2 Using Oracle SQLcl

Oracle SQLcl (SQL Developer Command Line) is a Java-based command-line interface for Oracle Database. Using SQLcl, you can execute SQL and PL/SQL statements interactively or as as a batch file. SQLcl provides inline editing, statement completion, command recall, and also supports existing SQL*Plus scripts.

Oracle SQLcl is available for download from Oracle Technology Network.

Note:

• To run SQLcl , you need to install Oracle Java 11 or later versions. If the Java version is less than 11, then the SQLcl installation fails with the following error message: Error: A JNI error has occurred, please check your installation and try again Exception in thread "main" java.lang.UnsupportedClassVersionError:. Check the Java version using thejava -version command.

• On Windows, Java is searched for in the following directories:

  • For SQLcl (sql.exe):

    ..\..\jdk\jre\bin;%JAVA_HOME%\bin;%PATH%;%ORACLE_HOME%\jdk\jre\bin

  • For SQLcl installed with Oracle Database:

    %JAVA_HOME%\bin;%PATH%;..\jdk\jre\bin;%ORACLE_HOME%\jdk\jre\bin

• If the Java file is not found in those directories, Java is searched for in the registry, the minimum version (version more than or equal to) being 11.0.9.
• JavaScript is not included with Oracle Java 14 and later versions. It is recommended to download and install GraalVM, and then install JavaScript on GraalVM by using the command gu install js ( see Getting Started with GraalVM JavaScript).

This chapter contains the following topics:

• Alphabetic List of SQLcl Commands
• List of Unsupported SQL*Plus Commands and Features
• Starting and Leaving SQLcl
• Starting Up and Shutting Down a Database
• Entering and Executing Commands
• Manipulating SQL, SQLcl, and PL/SQL Commands
• Formatting Query Results
• Accessing Databases
• Miscellaneous Commands
• Loading a File
• Calling Oracle Cloud Infrastructure REST APIs Using the OCI Command