the same case whenever you refer to that object.

When creating a table source in Oracle SES, if the table name is a quoted identifier, such as "1 (Table)", then in the Table Name field enter "1 (Table)", with the same case and double quotation marks. Similarly, if a primary key column or content column is named using a quoted identifier, then enter that name exactly as it appears in the database with double quotation marks.

See Also:

Oracle Database SQL Reference for more information about schema object names and qualifiers

The following procedures identify the basic steps for setting up a table source using the Oracle SES Administration GUI. For more information on each page, click Help.

To create a table source: 

  1. On the Home page, select the Sources secondary tab to display the Sources page.

  2. For Source Type, select Table.

  3. Click Create to display the Create Table Source page.

  4. Complete the following fields. Click Help for additional information.

    Database Information

    • Source Name: Name that you assign to this table source.

    • Database Host Name : Name or IP address of the host computer for the database.

    • TCP Port Number: Port number of Oracle Net Listener. The default port number for Oracle Database is 1521.

    • SID: System identifier or instance name of the database.

    • User Name: Database user name with SELECT access rights to the table or view.

    • Password: Password for User Name.

    • Delete Passwords After Crawl: Select to ensure that Oracle SES does not store the database schema password for this source longer than is needed to crawl the source.

    Table Information

    • Schema: Name of the database schema that owns the table or view.

    • Table Name: Name of the table or view.

    • Primary Key Column: Column or set of columns that uniquely identify each row in the table or view. For performance, the primary key must be indexed. Click Locate Table for a list of columns in the table.

    • Content Column: Column with searchable content for Oracle SES to crawl and index.

    • Content Type: Binary, plain text, or HTML.

  5. Click Create or Create & Customize.

  6. Follow the steps for crawling and indexing a source in "Getting Started Basics for the Oracle SES Administration GUI".

To customize a table source: 

  1. When creating a table source, click Create & Customize on the Create Table Source page to display the Customize Table Source page.

    or

    After creating a source, click the Edit icon on the Home - Sources page.

  2. Click the following subtabs and make the desired changes.

    • Basic Settings: Identifies the source name and schema password. Any other changes to the original settings require a new source definition.

    • Table Column Mappings: Maps columns to Oracle SES search attributes. See "Table Search Attributes".

    • Language: Identifies the default language and different column languages.

    • Display URL: Specifies the URL that users see for security reasons instead of the actual URL.

    • Authorization: Configuration of an Access Control List or an authorization manager plug-in.

  3. Click Apply.

Choosing Between Table and Database Sources

Table source types and database source types are similar, in that they both crawl database tables. Each type has its own benefits and limitations, so you should choose the one that works best for your requirements.

Note:

For performance reasons, both source types require that the KEY column be backed by an index.

Table Source Benefits 

  • Table sources do not require a specific set of columns.

  • Table sources automatically create a display URL target. You do not need to use another mechanism to display the contents.

  • Table sources do not require JDBC connection syntax.

Table Source Limitations 

  • To crawl third-party databases as a table source, you must create a view in an Oracle database on the third-party table, then create the table source on the Oracle view. Oracle SES accesses the database using database links.

  • You can specify only one table or view for each table source. To use the same table source to crawl the data from multiple tables or views, you must first create a single view that encompasses all the required data.

  • Oracle SES cannot crawl tables inside the Oracle SES database.

  • Table column mappings cannot be applied to LOB columns.

  • The following data types are supported for table sources: BLOB, CLOB, CHAR, VARCHAR, VARCHAR2.

  • If the content column has a data type of CLOB or BLOB, and selecting from a view raises an ORA-01445 error, then creating a table source based on that view raises the same error.

Database Source Benefits 

  • Database sources provide additional flexibility. The database source type uses JDBC, so you can crawl any JDBC-enabled database.

    • Database sources support any SQL query with join conditions without creating a view. In some databases, creating objects may not be feasible.

    • Database sources support crawling content pointed to by a URL stored in the ATTACHMENT_LINK column.

    • Database sources support Info source path hierarchy and Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME) types.

  • Database sources provide additional security. A database source provides security on the row level. It provides a third security option, ACLs Provided by Source, which is not available for table sources.

Database Source Limitations 

  • The base table or view cannot have text columns of type BFILE or RAW.

  • The value of the required URL column cannot be null.

Table Search Attributes

Table sources have no predefined attributes. The crawler collects attributes from columns defined during source creation. You must map the columns to the search attributes.