Oracle Database Gateway for Informix User's Guide, 11g Release 2 (11.2)

11g Release 2 (11.2)

E12066-01

Contents

List of Tables

Title and Copyright Information

Preface

- Audience

- Documentation Accessibility

- Related Documentation

- Conventions

1 Introduction

- 1.1 Overview

- 1.2 Heterogeneous Services Technology

- 1.3 Oracle Database Gateways

2 Informix Gateway Features and Restrictions

- 2.1 Using the Pass-Through Feature

- 2.2 CHAR Semantics

- 2.3 Multi-byte Character Sets Ratio Suppression

- 2.4 IPv6 Support

- 2.5 Gateway Session IDLE Timeout

- 2.6 Database Compatibility Issues for Informix

- 2.6.1 ANSI SQL Standard

- 2.6.2 Naming Rules

- 2.6.2.1 Rules for Naming Objects

- 2.6.2.2 Object Names

- 2.6.2.3 Case Sensitivity

- 2.6.3 Data Types

- 2.6.3.1 Binary, Byte and Text Literal Notation

- 2.6.3.2 Data Type Conversion

- 2.6.4 Queries

- 2.6.4.1 Row Selection

- 2.6.4.2 Empty Strings

- 2.6.4.3 Empty Bind Variables

- 2.6.5 Locking

- 2.7 Known Restrictions

- 2.7.1 Transactional Integrity

- 2.7.2 Transaction Capability

- 2.7.3 COMMIT or ROLLBACK in PL/SQL Cursor Loops Closes Open Cursors

- 2.7.4 Pass-Through Feature

- 2.7.5 Informix SMALLFLOAT and REAL Data Types

- 2.7.6 SQL Syntax

- 2.7.6.1 WHERE CURRENT OF Clause

- 2.7.6.2 CONNECT BY Clause

- 2.7.6.3 Use of NULL Keyword in SELECT Statement

- 2.7.6.4 Subqueries in INSERT Statement

- 2.7.6.5 Subqueries in DELETE, INSERT, and UPDATE Statements

- 2.7.6.6 ROWID

- 2.7.6.7 EXPLAIN PLAN Statement

- 2.7.6.8 Callback Support

- 2.7.7 SQL*Plus

- 2.7.8 Database Links

- 2.7.9 Gateway Data Dictionary Views

- 2.7.10 Stored Procedures

- 2.7.11 CALLBACK links

- 2.8 Known Problems

- 2.8.1 Encrypted Format Login

- 2.8.2 Informix BYTE and TEXT Data Types

- 2.8.3 Schema Names and PL/SQL

- 2.8.4 Data Dictionary Views and PL/SQL

3 Case Studies

- 3.1 Case Descriptions

- 3.2 Distribution Media Contents

- 3.3 Demonstration Files

- 3.4 Demonstration Requirements

- 3.5 Creating Demonstration Tables

- 3.5.1 Demonstration Table Definitions

- 3.5.2 Demonstration Table Contents

- 3.6 Case 1: Simple Queries

- 3.7 Case 2: A More Complex Query

- 3.8 Case 3: Joining Informix Tables

- 3.9 Case 4: Write Capabilities

- 3.9.1 DELETE Statement

- 3.9.2 UPDATE Statement

- 3.9.3 INSERT Statement

- 3.10 Case 5: Data Dictionary Query

- 3.11 Case 6: The Pass-Through Feature

- 3.11.1 UPDATE Statement

- 3.11.2 SELECT Statement

A Data Type Conversion

- A.1 Data Type Conversion

B Supported SQL Syntax and Functions

- B.1 Supported SQL Statements

- B.1.1 DELETE

- B.1.2 INSERT

- B.1.3 SELECT

- B.1.4 UPDATE

- B.2 Oracle Functions

- B.2.1 Functions Not Supported by Informix

- B.2.2 Functions Supported by Informix

- B.2.2.1 Arithmetic Operators

- B.2.2.2 Comparison Operators

- B.2.2.3 Group Functions

- B.2.2.4 String Functions

- B.2.2.5 Pattern Matches

- B.2.2.6 Date Functions

- B.2.2.7 Other Functions

- B.2.3 Functions Supported by the Gateway

C Data Dictionary

- C.1 Data Dictionary Support

- C.1.1 Informix System Catalog Tables

- C.1.2 Accessing the Gateway Data Dictionary

- C.1.3 Direct Queries to Informix Tables

- C.1.4 Supported Views and Tables

- C.2 Data Dictionary Mapping

- C.2.1 Default Column Values

- C.3 Gateway Data Dictionary Descriptions

D Initialization Parameters

- D.1 Initialization Parameter File Syntax

- D.2 Oracle Database Gateway for Informix Initialization Parameters

- D.3 Initialization Parameter Description

- D.3.1 HS_DB_DOMAIN

- D.3.2 HS_DB_INTERNAL_NAME

- D.3.3 HS_DB_NAME

- D.3.4 HS_DESCRIBE_CACHE_HWM

- D.3.5 HS_LANGUAGE

- D.3.5.1 Character Sets

- D.3.5.2 Language

- D.3.5.3 Territory

- D.3.6 HS_LONG_PIECE_TRANSFER_SIZE

- D.3.7 HS_OPEN_CURSORS

- D.3.8 HS_RPC_FETCH_REBLOCKING

- D.3.9 HS_RPC_FETCH_SIZE

- D.3.10 HS_TIME_ZONE

- D.3.11 HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL

- D.3.12 IFILE

- D.3.13 HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO

- D.3.14 HS_FDS_DEFAULT_OWNER

- D.3.15 HS_FDS_RECOVERY_ACCOUNT

- D.3.16 HS_FDS_RECOVERY_PWD

- D.3.17 HS_FDS_TRACE_LEVEL

- D.3.18 HS_FDS_TRANSACTION_LOG

- D.3.19 HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS

- D.3.20 HS_IDLE_TIMEOUT

- D.3.21 HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS

- D.3.22 HS_KEEP_REMOTE_COLUMN_SIZE

- D.3.23 HS_FDS_REMOTE_DB_CHARSET

- D.3.24 HS_FDS_SUPPORT_STATISTICS

- D.3.25 HS_FDS_SQLLEN_INTERPRETATION

Index

List of Tables

- A-1 Data Type Conversions

- C-1 Oracle Data Dictionary View Names and Informix Equivalents

- C-2 ALL_CATALOG

- C-3 ALL_COL_COMMENTS

- C-4 ALL_COL_PRIVS

- C-5 ALL_CONS_COLUMNS

- C-6 ALL_CONSTRAINTS

- C-7 ALL_IND_COLUMNS

- C-8 ALL_INDEXES

- C-9 ALL_OBJECTS

- C-10 ALL_SYNONYMS

- C-11 ALL_TAB_COLUMNS

- C-12 ALL_TAB_COMMENTS

- C-13 ALL_TAB_PRIVS

- C-14 ALL_TABLES

- C-15 ALL_USERS

- C-16 ALL_VIEWS

- C-17 COLUMN_PRIVILEGES

- C-18 DBA_CATALOG

- C-19 DBA_COL_COMMENTS

- C-20 DBA_OBJECTS

- C-21 DBA_TAB_COLUMNS

- C-22 DBA_TAB_COMMENTS

- C-23 DBA_TABLES

- C-24 DICT_COLUMNS

- C-25 DICTIONARY

- C-26 DUAL

- C-27 TABLE_PRIVILEGES

- C-28 USER_CATALOG

- C-29 USER_COL_COMMENTS

- C-30 USER_COL_PRIVS

- C-31 USER_CONS_COLUMNS

- C-32 USER_CONSTRAINTS

- C-33 USER_IND_COLUMNS

- C-34 USER_INDEXES

- C-35 USER_OBJECTS

- C-36 USER_SYNONYMS

- C-37 USER_TAB_COLUMNS

- C-38 USER_TAB_COMMENTS

- C-39 USER_TAB_PRIVS

- C-40 USER_TABLES

- C-41 USER_USERS

- C-42 USER_VIEWS

Oracle® Database Gateway for Informix

User's Guide

11g Release 2 (11.2)

E12066-01

July 2009

Oracle Database Gateway for Informix User's Guide, 11g Release 2 (11.2)

E12066-01

Copyright © 2007, 2009, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.

Primary Author:  Maitreyee Chaliha

Contributor:  Vira Goorah, Juan Pablo Ahues-Vasquez, Peter Castro, Charles Benet, Peter Wong, and Govind Lakkoju

This software and related documentation are provided under a license agreement containing restrictions on use and disclosure and are protected by intellectual property laws. Except as expressly permitted in your license agreement or allowed by law, you may not use, copy, reproduce, translate, broadcast, modify, license, transmit, distribute, exhibit, perform, publish, or display any part, in any form, or by any means. Reverse engineering, disassembly, or decompilation of this software, unless required by law for interoperability, is prohibited.

The information contained herein is subject to change without notice and is not warranted to be error-free. If you find any errors, please report them to us in writing.

If this software or related documentation is delivered to the U.S. Government or anyone licensing it on behalf of the U.S. Government, the following notice is applicable:

U.S. GOVERNMENT RIGHTS Programs, software, databases, and related documentation and technical data delivered to U.S. Government customers are "commercial computer software" or "commercial technical data" pursuant to the applicable Federal Acquisition Regulation and agency-specific supplemental regulations. As such, the use, duplication, disclosure, modification, and adaptation shall be subject to the restrictions and license terms set forth in the applicable Government contract, and, to the extent applicable by the terms of the Government contract, the additional rights set forth in FAR 52.227-19, Commercial Computer Software License (December 2007). Oracle USA, Inc., 500 Oracle Parkway, Redwood City, CA 94065.

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This software and documentation may provide access to or information on content, products, and services from third parties. Oracle Corporation and its affiliates are not responsible for and expressly disclaim all warranties of any kind with respect to third-party content, products, and services. Oracle Corporation and its affiliates will not be responsible for any loss, costs, or damages incurred due to your access to or use of third-party content, products, or services.

Preface

This manual describes the Oracle Database Gateway for Informix, which enables Oracle client applications to access Informix data through Structured Query Language (SQL). The gateway, with the Oracle database, creates the appearance that all data resides on a local Oracle database, even though the data can be widely distributed.

This preface covers the following topics:

- Audience

- Documentation Accessibility

- Related Documentation

- Conventions

Audience

This manual is intended for Oracle database administrators who perform the following tasks:

- Installing and configuring the Oracle Database Gateway for Informix

- Diagnosing gateway errors

- Using the gateway to access Informix data

Documentation Accessibility

Our goal is to make Oracle products, services, and supporting documentation accessible to all users, including users that are disabled. To that end, our documentation includes features that make information available to users of assistive technology. This documentation is available in HTML format, and contains markup to facilitate access by the disabled community. Accessibility standards will continue to evolve over time, and Oracle is actively engaged with other market-leading technology vendors to address technical obstacles so that our documentation can be accessible to all of our customers. For more information, visit the Oracle Accessibility Program Web site at http://www.oracle.com/accessibility/.

Accessibility of Code Examples in Documentation

Screen readers may not always correctly read the code examples in this document. The conventions for writing code require that closing braces should appear on an otherwise empty line; however, some screen readers may not always read a line of text that consists solely of a bracket or brace.

Accessibility of Links to External Web Sites in Documentation

This documentation may contain links to Web sites of other companies or organizations that Oracle does not own or control. Oracle neither evaluates nor makes any representations regarding the accessibility of these Web sites.

Deaf/Hard of Hearing Access to Oracle Support Services

To reach Oracle Support Services, use a telecommunications relay service (TRS) to call Oracle Support at 1.800.223.1711. An Oracle Support Services engineer will handle technical issues and provide customer support according to the Oracle service request process. Information about TRS is available at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/trs.html, and a list of phone numbers is available at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/trsphonebk.html.

Related Documentation

For more information, see the following documents:

- Oracle Database New Features Guide

- Oracle Call Interface Programmer's Guide

- Oracle Database Administrator's Guide

- Oracle Database Advanced Application Developer's Guide

- Oracle Database Concepts

- Oracle Database Performance Tuning Guide

- Oracle Database Error Messages

- Oracle Database Globalization Support Guide

- Oracle Database Reference

- Oracle Database SQL Language Reference

- Oracle Database Net Services Administrator's Guide

- SQL*Plus User's Guide and Reference

- Oracle Database Heterogeneous Connectivity User's Guide

- Oracle Database 2 Day DBA

- Oracle Database Security Guide

Conventions

The following text conventions are used in this document:

Convention

Meaning

boldface

Boldface type indicates graphical user interface elements associated with an action, or terms defined in text or the glossary.

italic

Italic type indicates book titles, emphasis, or placeholder variables for which you supply particular values.

monospace

Monospace type indicates commands within a paragraph, URLs, code in examples, text that appears on the screen, or text that you enter.

1 Introduction

This chapter introduces the challenge faced by organizations when running several different database systems. It briefly covers Heterogeneous Services, the technology that the Oracle Database Gateway for Informix is based on.

To get a good understanding of generic gateway technology, Heterogeneous Services, and how Oracle Database Gateways fit in the picture, reading the Oracle Database Heterogeneous Connectivity User's Guide first is highly recommended.

This chapter contains the following sections:

- Overview

- Heterogeneous Services Technology

- Oracle Database Gateways

1.1 Overview

Heterogeneous data access is a problem that affects a lot of companies. A lot of companies run several different database systems. Each of these systems stores data and has a set of applications that run against it. Consolidation of this data in one database system is often hard-in large part because many of the applications that run against one database may not have an equivalent that runs against another. Until such time as migration to one consolidated database system is made feasible, it is necessary for the various heterogeneous database systems to interoperate.

Oracle Database Gateways provide the ability to transparently access data residing in a non-Oracle system from an Oracle environment. This transparency eliminates the need for application developers to customize their applications to access data from different non-Oracle systems, thus decreasing development efforts and increasing the mobility of the application. Applications can be developed using a consistent Oracle interface for both Oracle and Informix.

Gateway technology is composed of two parts: a component that has the generic technology to connect to a non-Oracle system, which is common to all the non-Oracle systems, called Heterogeneous Services, and a component that is specific to the non-Oracle system that the gateway connects to. Heterogeneous Services, in conjunction with the Oracle Database Gateway agent, enables transparent access to non-Oracle systems from an Oracle environment.

1.2 Heterogeneous Services Technology

Heterogeneous Services provides the generic technology for connecting to non-Oracle systems. As an integrated component of the database, Heterogeneous Services can exploit features of the database, such as the powerful SQL parsing and distributed optimization capabilities.

Heterogeneous Services extend the Oracle SQL engine to recognize the SQL and procedural capabilities of the remote non-Oracle system and the mappings required to obtain necessary data dictionary information. Heterogeneous Services provides two types of translations: the ability to translate Oracle SQL into the proper dialect of the non-Oracle system as well as data dictionary translations that displays the metadata of the non-Oracle system in the local format. For situations where no translations are available, native SQL can be issued to the non-Oracle system using the pass-through feature of Heterogeneous Services.

Heterogeneous Services also maintains the transaction coordination between Oracle and the remote non-Oracle system, such as providing the two-phase commit protocol to ensure distributed transaction integrity, even for non-Oracle systems that do not natively support two-phase commit.

See Also:

Oracle Database Heterogeneous Connectivity User's Guide for more information about Heterogeneous Services.

1.3 Oracle Database Gateways

The capabilities, SQL mappings, data type conversions, and interface to the remote non-Oracle system are contained in the gateway. The gateway interacts with Heterogeneous Services to provide the transparent connectivity between Oracle and non-Oracle systems.

The gateway can be installed on any machine independent of the Oracle or non-Oracle database. It can be the same machine as the Oracle database or on the same machine as the Informix database or on a third machine as a standalone. Each configuration has its advantages and disadvantages. The issues to consider when determining where to install the gateway are network traffic, operating system platform availability, hardware resources and storage.

2 Informix Gateway Features and Restrictions

After the gateway is installed and configured, you can use the gateway to access Informix data, pass Informix commands from applications to the Informix database, perform distributed queries, and copy data.

This chapter contains the following sections:

- Using the Pass-Through Feature

- CHAR Semantics

- Multi-byte Character Sets Ratio Suppression

- IPv6 Support

- Gateway Session IDLE Timeout

- Database Compatibility Issues for Informix

- Known Restrictions

- Known Problems

2.1 Using the Pass-Through Feature

The gateway can pass Informix commands or statements from the application to the Informix database using the DBMS_HS_PASSTHROUGH package.

Use the DBMS_HS_PASSTHROUGH package in a PL/SQL block to specify the statement to be passed to the Informix database, as follows:

DECLARE
num_rows INTEGER;
BEGIN
num_rows := DBMS_HS_PASSTHROUGH.EXECUTE_IMMEDIATE@IFMX('command');
END;
/

Where command cannot be one of the following:

- COMMIT

- CREATE DATABASE

- DROP DATABASE

- ROLLBACK

- ROLLFORWARD DATABASE

- Informix tool commands

The DBMS_HS_PASSTHROUGH package supports passing bind values and executing SELECT statements.

Note:

It is recommended that you COMMIT after each DDL statement in the pass-through.

See Also:

Oracle Database PL/SQL Packages and Types Reference and Chapter 3, Features of Oracle Database Gateways, of Oracle Database Heterogeneous Connectivity User's Guide for more information about the DBMS_HS_PASSTHROUGH package.

2.2 CHAR Semantics

This feature allows the gateway to optionally run in CHAR Semantics mode. Rather than always describing Informix CHAR columns as CHAR(n BYTE), this feature describes them as CHAR(n CHAR) and VARCHAR(n CHAR). The concept is similar to Oracle database CHAR Semantics. You need to specify HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS=CHAR gateway parameter to activate this option. Refer to Appendix D for more detail.

2.3 Multi-byte Character Sets Ratio Suppression

This feature optionally suppresses the ratio expansion from Informix database to Oracle database involving multi-byte character set. By default, Oracle gateways assume the worst ratio to prevent data being truncated or insufficient buffer size situation. However, if you have specific knowledge of your Informix database and do not want the expansion to occur, you can specify HS_KEEP_REMOTE_COLUMN_SIZE parameter to suppress the expansion. Refer toAppendix D for more detail.

2.4 IPv6 Support

Besides full IPv6 support between Oracle databases and the gateway, IPv6 is also supported between this gateway and Informix database. Refer to the HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO parameter in Appendix D for more detail.

2.5 Gateway Session IDLE Timeout

You can optionally choose to terminate long idle gateway sessions automatically with the gateway parameter HS_IDLE_TIMEOUT. Specifically, when a gateway session is idle for more than the specified time limit, the gateway session is terminated with any pending update rolled back. Refer to the HS_IDLE_TIMEOUT parameter in Appendix D for more detail.

2.6 Database Compatibility Issues for Informix

Informix and Oracle databases function differently in some areas, causing compatibility problems. The following compatibility issues are described in this section:

- ANSI SQL Standard

- Naming Rules

- Data Types

- Queries

- Locking

2.6.1 ANSI SQL Standard

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has established a set of industry standards for SQL. The gateway supports only Informix databases that comply with the ANSI standard. For more information about how to create or start up an ANSI-compliant Informix database, refer to your Informix documentation.

2.6.2 Naming Rules

Naming rule issues include the following:

- Rules for Naming Objects

- Object Names

- Case Sensitivity

2.6.2.1 Rules for Naming Objects

Oracle and Informix use different database object naming rules. For example, the maximum number of characters allowed for each object name can be different. Also, the use of single and double quotation marks, case sensitivity, and the use of alphanumeric characters can all be different.

See Also:

Oracle Database Reference and Informix documentation.

2.6.2.2 Object Names

Names of Informix database objects are limited to a maximum of 18 characters. An object name can be composed of these characters:

- Numbers 0 to 9

- Lowercase letters a to z

- Uppercase letters A to Z

- Underscore character (_)

2.6.2.3 Case Sensitivity

Informix handles letter case differently from Oracle. Informix uses these rules:

- Table owner names default to uppercase letters, unless the name is surrounded by double quote characters

- Column names, table names, view names, and so on, are always treated as lowercase letters

The Oracle database defaults to uppercase unless you surround identifiers with double quote characters. For example, to refer to the Informix table called emp, enter the name with double quote characters, as follows:

SQL> SELECT * FROM "emp"@IFMX;

However, to refer to the Informix table called emp owned by SCOTT from an Oracle application, enter the following:

SQL> SELECT * FROM "Scott"."emp"@IFMX;

If the Informix table called emp is owned by SCOTT, a table owner name in uppercase letters, you can enter the owner name without double quote characters, as follows:

SQL> SELECT * FROM SCOTT."emp"@IFMX;

Or

SQL> SELECT * FROM scott."emp"@IFMX;

Oracle recommends that you surround all Informix object names with double quote characters and use the exact letter case for the object names as they appear in the Informix data dictionary. This convention is not required when referring to the supported Oracle data dictionary tables or views listed in Appendix C, "Data Dictionary".

If existing applications cannot be changed according to these conventions, create views in Oracle to associate Informix names to the correct letter case. For example, to refer to the Informix table emp from an existing Oracle application by using only uppercase names, define the following view:

SQL> CREATE VIEW EMP (EMPNO, ENAME, SAL, HIREDATE)
AS SELECT "empno", "ename", "sal", "hiredate"
FROM "emp"@IFMX;

With this view, the application can issue statements such as the following:

SQL> SELECT EMPNO, ENAME FROM EMP;

Using views is a workaround solution that duplicates data dictionary information originating in the Informix data dictionary. You must be prepared to update the Oracle view definitions whenever the data definitions for the corresponding tables are changed in the Informix database.

2.6.3 Data Types

Data type issues include the following:

- Binary, Byte and Text Literal Notation

- Data Type Conversion

2.6.3.1 Binary, Byte and Text Literal Notation

Oracle SQL uses hexadecimal digits surrounded by single quotes to express literal values being compared or inserted into columns defined as data type RAW.

This notation is not converted to syntax compatible with Informix BINARY, BYTE and TEXT data types (a 0x followed by hexadecimal digits, surrounded by single quotes).

For example, the following statement is not supported:

SQL> INSERT INTO BYTE_TAB@IFMX VALUES ('Oxff');

Where BYTE_TAB contains a column of data type BINARY, BYTE or TEXT. Use bind variables when inserting into or updating BINARY, BYTE or TEXT data types.

2.6.3.2 Data Type Conversion

Informix does not support implicit date conversions. Such conversions must be explicit.

For example, the gateway issues an error for the following SELECT statement:

SQL> SELECT DATE_COL FROM TEST@IFMX
WHERE DATE_COL = "1-JAN-2001";

To avoid problems with implicit conversions, add explicit conversions, as in the following:

SQL> SELECT DATE_COL FROM TEST@IFMX
WHERE DATE_COL = TO_DATE("1-JAN-2001");

See Also:

Appendix A, "Data Type Conversion" for more information about restrictions on data types.

2.6.4 Queries

Query issues include the following:

- Row Selection

- Empty Strings

- Empty Bind Variables

2.6.4.1 Row Selection

Informix evaluates a query condition for all selected rows before returning any of the rows. If there is an error in the evaluation process for one or more rows, no rows are returned even though the remaining rows satisfy the condition.

Oracle evaluates the query condition row-by-row and returns a row when the evaluation is successful. Rows are returned until a row fails the evaluation.

2.6.4.2 Empty Strings

Oracle processes an empty string in a SQL statement as a null value. Informix processes an empty string as an empty string.

Comparing to an empty string

The gateway passes literal empty strings to the Informix database without any conversion. If you intended an empty string to represent a null value, Informix does not process the statement that way; it uses the empty string.

You can avoid this problem by using NULL or IS NULL in the SQL statement instead of the empty string syntax, as in the following example:

SELECT * from "emp"@IFMX where "ename" IS NULL;

Selecting an empty string

For VARCHAR columns, the gateway returns an empty string to the Oracle database as NULL value.

For CHAR columns, the gateway returns the full size of the column with each character as empty space (' ').

2.6.4.3 Empty Bind Variables

For VARCHAR bind variables, the gateway passes empty bind variables to the Informix database as a NULL value.

2.6.5 Locking

The locking model for an Informix database differs significantly from the Oracle model. The gateway depends on the underlying Informix behavior, so the following possible scenarios can affect Oracle applications that access Informix through the gateway:

- Read access might block write access

- Write access might block read access

- Statement-level read consistency is not guaranteed

See Also:

Informix documentation for information about the Informix locking model.

2.7 Known Restrictions

If you encounter incompatibility problems not listed in this section or in "Known Problems", contact Oracle Support Services. The following section describes the known restrictions and includes suggestions for dealing with them when possible:

- Transactional Integrity

- Transaction Capability

- COMMIT or ROLLBACK in PL/SQL Cursor Loops Closes Open Cursors

- Pass-Through Feature

- Informix SMALLFLOAT and REAL Data Types

- SQL Syntax

- SQL*Plus

- Database Links

- Gateway Data Dictionary Views

- Stored Procedures

- CALLBACK links

Note:

If you have any questions or concerns about the restrictions, contact Oracle Support Services.

2.7.1 Transactional Integrity

The gateway cannot guarantee transactional integrity in the following cases:

- When a statement that is processed by the gateway causes an implicit commit in the target database

- When the target database is configured to work in autocommit mode

Note:

Oracle strongly recommends the following:

- If you know that executing a particular statement causes an implicit commit in the target database, then ensure that this statement is executed in its own transaction.

- Do not configure the target database to work in autocommit mode.

2.7.2 Transaction Capability

The gateway does not support savepoints. If a distributed update transaction is under way involving the gateway and a user attempts to create a savepoint, the following error occurs:

ORA-02070: database dblink does not support savepoint in this context

By default, the gateway is configured as COMMIT_CONFIRM and in this transaction mode it is always the commit point site when the Informix database is updated by the transaction.

If your Informix system does not use logging, then you cannot use the default transaction capability. It is strongly recommended that you enable logging in your Informix system. If you are not using logging, and have read only requirement, then set HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL=READ_ONLY_AUTOCOMMIT in the gateway initialization parameter file. If you are not using logging, and you require to update the Informix database, then set HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL=SINGLE_SITE_AUTOCOMMIT in the gateway initialization parameter file.

See Also:

Appendix D, "Initialization Parameters" and the Oracle Database Heterogeneous Connectivity User's Guide for more information about customizing the initialization parameter file.

2.7.3 COMMIT or ROLLBACK in PL/SQL Cursor Loops Closes Open Cursors

Any COMMIT or ROLLBACK issued in a PL/SQL cursor loop closes all open cursors, which can result in the following error:

ORA-1002:  fetch out of sequence

To prevent this error, move the COMMIT or ROLLBACK statement outside the cursor loop.

2.7.4 Pass-Through Feature

If the SQL statements being passed through the gateway result in an implicit commit at the Informix database, the Oracle transaction manager is unaware of the commit and an Oracle ROLLBACK command cannot be used to roll back the transaction.

2.7.5 Informix SMALLFLOAT and REAL Data Types

Informix SMALLFLOAT and REAL data types have a precision of 6.

2.7.6 SQL Syntax

This section lists restrictions on the following SQL syntax:

- WHERE CURRENT OF Clause

- CONNECT BY Clause

- Use of NULL Keyword in SELECT Statement

- Subqueries in INSERT Statement

- Subqueries in DELETE, INSERT, and UPDATE Statements

- ROWID

- EXPLAIN PLAN Statement

- Callback Support

See Also:

Appendix B, "Supported SQL Syntax and Functions" for more information about restrictions on SQL syntax.

2.7.6.1 WHERE CURRENT OF Clause

UPDATE and DELETE statements with the WHERE CURRENT OF clause are not supported by the gateway because they rely on the Oracle ROWID implementation. To update or delete a specific row through the gateway, a condition style WHERE clause must be used.

2.7.6.2 CONNECT BY Clause

The gateway does not support the CONNECT BY clause in a SELECT statement.

2.7.6.3 Use of NULL Keyword in SELECT Statement

The NULL keyword cannot be used in the select list of a SELECT statement because that syntax is not ANSI SQL.

For example, the following statement cannot be used:

SQL> SELECT NULL FROM . . .

2.7.6.4 Subqueries in INSERT Statement

Subqueries of INSERT statements cannot use multiple aliases for the same table. For example, the following statement is not supported:

SQL> INSERT INTO "emp_target"@IFMX
SELECT a."empno" FROM "emp_source"@IFMX a,
"emp_source"@IFMX b WHERE b."empno"=9999

2.7.6.5 Subqueries in DELETE, INSERT, and UPDATE Statements

SQL statements in subqueries of DELETE, INSERT, and UPDATE statements cannot refer to the same table as specified in the outer query. This is because of the locking mechanism in Informix.

2.7.6.6 ROWID

The Oracle ROWID implementation is not supported.

2.7.6.7 EXPLAIN PLAN Statement

The EXPLAIN PLAN statement is not supported.

2.7.6.8 Callback Support

SQL statements that require the gateway to callback to Oracle database would not be supported.

The following categories of SQL statements will result in a callback:

- Any DML with a sub-select, which refers to a table in Oracle database. For example:

INSERT INTO emp@non_oracle SELECT * FROM oracle_emp;

- Any DELETE, INSERT, UPDATE or "SELECT... FOR UPDATE..." SQL statement containing SQL functions or statements that needs to be executed at the originating Oracle database.
These SQL functions include USER, USERENV, and SYSDATE, and the SQL statements are in selects of data from the originating Oracle database. For example:

DELETE FROM emp@non_oracle WHERE hiredate > SYSDATE;

SELECT ename FROM tkhoemp@non_oracle
WHERE hiredate IN (SELECT hiredate FROM tkhoemp)
FOR UPDATE OF empno;

- Any SQL statement that involves a table in Oracle database, and a LONG or LOB column in a remote table. For example:

SELECT a.long1, b.empno FROM scott.table@non_oracle a, emp b
WHERE a.id=b.empno;

SELECT a.long1, b.dummy FROM table_non@non_oracle a, dual b;

where a.long1 is a LONG column.

2.7.7 SQL*Plus

In SQL*Plus, the gateway does not support using a SELECT statement to retrieve data from an Informix column defined as data type BYTE.

You need to use double quotes to wrap around lowercase table names, for example:

copy from tkhouser/tkhouser@inst1 insert loc_tkhodept using select* from "tkhodept"@holink2;

2.7.8 Database Links

The gateway is not multithreaded and cannot support shared database links. Each gateway session spawns a separate gateway process and connections cannot be shared.

2.7.9 Gateway Data Dictionary Views

Only the first 64 characters of the view definition are returned when querying ALL_VIEWS and USER_VIEWS in the gateway data dictionary.

2.7.10 Stored Procedures

The gateway does not support the procedure feature that allows the execution of stored procedures in a non-Oracle database.

2.7.11 CALLBACK links

Oracle Database Gateway for Informix does not support CALLBACK links. Trying a CALLBACK link with the gateway will return the following error message:

ORA-02025: All tables in the SQL statement must be at the remote database

2.8 Known Problems

This section describes known problems and includes suggestions for correcting them when possible. If you have any questions or concerns about the problems, contact Oracle Support Services. A current list of problems is available online. Contact your local Oracle office for information about accessing the list.

The following known problems are described in this section:

- Encrypted Format Login

- Informix BYTE and TEXT Data Types

- Schema Names and PL/SQL

- Data Dictionary Views and PL/SQL

2.8.1 Encrypted Format Login

Oracle database no longer supports the initialization parameter DBLINK_ENCRYPT_LOGIN. Up to version 7.3, this parameter's default TRUE value prevented the password for the login user ID from being sent over the network (in the clear). Later versions automatically encrypt the password.

2.8.2 Informix BYTE and TEXT Data Types

The following restrictions apply when using BYTE and TEXT data types:

- An unsupported SQL function cannot be used in a SQL statement that accesses a column defined as Informix data type TEXT.

- You cannot use SQL*Plus to select data from a column defined as Informix data type TEXT when the data is greater than 80 characters in length. Oracle recommends using Pro*C or Oracle Call Interface to access such data in a Informix database.

- BYTE and TEXT data types must be NULLABLE for INSERT or UPDATE to work.

- A table including a BYTE or TEXT column must have a unique index defined on the table or the table must have a separate column that serves as a primary key.

- BYTE and TEXT data in a view cannot be accessed.

- BYTE and TEXT data cannot be read through pass-through queries.

- Data less than 32,739 bytes cannot be inserted into BYTE and TEXT columns using bind variables.

The gateway does not support the PL/SQL function COLUMN_VALUE_LONG of the DBMS_SQL package.

See Also:

Appendix B, "Supported SQL Syntax and Functions".

2.8.3 Schema Names and PL/SQL

If you do not prefix an Informix database object with its schema name in a SQL statement within a PL/SQL block, the following error message occurs:

ORA-6550 PLS-201 Identifier table_name must be declared.

Change the SQL statement to include the schema name of the object.

2.8.4 Data Dictionary Views and PL/SQL

You cannot refer to data dictionary views in SQL statements that are inside a PL/SQL block.

3 Case Studies

The following case studies for Informix demonstrate some of the features of the Oracle Database Gateway. You can verify that the gateway is installed and operating correctly by using the demonstration files included on the distribution media.

The demonstration files are automatically copied to disk when the gateway is installed.

This chapter contains the following sections:

- Case Descriptions

- Distribution Media Contents

- Demonstration Files

- Demonstration Requirements

- Creating Demonstration Tables

- Case 1: Simple Queries

- Case 2: A More Complex Query

- Case 3: Joining Informix Tables

- Case 4: Write Capabilities

- Case 5: Data Dictionary Query

- Case 6: The Pass-Through Feature

3.1 Case Descriptions

The cases illustrate:

- A simple query (Case 1)

- A more complex query (Case 2)

- Joining Informix tables (Case 3)

- Write capabilities (Case 4)

- A data dictionary query (Case 5)

- The pass-through feature (Case 6)

3.2 Distribution Media Contents

The distribution media contains the following:

- Demonstration files

- One SQL script file that creates the demonstration tables in the Informix database

- One SQL script file that drops the demonstration tables from the Informix database

3.3 Demonstration Files

After a successful gateway installation, use the demonstration files stored in the directory $ORACLE_HOME/dg4ifmx/demo where $ORACLE_HOME is the $ORACLE_HOME directory under which the gateway is installed. The directory contains the following demonstration files:

Demonstration Files

Demonstration Files

bldifmx.sql

case4c.sql

case1.sql

case5.sql

case2.sql

case6a.sql

case3.sql

case6b.sql

case4a.sql

case7.sql

case4b.sql

dropifmx.sql

3.4 Demonstration Requirements

The case studies assume these requirements have been met:

- The gateway demonstration tables are installed in the Informix database

- The Oracle database has an account named SCOTT with a password of TIGER

- The Oracle database has a database link called GTWLINK (set up as public or private to the user SCOTT) which connects the gateway to a Informix database as SCOTT with password TIGER2
For example, you can create the database link as follows:

SQL> CREATE DATABASE LINK GTWLINK CONNECT TO SCOTT
2    IDENTIFIED BY TIGER2 USING 'GTWSID';

- Oracle Net Services is configured correctly and running.

- The Informix environment variable, INFORMIXDIR, is set correctly.

3.5 Creating Demonstration Tables

The case studies are based on the GTW_EMP, GTW_DEPT, and GTW_SALGRADE tables. If the demonstration tables have not been created in the Informix database, use the bldifmx.sql script to create them, as follows:

Set environment variable DELIMIDENT.

If you have the Bourne or Korn Shell, enter the following:

$ DELIMIDENT = y; export DELIMIDENT

If you have the C Shell, enter the following:

$ setenv DELIMIDENT y

$ cd $ORACLE_HOME/dg4ifmx/demo$ dbaccess database_name bldifmx.sql

The script creates the demonstration tables in the Informix database accordingly:

CREATE TABLE GTW_EMP (
EMPNO      SMALLINT NOT NULL
ENAME      VARCHAR(10),
JOB        VARCHAR(9),
MGR        SMALLINT,
HIREDATE   DATETIME,
SAL        NUMERIC(7,2),
COMM       NUMERIC(7,2),
DEPTNO     SMALLINT)
CREATE TABLE GTW_DEPT (
DEPTNO     SMALLINT NOT NULL,
DNAME      VARCHAR(14),
LOC        VARCHAR(13))
CREATE TABLE GTW_SALGRADE (
GRADE      MONEY,
LOSAL      NUMERIC(9,4),
HISAL      NUMERIC(9,4))

3.5.1 Demonstration Table Definitions

The following table definitions use information retrieved by the SQL*PLUS DESCRIBE command:

GTW_EMP

Name                            Null?    Type
------------------------------- -------- ----
EMPNO                           NOT NULL NUMBER(5)
ENAME                                    VARCHAR2(10)
JOB                                      VARCHAR2(9)
MGR                                      NUMBER(5)
HIREDATE                                 DATE
SAL                                      NUMBER(7,2)
COMM                                     NUMBER(7,2)
DEPTNO                                   NUMBER(5)

GTW_DEPT

Name                            Null?    Type
------------------------------- -------- ----
DEPTNO                          NOT NULL NUMBER(5)
DNAME                                    VARCHAR2(14)
LOC                                      VARCHAR2(13)

GTW_SALGRADE

Name                            Null?    Type
------------------------------- -------- ----
GRADE                                    NUMBER(19,4)
LOSAL                                    NUMBER(9,4)
HISAL                                    NUMBER(9,4)

3.5.2 Demonstration Table Contents

The contents of the Informix tables are:

GTW_EMP

EMPNO ENAME   JOB         MGR   HIREDATE   SAL   COMM   DEPTNO
----- -----   ---         ---   --------   ---   ----   ------
7369  SMITH   CLERK       7902  17-DEC-80   800             20
7499  ALLEN   SALESMAN    7698  20-FEB-81  1600   300       30
7521  WARD    SALESMAN    7698  22-FEB-81  1250   500       30
7566  JONES   MANAGER     7839  02-APR-81  2975             20
7654  MARTIN  SALESMAN    7698  28-SEP-81  1250  1400       30
7698  BLAKE   MANAGER     7839  01-MAY-81  2850             30
7782  CLARK   MANAGER     7839  09-JUN-81  2450             10
7788  SCOTT   ANALYST     7566  09-DEC-82  3000             20
7839  KING    PRESIDENT         17-NOV-81  5000             10
7844  TURNER  SALESMAN    7698  08-SEP-81  1500     0       30
7876  ADAMS   CLERK       7788  12-JAN-83  1100             20
7900  JAMES   CLERK       7698  03-DEC-81   950             30
7902  FORD    ANALYST     7566  03-DEC-81  3000             20
7934  MILLER  CLERK       7782  23-JAN-82  1300             10

GTW_DEPT

DEPTNO DNAME          LOC
----- -------------- --------
10 ACCOUNTING     NEW YORK
20 RESEARCH       DALLAS
30 SALES          CHICAGO
40 OPERATIONS     BOSTON

GTW_SALGRADE

GRADE      LOSAL      HISAL
------     ------     -----
1        700      1200
2       1201      1400
3       1401      2000
4       2001      3000
5       3001      9999

3.6 Case 1: Simple Queries

Case 1 demonstrates the following:

- A simple query.

- A simple query retrieving full date information.

The first query retrieves all the data from GTW_DEPT and confirms that the gateway is working correctly. The second query retrieves all the data from GTW_EMP including the time portion of the hire date because the default date format was set to DD-MON-YY HH24:MM:SS for the session by an ALTER SESSION command.

3.7 Case 2: A More Complex Query

Case 2 demonstrates the following:

- The functions SUM(expression) and NVL(expr1, expr2) in the SELECT list.

- The GROUP BY and HAVING clauses.

This query retrieves the departments from GTW_EMP whose total monthly expenses are higher than $10,000.

3.8 Case 3: Joining Informix Tables

Case 3 demonstrates the following:

- Joins between Informix tables.

- Subselects.

The query retrieves information from three Informix tables and relates the employees to their department name and salary grade, but only for those employees earning more than the average salary.

3.9 Case 4: Write Capabilities

Case 4 is split into three cases and demonstrates the following:

- DELETE Statement

- UPDATE Statement

- INSERT Statement

3.9.1 DELETE Statement

Case 4a demonstrates bind values and subselect. All employees in department 20 and one employee, WARD, in department 30 are deleted.

3.9.2 UPDATE Statement

Case 4b provides an example of a simple UPDATE statement. In this example, employees are given a $100 a month salary increase.

3.9.3 INSERT Statement

Case 4c is an example of a simple insert statement that does not provide information for all columns.

3.10 Case 5: Data Dictionary Query

Case 5 demonstrates data dictionary mapping. It retrieves all the tables and views that exist in the Informix database that begin with "GTW".

3.11 Case 6: The Pass-Through Feature

Case 6 demonstrates the gateway pass-through feature which allows an application to send commands or statements to Informix.

This case demonstrates:

- A pass-through UPDATE statement using bind variables

- A pass-through SELECT statement

3.11.1 UPDATE Statement

Case 6a provides an example of a pass-through UPDATE statement with bind variables. In this example, the salary for EMPNO 7934 is set to 4000.

3.11.2 SELECT Statement

Case 6b provides an example of a pass-through SELECT statement. The data that is returned from the SELECT statement is inserted into a local table at the Oracle database.

A Data Type Conversion

This appendix contains the following section:

- Data Type Conversion

A.1 Data Type Conversion

The gateway converts Informix data types to Oracle data types as follows:

Table A-1 Data Type Conversions

Informix

Oracle

Comment

BLOB

LONG RAW

-

BOOLEAN

NUMBER(3)

BYTE

LONG RAW

-

CLOB

LONG

-

CHAR

CHAR

-

DATE

DATE

-

DATETIME YEAR TO DAY

DATE

DATETIME YEAR TO FRACTION

DATE

DATETIME YEAR TO SECOND

DATE

DATETIME HOUR TO SECOND

CHAR(15)

DATETIME HOUR TO FRACTION

CHAR(15)

DECIMAL

NUMBER(p[,s])

-

FLOAT

FLOAT(53)

-

INT8

NUMBER(19)

INTEGER

NUMBER(10)

NUMBER range is -2,147,483,647 to 2,147,483,647

INTERVAL YEAR() TO YEAR

INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH

INTERVAL MONTH() TO MONTH

INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH

INTERVAL YEAR() TO MONTH

INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH

INTERVAL DAY() TO DAY

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL HOUR() TO HOUR

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL MINUTE() TO MINUTE

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL SECOND() TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL SECOND() TO FRACTION

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL FRACTION TO FRACTION

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY() TO HOUR

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY() TO MINUTE

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY() TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY() TO FRACTION

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL HOUR() TO MINUTE

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL HOUR() TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL HOUR() TO FRACTION

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL MINUTE() TO SECOND

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

INTERVAL MINUTE() TO FRACTION

INTERVAL DAY TO SECOND

LVARCHAR

VARCHAR2

-

MONEY

NUMBER(p[,s])

-

NCHAR

CHAR

-

NVARCHAR

VARCHAR2

-

SERIAL

NUMBER(10)

NUMBER range is -2,147,483,647 to 2,147,483,647

SERIAL8

NUMBER(19)

-

SMALLFLOAT

FLOAT(24)

Precision is 6

SMALLINT

NUMBER(5)

TEXT

LONG

-

VARCHAR

VARCHAR2

If a length is not specified as part of VARCHAR, the data type is converted to VARCHAR2(1)

In addition to the rules shown in the preceding table, if the maximum size for an Informix data type is smaller or larger than the corresponding Oracle data type, data might be lost. For example, if an Oracle table is defined with a column of VARCHAR2(300) and you use the COPY statement to copy the Oracle table to the Informix table where the Informix column is defined as VARCHAR(255), the data might be truncated.

B Supported SQL Syntax and Functions

This appendix contains the following sections:

- Supported SQL Statements

- Oracle Functions

B.1 Supported SQL Statements

With a few exceptions, the gateway provides full support for Oracle DELETE, INSERT, SELECT, and UPDATE statements.

The gateway does not support Oracle data definition language (DDL) statements. No form of the Oracle ALTER, CREATE, DROP, GRANT, or TRUNCATE statements can be used. Instead, use the pass-through feature of the gateway if you need to use DDL statements against the Informix database.

See Also:

Oracle Database SQL Language Reference for detailed descriptions of keywords, parameters, and options.

B.1.1 DELETE

The DELETE statement is fully supported. However, only Oracle functions supported by Informix can be used. Also, you cannot have SQL statements in the subquery that refer to the same table name in the outer query.

See Also:

"Functions Supported by Informix" for a list of supported functions.

B.1.2 INSERT

The INSERT statement is fully supported. However, only Oracle functions supported by Informix can be used. Also, you cannot have SQL statements in the subquery that refer to the same table name in the outer query.

See Also:

"Functions Supported by Informix" for a list of supported functions.

B.1.3 SELECT

The SELECT statement is fully supported, with these exceptions:

- CONNECT BY condition

- NOWAIT

- START WITH condition

- Subquery in HAVING clause

B.1.4 UPDATE

The UPDATE statement is fully supported. However, only Oracle functions supported by Informix can be used. Also, you cannot have SQL statements in the subquery that refer to the same table name in the outer query. Subqueries are not supported in the SET clause. Informix does not support table aliases in UPDATE.

See Also:

"Functions Supported by Informix" for a list of supported functions.

B.2 Oracle Functions

All functions are evaluated by the Informix database after the gateway has converted them to Informix SQL.

B.2.1 Functions Not Supported by Informix

Oracle SQL functions with no equivalent function in Informix are not supported in DELETE, INSERT, or UPDATE statements, but are evaluated by the Oracle database if the statement is a SELECT statement. That is, the Oracle database performs post-processing of SELECT statements sent to the gateway.

If an unsupported function is used in a DELETE, INSERT, or UPDATE, statement, the following Oracle error occurs:

ORA-02070: database db_link_name does not support function in this context

B.2.2 Functions Supported by Informix

The gateway translates the following Oracle database functions in SQL statements to their equivalent Informix functions:

- Arithmetic Operators

- Comparison Operators

- Group Functions

- String Functions

- Pattern Matches

- Date Functions

- Other Functions

B.2.2.1 Arithmetic Operators

Oracle

Informix

+

+

-

-

*

*

/

/

B.2.2.2 Comparison Operators

Oracle

Informix

=

=

>

>

<

<

>=

>=

<=

<=

<>, !=, ^=

<>

IS NOT NULL

IS NOT NULL

IS NULL

IS NULL

B.2.2.3 Group Functions

Oracle

Informix

AVG

AVG

COUNT

COUNT

MAX

MAX

MIN

MIN

SUM

SUM

B.2.2.4 String Functions

Oracle

Informix

||, CONCAT

||

ASCII

ASCII

CHR

CHR

LENGTH

LENGTH

B.2.2.5 Pattern Matches

Oracle

Informix

LIKE 'a%'

LIKE "a%"

LIKE 'a_'

LIKE "a_"

LIKE 'a\%' ESCAPE '\'

LIKE "a\%" ESCAPE "\"

NOT LIKE

NOT LIKE

B.2.2.6 Date Functions

Oracle

Informix

date + number

date + number

date - number

date - number

date + date

date + date

date - date

date - date

B.2.2.7 Other Functions

Oracle

Informix

ABS

ABS

COS

COS

EXP

EXP

LOG10

LOG10

LN

LOGN

LTRIM(char)

TRIM(LEADING FROM char)

MOD

MOD

POWER (m,n)

POW(m,n)

RTRIM(char)

TRIM(TRAILING FROM char)

ROUND (with 1 argument)

ROUND

SIN

SIN

SQRT

SQRT

TAN

TAN

TRUNC (with 1 argument)

TRUNC

B.2.3 Functions Supported by the Gateway

If the Oracle function has no equivalent function in Informix, the Oracle function is not translated into the SQL statement and must be post-processed if the SQL statement is a SELECT.

The gateway, however, does support one function even though there is no equivalent in Informix. This function is the TO_DATE function:

TO_DATE(date_string | date_column)

Where:

date_string is converted to a string with the following format:

yyyy-mm-dd hh:mi:ss.fff

Recommendation:

Supply the date string with the same format as the result (that is, yyyy-mm-dd hh:mi:ss.fff).

date_column is a column with a date data type. It is converted to a parameter with a timestamp data type.

C Data Dictionary

The Oracle Database Gateway for Informix translates a query that refers to an Oracle database data dictionary table into a query that retrieves the data from Informix system catalog tables. You perform queries on data dictionary tables over the database link in the same way you query data dictionary tables in the Oracle database. The gateway data dictionary is similar to the Oracle database data dictionary in appearance and use.

This appendix contains the following sections:

- Data Dictionary Support

- Data Dictionary Mapping

- Gateway Data Dictionary Descriptions

C.1 Data Dictionary Support

The following paragraphs describe the data dictionary support of the Oracle Database Gateway for Informix.

C.1.1 Informix System Catalog Tables

Informix data dictionary information is stored in the Informix database as Informix system catalog tables. All Informix system catalog tables have names prefixed with “sys”. The Informix system catalog tables define the structure of a database. When you change data definitions, Informix reads and modifies the Informix system catalog tables to add information about the user tables.

C.1.2 Accessing the Gateway Data Dictionary

Accessing a gateway data dictionary table or view is identical to accessing a data dictionary in an Oracle database. You issue a SQL SELECT statement specifying a database link. The Oracle database data dictionary view and column names are used to access the gateway data dictionary in an Oracle database. Synonyms of supported views are also acceptable. For example, the following statement queries the data dictionary table ALL_CATALOG to retrieve all table names in the Informix database:

SQL> SELECT * FROM "ALL_CATALOG"@IFMX;

When a data dictionary access query is issued, the gateway:

1. Maps the requested table, view, or synonym to one or more Informix system catalog table names. The gateway translates all data dictionary column names to their corresponding Informix column names within the query. If the mapping involves one Informix system catalog table, the gateway translates the requested table name to its corresponding Informix system catalog table name within the query. If the mapping involves multiple Informix system catalog tables, the gateway constructs a join in the query using the translated Informix system catalog table names.

2. Sends the translated query to Informix.

3. Might convert the retrieved Informix data to give it the appearance of the Oracle database data dictionary table.

4. Passes the data dictionary information from the translated Informix system catalog table to the Oracle database.

Note:

The values returned when querying the gateway data dictionary might not be the same as the ones returned by the Oracle SQL*Plus DESCRIBE command.

C.1.3 Direct Queries to Informix Tables

Queries issued directly to individual Informix system catalog tables are allowed but they return different results because the Informix system catalog table column names differ from those of the data dictionary view. Also, certain columns in an Informix system catalog table cannot be used in data dictionary processing.

C.1.4 Supported Views and Tables

The gateway supports the following views and tables:

Supported Views and Tables

Supported Views and Tables

ALL_CATALOG

ALL_COL_COMMENTS

ALL_COL_PRIVS

ALL_CONS_COLUMNS

ALL_CONSTRAINTS

ALL_IND_COLUMNS

ALL_INDEXES

ALL_OBJECTS

ALL_SYNONYMS

ALL_TAB_COLUMNS

ALL_TAB_COMMENTS

ALL_TAB_PRIVS

ALL_TABLES

ALL_USERS

ALL_VIEWS

COLUMN_PRIVILEGES

DBA_CATALOG

DBA_COL_COMMENTS

DBA_OBJECTS

DBA_TABLES

DBA_TAB_COLUMNS

DBA_TAB_COMMENTS

DICT_COLUMNS

DICTIONARY

DUAL

TABLE_PRIVILEGES

USER_CATALOG

USER_COL_COMMENTS

USER_COL_PRIVS

USER_CONS_COLUMNS

USER_CONSTRAINTS

USER_IND_COLUMNS

USER_INDEXES

USER_OBJECTS

USER_SYNONYMS

USER_TAB_COLUMNS

USER_TAB_COMMENTS

USER_TAB_PRIVS

USER_TABLES

USER_USERS

USER_VIEWS

No other Oracle database data dictionary tables or views are supported. If you use a view not on the list, you receive the Oracle database error code for no more rows available.

Queries through the gateway of any data dictionary table or view beginning with ALL_ can returns rows from the Informix database even when access privileges for those Informix objects have not been granted. When querying an Oracle database with the Oracle data dictionary, rows are returned only for those objects you are permitted to access.

C.2 Data Dictionary Mapping

The tables in this section list Oracle data dictionary view names and the equivalent Informix system catalog tables used. A plus sign (+) indicates that a join operation is involved.

Table C-1 Oracle Data Dictionary View Names and Informix Equivalents

View Name

Informix System Catalog Table Name

ALL_CATALOG

systables

ALL_COL_COMMENTS

systables + syscolumns

ALL_COL_PRIVS

systables + syscolumns + syscolauth

ALL_CONS_COLUMNS

systables + sysconstraints + syscolumns + sysindexes

ALL_CONSTRAINTS

systables + sysconstraints + sysreferences

ALL_IND_COLUMNS

systables + sysindexes + syscolumns

ALL_INDEXES

sysindexes + systables

ALL_OBJECTS

systables + sysindexes + sysprocedures + sysprocplan

ALL_SYNONYMS

systables + syssynonyms + syssyntable

ALL_TAB_COLUMNS

systables + syscolumns

ALL_TAB_COMMENTS

systables

ALL_TAB_PRIVS

systables + systabauth

ALL_TABLES

systables

ALL_USERS

sysusers

ALL_VIEWS

systables + sysviews

COLUMN_PRIVILEGES

systables + syscolauth + syscolumns

DBA_CATALOG

systables

DBA_COL_COMMENTS

systables + syscolumns

DBA_OBJECTS

systables + sysindexes + sysprocedures + sysprocplan

DBA_TABLES

systables

DBA_TAB_COLUMNS

systables + syscolumns

DBA_TAB_COMMENTS

systables

DICT_COLUMNS

systables + syscolumns

DICTIONARY

systables

DUAL

(Defined in the Gateway)

TABLE_PRIVILEGES

systabauth + systables

USER_CATALOG

systables

USER_COL_COMMENTS

systables + syscolumns

USER_COL_PRIVS

systables + syscolumns + syscolauth

USER_CONS_COLUMNS

systables + sysconstraints + syscolumns + sysindexes

USER_CONSTRAINTS

systables + sysconstraints + sysreferences

USER_IND_COLUMNS

systables + sysindexes + syscolumns

USER_INDEXES

systables + sysindexes

USER_OBJECTS

systables + sysindexes + sysprocedures + sysprocplan

USER_SYNONYMS

systables + syssynonyms + syssyntable

USER_TAB_COLUMNS

systables + syscolumns

USER_TAB_COMMENTS

systables

USER_TAB_PRIVS

systables + systabauth

USER_TABLES

systables

USER_USERS

sysusers

USER_VIEWS

systables + sysviews

C.2.1 Default Column Values

There is a minor difference between the gateway data dictionary and a typical Oracle database data dictionary. The Oracle database columns that are missing in an Informix system catalog table are filled with zeros, spaces, null values, not-applicable values (N.A.), or default values, depending on the column type.

C.3 Gateway Data Dictionary Descriptions

The gateway data dictionary tables and views provide the following information:

- Name, data type, and width of each column

- The contents of columns with fixed values

They are described here with information retrieved by an Oracle SQL*Plus DESCRIBE command. The values in the Null? column might differ from the Oracle database data dictionary tables and views. Any default value is shown to the right of an item, but this is not information returned by DESCRIBE.

Table C-2 ALL_CATALOG

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR2(7)

"TABLE" or "VIEW" or "SYNONYM"

Table C-3 ALL_COL_COMMENTS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COMMENTS

CHAR(1)

" "

Table C-4 ALL_COL_PRIVS

Name

Type

Value

GRANTOR

VARCHAR2(32)

-

GRANTEE

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_SCHEMA

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

PRIVILEGE

VARCHAR2(10)

"SELECT" or "UPDATE" or "REFERENCES"

GRANTABLE

VARCHAR2(3)

"YES" or "NO"

Table C-5 ALL_CONS_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

CONSTRAINT_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

POSITION

NUMBER(10)

0

Table C-6 ALL_CONSTRAINTS

Name

Value

OWNER

-

CONSTRAINT_NAME

-

CONSTRAINT_TYPE

"R" or "P" or "U" or "C"

TABLE_NAME

-

SEARCH_CONDITION

" "

R_OWNER

" "

R_CONSTRAINT_NAME

" "

DELETE_RULE

" "

STATUS

" "

DEFERRABLE

" "

DEFERRED

" "

VALIDATED

" "

GENERATED

" "

BAD

" "

RELY

" "

LAST_CHANGE

-

Table C-7 ALL_IND_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

INDEX_OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

INDEX_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_POSITION

NUMBER(10)

0

COLUMN_LENGTH

NUMBER(10)

0

DESCEND

CHAR(1)

" "

Table C-8 ALL_INDEXES

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

INDEX_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

INDEX_TYPE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TABLE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR(5)

"TABLE"

UNIQUENESS

VARCHAR2(9)

"UNIQUE" or "NONUNIQUE"

COMPRESSION

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PREFIX_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

TABLESPACE_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

INI_TRANS

NUMBER

0

MAX_TRANS

NUMBER

0

INITIAL_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

NEXT_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

MIN_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

MAX_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

PCT_INCREASE

NUMBER

0

PCT_THRESHOLD

NUMBER

0

INCLUDE_COLUMN

NUMBER

0

FREELISTS

NUMBER

0

FREELIST_GROUPS

NUMBER

0

PCT_FREE

NUMBER

0

LOGGING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BLEVEL

NUMBER

0

LEAF_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

DISTINCT_KEYS

NUMBER

0

AVG_LEAF_BLOCKS_PER_KEY

NUMBER

0

AVG_DATA_BLOCKS_PER_KEY

NUMBER

0

CLUSTERING_FACTOR

NUMBER

0

STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_ROWS

NUMBER

0

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

DEGREE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

INSTANCES

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PARTITIONED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GENERATED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BUFFER_POOL

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DURATION

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PCT_DIRECT_ACCESS

NUMBER

0

ITYP_OWNER

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

ITYP_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PARAMETERS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DOMIDX_STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DOMIDX_OPSTATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

FUNCIDX_STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-9 ALL_OBJECTS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

OBJECT_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

SUBOBJECT_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

OBJECT_ID

NUMBER

-

DATA_OBJECT_ID

NUMBER

0

OBJECT_TYPE

VARCHAR2(9)

"TABLE" or "VIEW" or "SYNONYM" or "INDEX" or "PROCEDURE"

CREATED

DATE

-

LAST_DDL_TIME

DATE

-

TIMESTAMP

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GENERATED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-10 ALL_SYNONYMS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

SYNONYM_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

DB_LINK

CHAR(1)

NULL

Table C-11 ALL_TAB_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

DATA_TYPE

VARCHAR2(8)

-

DATA_TYPE_MOD

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DATA_TYPE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DATA_LENGTH

NUMBER

-

DATA_PRECISION

NUMBER

-

DATA_SCALE

NUMBER

-

NULLABLE

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

COLUMN_ID

NUMBER(5)

-

DEFAULT_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

DATA_DEFAULT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_DISTINCT

NUMBER

0

LOW_VALUE

NUMBER

0

HIGH_VALUE

NUMBER

0

DENSITY

NUMBER

0

NUM_NULLS

NUMBER

0

NUM_BUCKETS

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

CHARACTER_SET_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CHAR_COL_DECL_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

AVG_COL_LEN

NUMBER

0

Table C-12 ALL_TAB_COMMENTS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR2(5)

"TABLE" or "VIEW"

COMMENTS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-13 ALL_TAB_PRIVS

Name

Type

Value

GRANTOR

VARCHAR2(32)

-

GRANTEE

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_SCHEMA

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

PRIVILEGE

VARCHAR2(10)

"SELECT" or "UPDATE" or "INSERT" or "DELETE" or "INDEX" or "ALTER" or "REFERENCES"

GRANTABLE

VARCHAR2 (3)

"YES"

Table C-14 ALL_TABLES

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLESPACE_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CLUSTER_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

IOT_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PCT_FREE

NUMBER

0

PCT_USED

NUMBER

0

INI_TRANS

NUMBER

0

MAX_TRANS

NUMBER

0

INITIAL_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

NEXT_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

MIN_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

MAX_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

PCT_INCREASE

NUMBER

0

FREELISTS

NUMBER

0

FREELIST_GROUPS

NUMBER

0

LOGGING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BACKED_UP

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_ROWS

NUMBER(10)

-

BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

EMPTY_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

AVG_SPACE

NUMBER

0

CHAIN_CNT

NUMBER

0

AVG_ROW_LEN

NUMBER

0

AVG_SPACE_FREELIST_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

NUM_FREELIST_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

DEGREE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

INSTANCES

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CACHE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TABLE_LOCK

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

PARTITIONED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

IOT_TYPE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARHCAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NESTED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BUFFER_POOL

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

ROW_MOVEMENT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DURATION

VARHCAR2(1)

NULL

SKIP_CORRUPT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

MONITORING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-15 ALL_USERS

Name

Type

Value

USERNAME

VARCHAR2(32)

-

USER_ID

NUMBER

0

CREATED

DATE

SYSDATE

Table C-16 ALL_VIEWS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

VIEW_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TEXT_LENGTH

NUMBER(10)

64

TEXT

VARCHAR2(64)

-

TYPE_TEXT_LENGTH

NUMBER(10)

0

TYPE_TEXT

CHAR(1)

" "

OID_TEXT_LENGTH

NUMBER(10)

0

OID_TEXT

CHAR(1)

" "

VIEW_TYPE_OWNER

CHAR(1)

" "

VIEW_TYPE

CHAR(1)

" "

Table C-17 COLUMN_PRIVILEGES

Name

Type

Value

GRANTEE

VARCHAR2(32)

-

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

GRANTOR

VARCHAR2(32)

-

INSERT_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y"

UPDATE_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y"

REFERENCES_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CREATED

DATE

SYSDATE

Table C-18 DBA_CATALOG

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR2(7)

"TABLE" or "VIEW" or "SYNONYM"

Table C-19 DBA_COL_COMMENTS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COMMENTS

CHAR(1)

" "

Table C-20 DBA_OBJECTS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

OBJECT_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

SUBOBJECT_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

OBJECT_ID

NUMBER

-

DATA_OBJECT_ID

NUMBER

0

OBJECT_TYPE

VARCHAR2(9)

"TABLE" or "VIEW" or "SYNONYM" or "INDEX" or "PROCEDURE"

CREATED

DATE

-

LAST_DDL_TIME

DATE

-

TIMESTAMP

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GENERATED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-21 DBA_TAB_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

DATA_TYPE

VARCHAR2(8)

-

DATA_TYPE_MOD

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DATA_TYPE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DATA_LENGTH

NUMBER

-

DATA_PRECISION

NUMBER

-

DATA_SCALE

NUMBER

-

NULLABLE

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

COLUMN_ID

NUMBER(5)

-

DEFAULT_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

DATA_DEFAULT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_DISTINCT

NUMBER

0

LOW_VALUE

NUMBER

0

HIGH_VALUE

NUMBER

0

DENSITY

NUMBER

0

NUM_NULLS

NUMBER

0

NUM_BUCKETS

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

CHARACTER_SET_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CHAR_COL_DECL_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

AVG_COL_LEN

NUMBER

0

Table C-22 DBA_TAB_COMMENTS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR2(5)

"TABLE" or "VIEW"

COMMENTS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-23 DBA_TABLES

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLESPACE_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CLUSTER_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

IOT_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PCT_FREE

NUMBER

0

PCT_USED

NUMBER

0

INI_TRANS

NUMBER

0

MAX_TRANS

NUMBER

0

INITIAL_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

NEXT_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

MIN_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

MAX_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

PCT_INCREASE

NUMBER

0

FREELISTS

NUMBER

0

FREELIST_GROUPS

NUMBER

0

LOGGING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BACKED_UP

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_ROWS

NUMBER(10)

BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

EMPTY_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

AVG_SPACE

NUMBER

0

CHAIN_CNT

NUMBER

0

AVG_ROW_LEN

NUMBER

0

AVG_SPACE_FREELIST_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

NUM_FREELIST_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

DEGREE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

INSTANCES

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CACHE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TABLE_LOCK

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

PARTITIONED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

IOT_TYPE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARHCAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NESTED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BUFFER_POOL

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

ROW_MOVEMENT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DURATION

VARHCAR2(1)

NULL

SKIP_CORRUPT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

MONITORING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-24 DICT_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COMMENTS

VARCHAR2(1)

-

Table C-25 DICTIONARY

Name

Type

Value

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COMMENTS

CHAR(1)

" "

Table C-26 DUAL

Name

Type

Value

DUMMY

VARCHAR2(1)

"X"

Table C-27 TABLE_PRIVILEGES

Name

Type

Value

GRANTEE

VARCHAR2(32)

-

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

GRANTOR

VARCHAR2(32)

-

SELECT_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

INSERT_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

DELETE_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

UPDATE_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

REFERENCES_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

ALTER_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

INDEX_PRIV

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

CREATED

DATE

SYSDATE

Table C-28 USER_CATALOG

Name

Type

Value

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR2(7)

"TABLE" or "VIEW" or "SYNONYM"

Table C-29 USER_COL_COMMENTS

Name

Type

Value

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COMMENTS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-30 USER_COL_PRIVS

Name

Type

Value

GRANTOR

VARCHAR2(32)

-

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

GRANTEE

VARCHAR2(32)

-

PRIVILEGE

VARCHAR2(10)

"SELECT" or "UPDATE" or "REFERENCES"

GRANTABLE

VARCHAR2(3)

"YES" or "NO"

Table C-31 USER_CONS_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

CONSTRAINT_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

POSITION

NUMBER

0

Table C-32 USER_CONSTRAINTS

Name

Type

Value

OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

CONSTRAINT_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

CONSTRAINT_TYPE

VARCHAR2(1)

"R" or "P" or "U" or "C"

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

SEARCH_CONDITION

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

R_OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

NULL

R_CONSTRAINT_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

NULL

DELETE_RULE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DEFERRABLE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DEFERRED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

VALIDATED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GENERATED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BAD

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

RELY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

LAST_CHANGE

DATE

Table C-33 USER_IND_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

INDEX_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_POSITION

NUMBER

0

COLUMN_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

DESCEND

VARCHAR2(1)

-

Table C-34 USER_INDEXES

Name

Type

Value

INDEX_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

INDEX_TYPE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TABLE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR2(5)

"TABLE"

UNIQUENESS

VARCHAR2(9)

"UNIQUE" or "NONUNIQUE"

COMPRESSION

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PREFIX_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

TABLESPACE_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

INI_TRANS

NUMBER

0

MAX_TRANS

NUMBER

0

INITIAL_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

NEXT_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

MIN_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

MAX_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

PCT_INCREASE

NUMBER

0

PCT_THRESHOLD

NUMBER

0

INCLUDE_COLUMN

NUMBER

0

FREELISTS

NUMBER

0

FREELIST_GROUPS

NUMBER

0

PCT_FREE

NUMBER

0

LOGGING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BLEVEL

NUMBER

0

LEAF_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

DISTINCT_KEYS

NUMBER

-

AVG_LEAF_BLOCKS_PER_KEY

NUMBER

0

AVG_DATA_BLOCKS_PER_KEY

NUMBER

0

CLUSTERING_FACTOR

NUMBER

0

STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_ROWS

NUMBER

0

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

DEGREE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

INSTANCES

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PARTITIONED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GENERATED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BUFFER_POOL

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DURATION

VARHCAR2(1)

NULL

PCT_DIRECT_ACCESS

NUMBER

0

ITYP_OWNER

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

ITYP_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PARAMETERS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DOMIDX_STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DOMIDX_OPSTATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

FUNCIDX_STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-35 USER_OBJECTS

Name

Type

Value

OBJECT_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

SUBOBJECT_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

OBJECT_ID

NUMBER

-

DATA_OBJECT_ID

NUMBER

0

OBJECT_TYPE

VARCHAR2(9)

"TABLE" or "VIEW" or "SYNONYM" or "INDEX" or "PROCEDURE"

CREATED

DATE

-

LAST_DDL_TIME

DATE

-

TIMESTAMP

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

STATUS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GENERATED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-36 USER_SYNONYMS

Name

Type

Value

SYNONYM_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_OWNER'

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

DB_LINK

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-37 USER_TAB_COLUMNS

Name

Type

Value

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

COLUMN_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

DATA_TYPE

VARCHAR2(8)

-

DATA_TYPE_MOD

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DATA_TYPE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DATA_LENGTH

NUMBER

-

DATA_PRECISION

NUMBER

-

DATA_SCALE

NUMBER

-

NULLABLE

VARCHAR2(1)

"Y" or "N"

COLUMN_ID

NUMBER(5)

-

DEFAULT_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

DATA_DEFAULT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_DISTINCT

NUMBER

0

LOW_VALUE

NUMBER

0

HIGH_VALUE

NUMBER

0

DENSITY

NUMBER

0

NUM_NULLS

NUMBER

0

NUM_BUCKETS

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

CHARACTER_SET_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CHAR_COL_DECL_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

AVG_COL_LEN

NUMBER

0

Table C-38 USER_TAB_COMMENTS

Name

Type

Value

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLE_TYPE

VARCHAR2(5)

"TABLE" or "VIEW"

COMMENTS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-39 USER_TAB_PRIVS

Name

Type

Value

GRANTEE

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_SCHEMA

VARCHAR2(32)

-

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

GRANTOR

VARCHAR2(32)

-

PRIVILEGE

VARCHAR2(6)

"SELECT" or "UPDATE" or "INSERT" or "DELETE" or "INDEX" or " "

GRANTABLE

VARCHAR2(3)

"YES"

Table C-40 USER_TABLES

Name

Type

Value

TABLE_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TABLESPACE_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CLUSTER_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

IOT_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

PCT_FREE

NUMBER

0

PCT_USED

NUMBER

0

INI_TRANS

NUMBER

0

MAX_TRANS

NUMBER

0

INITIAL_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

NEXT_EXTENT

NUMBER

0

MIN_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

MAX_EXTENTS

NUMBER

0

PCT_INCREASE

NUMBER

0

FREELISTS

NUMBER

0

FREELIST_GROUPS

NUMBER

0

LOGGING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BACKED_UP

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NUM_ROWS

NUMBER(10)

0

BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

EMPTY_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

AVG_SPACE

NUMBER

0

CHAIN_CNT

NUMBER

0

AVG_ROW_LEN

NUMBER

0

AVG_SPACE_FREELIST_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

NUM_FREELIST_BLOCKS

NUMBER

0

DEGREE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

INSTANCES

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CACHE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TABLE_LOCK

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SAMPLE_SIZE

NUMBER

0

LAST_ANALYZED

DATE

to_date('01-01-1980', 'dd-mm-yyyy')

PARTITIONED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

IOT_TYPE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY

VARHCAR2(1)

NULL

SECONDARY

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

NESTED

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

BUFFER_POOL

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

ROW_MOVEMENT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

GLOBAL_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

USER_STATS

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

DURATION

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

SKIP_CORRUPT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

MONITORING

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-41 USER_USERS

Name

Type

Value

USERNAME

VARCHAR2(32)

-

USER_ID

NUMBER

-

ACCOUNT_STATUS

VARCHAR2(4)

"OPEN"

LOCK_DATE

DATE

NULL

EXPIRY_DATE

DATE

NULL

DEFAULT_TABLESPACE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

TEMPORARY_TABLESPACE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

CREATED

DATE

NULL

INITIAL_RSRC_CONSUMER_GROUP

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

EXTERNAL_NAME

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

Table C-42 USER_VIEWS

Name

Type

Value

VIEW_NAME

VARCHAR2(128)

-

TEXT_LENGTH

NUMBER

64

TEXT

VARCHAR2(64)

-

TYPE_TEXT_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

TYPE_TEXT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

OID_TEXT_LENGTH

NUMBER

0

OID_TEXT

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

VIEW_TYPE_OWNER

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

VIEW_TYPE

VARCHAR2(1)

NULL

D Initialization Parameters

The Oracle database initialization parameters in the init.ora file are distinct from gateway initialization parameters. Set the gateway parameters in the initialization parameter file using an agent-specific mechanism, or set them in the Oracle data dictionary using the DBMS_HS package. The gateway initialization parameter file must be available when the gateway is started.

This appendix contains a list of the gateway initialization parameters that can be set for each gateway and their description. It also describes the initialization parameter file syntax. It includes the following sections:

- Initialization Parameter File Syntax

- Oracle Database Gateway for Informix Initialization Parameters

- Initialization Parameter Descriptions

D.1 Initialization Parameter File Syntax

The syntax for the initialization parameter file is as follows:

1. The file is a sequence of commands.

2. Each command should start on a separate line.

3. End of line is considered a command terminator (unless escaped with a backslash).

4. If there is a syntax error in an initialization parameter file, none of the settings take effect.

5. Set the parameter values as follows:

[SET][PRIVATE] parameter=value

Where:

parameter is an initialization parameter name. It is a string of characters starting with a letter and consisting of letters, digits and underscores. Initialization parameter names are case sensitive.

value is the initialization parameter value. It is case-sensitive. An initialization parameter value is either:

1. A string of characters that does not contain any backslashes, white space or double quotation marks (")

2. A quoted string beginning with a double quotation mark and ending with a double quotation mark. The following can be used inside a quoted string:

- backslash (\) is the escape character

- \n inserts a new line

- \t inserts a tab

- \" inserts a double quotation mark

- \\ inserts a backslash

A backslash at the end of the line continues the string on the next line. If a backslash precedes any other character then the backslash is ignored.

For example, to enable tracing for an agent, set the HS_FDS_TRACE_LEVEL initialization parameter as follows:

HS_FDS_TRACE_LEVEL=ON

SET and PRIVATE are optional keywords. You cannot use either as an initialization parameter name. Most parameters are needed only as initialization parameters, so you usually do not need to use the SET or PRIVATE keywords. If you do not specify either SET or PRIVATE, the parameter is used only as an initialization parameter for the agent.

SET specifies that, in addition to being used as an initialization parameter, the parameter value is set as an environment variable for the agent process. Use SET for parameter values that the drivers or non-Oracle system need as environment variables.

PRIVATE specifies that the initialization parameter should be private to the agent and should not be uploaded to the Oracle database. Most initialization parameters should not be private. If, however, you are storing sensitive information like a password in the initialization parameter file, then you may not want it uploaded to the server because the initialization parameters and values are not encrypted when uploaded. Making the initialization parameters private prevents the upload from happening and they do not appear in dynamic performance views. Use PRIVATE for the initialization parameters only if the parameter value includes sensitive information such as a user name or password.

SET PRIVATE specifies that the parameter value is set as an environment variable for the agent process and is also private (not transferred to the Oracle database, not appearing in dynamic performance views or graphical user interfaces).

D.2 Oracle Database Gateway for Informix Initialization Parameters

This section lists all the initialization file parameters that can be set for the Oracle Database Gateway for Informix. They are as follows:

- HS_DB_DOMAIN

- HS_DB_INTERNAL_NAME

- HS_DB_NAME

- HS_DESCRIBE_CACHE_HWM

- HS_LANGUAGE

- HS_LONG_PIECE_TRANSFER_SIZE

- HS_OPEN_CURSORS

- HS_RPC_FETCH_REBLOCKING

- HS_RPC_FETCH_SIZE

- HS_TIME_ZONE

- HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL

- IFILE

- HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO

- HS_FDS_DEFAULT_OWNER

- HS_FDS_RECOVERY_ACCOUNT

- HS_FDS_RECOVERY_PWD

- HS_FDS_TRACE_LEVEL

- HS_FDS_TRANSACTION_LOG

- HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS

- HS_IDLE_TIMEOUT

- HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS

- HS_KEEP_REMOTE_COLUMN_SIZE

- HS_FDS_REMOTE_DB_CHARSET

- HS_FDS_SUPPORT_STATISTICS

- HS_FDS_SQLLEN_INTERPRETATION

D.3 Initialization Parameter Description

The following sections describe all the initialization file parameters that can be set for gateways.

D.3.1 HS_DB_DOMAIN

Property

Description

Default value

WORLD

Range of values

1 to 199 characters

Specifies a unique network sub-address for a non-Oracle system. The HS_DB_DOMAIN initialization parameter is similar to the DB_DOMAIN initialization parameter, described in the Oracle Database Reference. The HS_DB_DOMAIN initialization parameter is required if you use the Oracle Names server. The HS_DB_NAME and HS_DB_DOMAIN initialization parameters define the global name of the non-Oracle system.

Note:

The HS_DB_NAME and HS_DB_DOMAIN initialization parameters must combine to form a unique address in a cooperative server environment.

D.3.2 HS_DB_INTERNAL_NAME

Property

Description

Default value

01010101

Range of values

1 to 16 hexadecimal characters

Specifies a unique hexadecimal number identifying the instance to which the Heterogeneous Services agent is connected. This parameter's value is used as part of a transaction ID when global name services are activated. Specifying a nonunique number can cause problems when two-phase commit recovery actions are necessary for a transaction.

D.3.3 HS_DB_NAME

Property

Description

Default value

HO

Range of values

1 to 8 characters

Specifies a unique alphanumeric name for the data store given to the non-Oracle system. This name identifies the non-Oracle system within the cooperative server environment. The HS_DB_NAME and HS_DB_DOMAIN initialization parameters define the global name of the non-Oracle system.

D.3.4 HS_DESCRIBE_CACHE_HWM

Property

Description

Default value

100

Range of values

1 to 4000

Specifies the maximum number of entries in the describe cache used by Heterogeneous Services. This limit is known as the describe cache high water mark. The cache contains descriptions of the mapped tables that Heterogeneous Services reuses so that it does not have to re-access the non-Oracle data store.

If you are accessing many mapped tables, increase the high water mark to improve performance. Increasing the high water mark improves performance at the cost of memory usage.

D.3.5 HS_LANGUAGE

Property

Description

Default value

System-specific

Range of values

Any valid language name (up to 255 characters)

Provides Heterogeneous Services with character set, language, and territory information of the non-Oracle data source. The value must use the following format:

language[_territory.character_set]

Note:

The globalization support initialization parameters affect error messages, the data for the SQL Service, and parameters in distributed external procedures.

D.3.5.1 Character Sets

Ideally, the character sets of the Oracle database and the non-Oracle data source are the same. In almost all cases, HS_LANGUAGE should be set exactly the same as Oracle database character set for optimal character set mapping and performance. If they are not the same, Heterogeneous Services attempts to translate the character set of the non-Oracle data source to the Oracle database character set, and back again. The translation can degrade performance. In some cases, Heterogeneous Services cannot translate a character from one character set to another.

Note:

The specified character set must be a superset of the operating system character set on the platform where the agent is installed.

As more Oracle databases and non-Oracle databases use Unicode as database character sets, it is preferable to also run the gateway in Unicode character set. To do so, you must set HS_LANGUAGE=AL32UTF8. However, when the gateway runs on Windows, the Microsoft ODBC Driver Manager interface can exchange data only in the double-byte character set, UCS2. This results in extra ratio expansion of described buffer and column sizes. Refer to HS_FDS_REMOTE_DB_CHARSET for instruction on how to adjust to correct sizes.

D.3.5.2 Language

The language component of the HS_LANGUAGE initialization parameter determines:

- Day and month names of dates

- AD, BC, PM, and AM symbols for date and time

- Default sorting mechanism

Note that Oracle does not determine the language for error messages for the generic Heterogeneous Services messages (ORA-25000 through ORA-28000). These are controlled by the session settings in the Oracle database.

D.3.5.3 Territory

The territory clause specifies the conventions for day and week numbering, default date format, decimal character and group separator, and ISO and local currency symbols. Note that the level of globalization support between the Oracle database and the non-Oracle data source depends on how the gateway is implemented.

D.3.6 HS_LONG_PIECE_TRANSFER_SIZE

Property

Description

Default value

64 KB

Range of values

Any value up to 2 GB

Sets the size of the piece of LONG data being transferred. A smaller piece size means less memory requirement, but more round-trips to fetch all the data. A larger piece size means fewer round-trips, but more of a memory requirement to store the intermediate pieces internally. Thus, the initialization parameter can be used to tune a system for the best performance, with the best trade-off between round-trips and memory requirements, and network latency or response time.

D.3.7 HS_OPEN_CURSORS

Property

Description

Default value

50

Range of values

1 to the value of Oracle's OPEN_CURSORS initialization parameter

Defines the maximum number of cursors that can be open on one connection to a non-Oracle system instance.

The value never exceeds the number of open cursors in the Oracle database. Therefore, setting the same value as the OPEN_CURSORS initialization parameter in the Oracle database is recommended.

D.3.8 HS_RPC_FETCH_REBLOCKING

Property

Description

Default value

ON

Range of values

OFF or ON

Controls whether Heterogeneous Services attempts to optimize performance of data transfer between the Oracle database and the Heterogeneous Services agent connected to the non-Oracle data store.

The following values are possible:

- OFF disables reblocking of fetched data so that data is immediately sent from agent to server.

- ON enables reblocking, which means that data fetched from the non-Oracle system is buffered in the agent and is not sent to the Oracle database until the amount of fetched data is equal or higher than the value of HS_RPC_FETCH_SIZE initialization parameter. However, any buffered data is returned immediately when a fetch indicates that no more data exists or when the non-Oracle system reports an error.

D.3.9 HS_RPC_FETCH_SIZE

Property

Description

Default value

50000

Range of values

1 to 10000000

Tunes internal data buffering to optimize the data transfer rate between the server and the agent process.

Increasing the value can reduce the number of network round-trips needed to transfer a given amount of data, but also tends to increase data bandwidth and to reduce latency as measured between issuing a query and completion of all fetches for the query. Nevertheless, increasing the fetch size can increase latency for the initial fetch results of a query, because the first fetch results are not transmitted until additional data is available.

D.3.10 HS_TIME_ZONE

Property

Description

Default value for '[+|-]hh:mm'

Derived from the NLS_TERRITORY initialization parameter

Range of values for '[+|-]hh:mm'

Any valid datetime format mask

Specifies the default local time zone displacement for the current SQL session. The format mask, [+|-]hh:mm, is specified to indicate the hours and minutes before or after UTC (Coordinated Universal Time—formerly Greenwich Mean Time). For example:

HS_TIME_ZONE = [+ | -] hh:mm

D.3.11 HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL

Property

Description

Default Value

COMMIT_CONFIRM

Range of Values

COMMIT_CONFIRM, READ_ONLY, SINGLE_SITE, READ_ONLY_AUTOCOMMIT, SINGLE_SITE_AUTOCOMMIT

Specifies the type of transaction model that is used when the non-Oracle database is updated by a transaction.

The following values are possible:

- COMMIT_CONFIRM provides read and write access to the non-Oracle database and allows the gateway to be part of a distributed update. To use the commit-confirm model, the following items must be created in the non-Oracle database:

- Transaction log table. The default table name is HS_TRANSACTION_LOG. A different name can be set using the HS_FDS_TRANSACTION_LOG parameter. The transaction log table must be granted SELECT, DELETE, and INSERT privileges set to public.

- Recovery account. The account name is assigned with the HS_FDS_RECOVERY_ACCOUNT parameter.

- Recovery account password. The password is assigned with the HS_FDS_RECOVERY_PWD parameter.

- READ_ONLY provides read access to the non-Oracle database.

- SINGLE_SITE provides read and write access to the non-Oracle database. However, the gateway cannot participate in distributed updates.

- READ_ONLY_AUTOCOMMIT provides read only access to the non-Oracle database that does not use logging.

- SINGLE_SITE_AUTOCOMMIT provides read and write access to the non-Oracle database without logging. The gateway cannot participate in distributed updates. Moreover, any update to the non-Oracle database is committed immediately.

D.3.12 IFILE

Property

Description

Default value

None

Range of values

Valid parameter file names

Use the IFILE initialization parameter to embed another initialization file within the current initialization file. The value should be an absolute path and should not contain environment variables. The three levels of nesting limit do not apply.

See Also:

Oracle Database Reference

D.3.13 HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO

Property

Description

Default Value

None

Range of Values

Not applicable

HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO that describes the connection to the non-Oracle system.

The default initialization parameter file already has an entry for this parameter. The syntax for HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO for the gateway is as follows:

HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO=host_name:port_number/server_name/database_name

where, host_name is the host name or IP address of the machine hosting the Informix database, port_number is the port number of the Informix database server, server_name is the name of the Informix database server, and database_name is the Informix database name.

This release supports IPv6 format, so you can enter IPv6 format in place of hostname, but you need to wrap square brackets around the IPv6 specification.

For example,

HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO=[2001:0db8:20c:f1ff:fec6:38af]:port_number/…

D.3.14 HS_FDS_DEFAULT_OWNER

Property

Description

Default Value

None

Range of Values

Not applicable

The name of the table owner that is used for the non-Oracle database tables if an owner is not specified in the SQL statements.

Note:

If this parameter is not specified and the owner is not explicitly specified in the SQL statement, then the user name of the Oracle user or the user name specified when creating the database link is used.

D.3.15 HS_FDS_RECOVERY_ACCOUNT

Property

Description

Default Value

RECOVER

Range of values

Any valid user ID

Specifies the name of the recovery account used for the commit-confirm transaction model. An account with user name and password must be set up at the non-Oracle system. For more information about the commit-confirm model, see the HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL parameter.

The name of the recovery account is case-sensitive.

D.3.16 HS_FDS_RECOVERY_PWD

Property

Description

Default Value

RECOVER

Range of values

Any valid password

Specifies the password of the recovery account used for the commit-confirm transaction model set up at the non-Oracle system. For more information about the commit-confirm model, see the HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL parameter.

The name of the password of the recovery account is case-sensitive.

D.3.17 HS_FDS_TRACE_LEVEL

Property

Description

Default Value

OFF

Range of values

OFF, ON, DEBUG

Specifies whether error tracing is turned on or off for gateway connectivity.

The following values are valid:

- OFF disables the tracing of error messages.

- ON enables the tracing of error messages that occur when you encounter problems. The results are written by default to a gateway log file in LOG directory where the gateway is installed.

- DEBUG enables the tracing of detailed error messages that can be used for debugging.

D.3.18 HS_FDS_TRANSACTION_LOG

Property

Description

Default Value

HS_TRANSACTION_LOG

Range of Values

Any valid table name

Specifies the name of the table created in the non-Oracle system for logging transactions. For more information about the transaction model, see the HS_TRANSACTION_MODEL parameter.

D.3.19 HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS

Property

Description

Default Value

100

Range of Values

Any integer between 1 and 1000

Syntax

HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS=num

HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS specifies the fetch array size. This is the number of rows to be fetched from the non-Oracle database and to return to Oracle database at one time. This parameter will be affected by the HS_RPC_FETCH_SIZE and HS_RPC_FETCH_REBLOCKING parameters.

D.3.20 HS_IDLE_TIMEOUT

Property

Description

Default Value

0 (no timeout)

Range of Values

0-9999 (minutes)

Syntax

HS_IDLE_TIMEOUT=num

This feature is only available for Oracle Net TCP protocol. When there is no activity for a connected gateway session for this specified time period, the gateway session would be terminated automatically with pending update (if any) rolled back.

D.3.21 HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS

Property

Description

Default Value

BYTE

Range of Values

BYTE | CHAR

Syntax

HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS = { BYTE | CHAR }

This release of gateway has Character Semantics functionality equivalent to the Oracle Database Character Semantics, that is, NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS. When HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS is set to CHAR, the (VAR)CHAR columns of Informix database are to be interpreted as having CHAR semantics. The only situation the gateway does not honor the HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS=CHAR setting is when both Oracle database and the gateway are on the same multi-byte character set.

D.3.22 HS_KEEP_REMOTE_COLUMN_SIZE

Property

Description

Default Value

OFF

Range of Values

OFF | LOCAL |REMOTE | ALL

Syntax

HS_KEEP_REMOTE_COLUMN_SIZE = OFF | LOCAL |REMOTE | ALL

Parameter type

String

HS_KEEP_REMOTE_COLUMN_SIZE specifies whether to suppress ratio expansion when computing the length of (VAR)CHAR datatypes during data conversion from non-Oracle database to the gateway, and then to the Oracle database. When it is set to REMOTE, the expansion is suppressed between the non-Oracle database and the gateway. When it is set to LOCAL, the expansion is suppressed between the gateway and the Oracle database. When it is set to ALL, the expansion is suppressed from the non-Oracle database to the Oracle database.

When the parameter is set, the expansion is suppressed when reporting the remote column size, calculating the implicit resulting buffer size, and instantiating in the local Oracle database. This has effect only for remote column size from non-Oracle database to Oracle database. If the gateway runs on Windows and HS_LANGUAGE=AL32UTF8, then you must not specify this parameter, as it would influence other ratio related parameter operation. It has no effect for calculating ratio for data moving from Oracle database to non-Oracle database through gateway during INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE.

D.3.23 HS_FDS_REMOTE_DB_CHARSET

Property

Description

Default Value

None

Range of values

Not applicable

Syntax

HS_FDS_REMOTE_DB_CHARSET

This parameter is valid only when HS_LANGUAGE is set to AL32UTF8 and the gateway runs on Windows. As more Oracle databases and non-Oracle databases use Unicode as database character sets, it is preferable to also run the gateway in Unicode character set. To do so, you must set HS_LANGUAGE=AL32UTF8. However, when the gateway runs on Windows, the Microsoft ODBC Driver Manager interface can exchange data only in the double-byte character set, UCS2. This results in extra ratio expansion of described buffer and column sizes. To compensate, the gateway can re-adjust the column size if HS_FDS_REMOTE_DB_CHARSET is set to the corresponding non-Oracle database character set. For example, HS_FDS_REMOTE_DB_CHARSET=KO16KSC5601.

D.3.24 HS_FDS_SUPPORT_STATISTICS

Property

Description

Default Value

TRUE

Range of values

{TRUE|FALSE}

Syntax

HS_FDS_SUPPORT_STATISTICS= {TRUE|FALSE}

We gather statistics from the non-Oracle database by default. You can choose to disable the gathering of remote database statistics by setting the HS_FDS_SUPPORT_STATISTICS parameter to FALSE.

D.3.25 HS_FDS_SQLLEN_INTERPRETATION

Property

Description

Default Value

64

Range of values

{64|32}

Syntax

HS_FDS_SQLLEN_INTERPRETATION= {64|32}

This parameter is only valid for 64 bit platforms. ODBC standard specifies SQLLEN (of internal ODBC construct) being 64 bit on 64 bit platforms, but some ODBC driver managers and drivers violate this convention, and implement it as 32 bit. In order for the gateway to compensate their behavior, you need to specify HS_FDS_SQLLEN_INTERPRETATION=32 if you use these types of driver managers and driver.

Index

A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  K  L  M  N  O  P  R  S  T  U  V  W

A

ALTER statement, B.1

Arithmetic operators, B.2.2.1

B

BYTE data type, A.1, A.1

C

Case rules, 2.6.2.3

Case studies, 3

case1.sql, 3.3

CHAR data type, A.1

character sets

Heterogeneous Services, D.3.5.1

COMMIT

restrictions, 2.7.3

Commit point site, 2.7.2

Comparison operators, B.2.2.2

CONNECT BY clause, 2.7.6.2

CREATE statement, B.1

Cursor loops

restrictions, 2.7.3

D

Data definition language, B.1

Data dictionary

views, C.1.4

Data type

BYTE, A.1, A.1

CHAR, A.1

conversion, 2.6.3.2

DATETIME, A.1

DECIMAL, A.1

FLOAT, A.1

INTEGER, A.1

LONG, A.1

LONG RAW, A.1, A.1

MONEY, A.1

NCHAR, A.1

NVARCHAR, A.1

SERIAL, A.1, A.1

SMALLFLOAT, A.1

TEXT, A.1

VARCHAR, A.1, A.1

VARCHAR2, A.1, A.1

Date functions, B.2.2.6

DATETIME data type, A.1

DECIMAL data type, A.1

DELETE statement, 3.9.1, B.1.1, B.2.1

restrictions on use, 2.7.6.5

Demo build SQL script, 3.3

Demonstration files, 3.3

Demonstration tables, 3.5

Demonstration tables build SQL script, 3.5

describe cache high water mark

definition, D.3.4

DROP statement, B.1

E

Encrypted format login, 2.8.1

Error messages

error tracing, D.3.17

Errors

ORA-02070, 2.7.2

F

fetch array size, with HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS, D.3.19

FLOAT data type, A.1

G

Gateway

case studies, 3

data dictionary tables, C.1

pass-through feature, 2.1

supported functions, B

supported SQL syntax, B.1

globalization support

Heterogeneous Services, D.3.5

GRANT statement, B.1

Group functions, B.2.2.3

H

Heterogeneous Services

defining maximum number of open cursors, D.3.7

optimizing data transfer, D.3.8

setting global name, D.3.3

specifying cache high water mark, D.3.4

tuning internal data buffering, D.3.9

tuning LONG data transfer, D.3.6

Hexadecimal notation, 2.6.3.1

HS_DB_NAME initialization parameter, D.3.3

HS_DESCRIBE_CACHE_HWM initialization parameter, D.3.4

HS_FDS_CONNECT_INFO, D.3.13

HS_FDS_DEFAULT_OWNER initialization parameter, D.3.14

HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS parameter, D.3.19

HS_FDS_TRACE_LEVEL initialization parameter, D.3.17

enabling agent tracing, D.1

HS_FDS_TRANSACTION_LOG initialization parameter, D.3.18

HS_IDLE_TIMEOUT initialization parameter, D.3.20

HS_KEEP_REMOTE_COLUMN_SIZE initialization parameter, D.3.22

HS_LANGUAGE initialization parameter, D.3.5

HS_LONG_PIECE_TRANSFER_SIZE initialization parameter, D.3.6

HS_NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICS initialization parameter, D.3.21

HS_OPEN_CURSORS initialization parameter, D.3.7

HS_RPC_FETCH_REBLOCKING initialization parameter, D.3.8

HS_RPC_FETCH_SIZE initialization parameter, D.3.9

HS_TIME_ZONE initialization parameter, D.3.10

I

IFILE initialization parameter, D.3.12

Initialization parameter file

customizing, D

INSERT statement, 3.9.3, B.1.2, B.2.1

restrictions on use, 2.7.6.4, 2.7.6.5

INTEGER data type, A.1

K

Known restrictions, 2.7

L

Locking, database, 2.6.5

LONG data type, A.1

LONG RAW data type, A.1, A.1

M

MONEY data type, A.1

N

NCHAR data type, A.1

NVARCHAR data type, A.1

NVL function, 3.7

O

Objects

valid characters, 2.6.2.2

Objects, naming rules, 2.6.2.1

ORA-02070, 2.7.2

Oracle functions

TO_DATE, B.2.3

P

parameters

gateway initialization file

HS_FDS_FETCH_ROWS, D.3.19

Passing commands to database, 2.7.4

Pass-Through Feature, 3.11

Pattern matching, B.2.2.5

PL/SQL, 2.8.3, 2.8.4

R

RAW data type, 2.6.3.1

REAL data type, 2.7.5

ROLLBACK

restrictions, 2.7.3

ROWID, 2.7.6.1, 2.7.6.6

S

savepoint support, 2.7.2

SELECT statement, 3.11.2, B.1.3, C.1.2

use of NULL keyword, 2.7.6.3

SERIAL data type, A.1, A.1

Set operations, B.2.2.5

SMALLFLOAT data type, 2.7.5, A.1

Stored procedures, 2.7.10

String functions, B.2.2.4

SUM function, 3.7

T

TEXT data type, A.1

TO_DATE function, B.2.3

transactional capability, 2.7.2

transactional integrity, 2.7.1

TRUNCATE statement, B.1

Two-phase commit, 2.7.2

U

UPDATE statement, 3.9.2, 3.11.1, B.1.4, B.2.1

restrictions on use, 2.7.6.5

V

VARCHAR data type, A.1, A.1

VARCHAR2 data type, A.1, A.1

W

WHERE CURRENT OF clause, 2.7.6.1

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