5 BFILEs

BFILEs are data objects stored in operating system files, outside the database tablespaces. Data stored in a table column of type BFILE is physically located in an operating system file, not in the database. The BFILE column stores a reference to the operating system file.

BFILEs are read-only data types. The database allows read-only byte stream access to data stored in BFILEs. You cannot write to or update a BFILE from within your application.

You create BFILEs to hold the following types of data:

• Binary data that does not change while your application is running, such as graphics.
• Data that is loaded into other large object types, such as a BLOB or CLOB, where the data can be manipulated.
• Data that is appropriate for byte-stream access, such as multimedia.

Any storage device accessed by your operating system can hold BFILE data, including hard disk drives, CD-ROMs, PhotoCDs, and DVDs. The database can access BFILEs provided the operating system supports stream-mode access to the operating system files.

• DIRECTORY Objects
  A BFILE locator is initialized by using the function BFILENAME(DIRECTORY, FILENAME). This section describes how to initialize the DIRECTORY Object.
• BFILE Locators
  For BFILEs, the value is stored in a server-side operating system file, in other words, BFILEs are external to the database. The BFILE locator that refers to the file is stored in the database row.
• BFILE APIs
  This section discusses the different operations supported through BFILEs.
• BFILE APIs in Different Programmatic Interfaces
  This section lists all the APIs from different Programmatic Interfaces supported by Oracle Database.