Oracle Database files include data files, control files, redo log files, the server parameter file, and the password file.

Learn how to configure disk storage before you start the installation.

Review the guidelines for placing Oracle Database files on a file system or logical volume.

• Oracle Universal Installer indicates that the default path for the database file directory is a subdirectory of the Oracle base directory.

• You can choose either a single file system or more than one file system to store the database files:

  • If you want to use a single file system, then choose a file system on a physical device that is dedicated to the database.

    For best performance and reliability, choose a RAID device or a logical volume on multiple physical devices and implement a stripe-and-mirror everything (SAME) storage policy.

  • If you want to use more than one file system, then choose file systems on separate physical devices that are dedicated to the database.

    This method enables you to distribute physical input-output operations and create separate control files on different devices for increased reliability. It also enables you to fully implement Oracle Optimal Flexible Architecture (OFA) guidelines. Choose the Advanced database creation option to implement this method.

• If you intend to create a preconfigured database during the installation, then the file system (or file systems) that you choose must have at least 2 GB of free disk space.

  For production databases, you must estimate the disk space requirement depending on the use of the database.

• For optimum performance, the file systems that you choose must be on physical devices that are used only by the database.

• The Oracle user running the Oracle Database installation must have write permissions to create the files in the path that you specify.

Use the guidelines listed in this section to place Oracle recovery files on a file system.

If you place the Oracle recovery files on a file system, use the following guidelines when deciding where to place them:

• To prevent disk failure from making both the data files and the recovery files unavailable, place the recovery files in a file system on a different physical disk from the data files.

  Note:

  Alternatively, for both data files and recovery files, use an Oracle Automatic Storage Management disk group.

• The file system that you choose must have at least 2 GB of free disk space.

  The disk space requirement is the default disk quota configured for the fast recovery area (specified by the DB_RECOVERY_FILE_DEST_SIZE initialization parameter).

  If you choose the Advanced database configuration option, you can specify a different disk quota value. After you create the database, you can also use Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control or Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Express to specify a different value.

  See Also:

  Oracle Database Backup and Recovery User's Guide

• Oracle Universal Installer suggests that the default location for the database file directory is a subdirectory of the Oracle base directory. However, this default location is not recommended for production databases.

Use this procedure to create the required directories.

1. Use Windows Explorer to determine the free disk space on the file system.
2. From the display, identify the file systems to use:

   File Type	File System Requirements
   Data files	Select one of the following: A single file system with at least 950 MB of free disk space Two or more file systems with at least 950 MB of free disk space in total
   Recovery files	Choose a file system with at least 2 GB of free disk space.

   If you are using the same file system for multiple types of files, then add the disk space requirements for each type to determine the total disk space requirement.

3. Note the names of the directories for the file systems that you identified.