Oracle RAC - DBCA answers (database clsdb)

category: solutionz · date: 2016-12-31 · updated: 2026-10-02 · author: LALA

Oracle RAC Solution · Config document · referenced from Database creation and user environments

note<DB_ADMIN_PASSWORD> and <ASM_PASSWORD> are placeholders. One password was used for all administrative accounts of the database; do not copy that choice.

The answers given to the Oracle Database Configuration Assistant (dbca) to create the RAC database clsdb with one instance on each node, screen by screen, as my working notes hold them.

Item	Value
Tool	`dbca`
Started on	`oradb01`, as `oracle`, with an X server running on the workstation
Global database name	`clsdb.example.net`
Instances	`clsdb1` on `oradb01`, `clsdb2` on `oradb02`
Data files	`+DATA`, Oracle-Managed Files
Fast Recovery Area	`+FRA`
Generated scripts	`/data/u01/app/oracle/admin/clsdb/scripts` (not kept in the notes)
Software version at the time	Oracle Database 11.2.0.4, Standard Edition

The answers

ini

# Screen / Field = value, in the order of the assistant's screens.
# "checked" and "unchecked" are the state of a check box or radio button.

Create database / Select the database type that you would like to create or administer = Oracle Real Application Clusters (RAC) database

Operations / Create a Database = checked

Database Templates / Custom Database = checked

Database Identification / Configuration Type = Admin-Managed
Database Identification / Global Database Name = clsdb.example.net
Database Identification / SID Prefix = clsdb
Database Identification / Select the nodes on which you wany to create the cluster database = oradb01, oradb02

Management Options / Configure Enterprise Manager = checked
Management Options / Configure Database Control for local management = checked
Management Options / Enable Daily Disk Backup to Recovery Area = unchecked

Database Credentials / Use the Same Administrative Password for All Accounts = checked
Database Credentials / Password = <DB_ADMIN_PASSWORD>

Database File Locations / Use Oracle-Managed Files = checked
Database File Locations / Database Area = +DATA
# If "Browse" shows no ASM disk groups, the setuid bit has to be set on the
# "oracle" binary of the Grid home, /data/u01/app/grid11204/bin/oracle
# (My Oracle Support note 1177483.1): cd <Grid_Home>/bin; chmod 6751 oracle; ls -l oracle

ASM Credentials / Specify ASMSNMP password specific to ASM = <ASM_PASSWORD>

Recovery Configuration / Specify Fast Recovery Area = checked
Recovery Configuration / Fast Recovery Area = +FRA
Recovery Configuration / Enable Archiving = checked

# Initialization Parameters, tab Memory
Initialization Parameters / Memory / Typical = checked
Initialization Parameters / Memory / Memory Size (SGA and PGA) = 6307 MB
Initialization Parameters / Memory / Percentage = 80 %
Initialization Parameters / Memory / Use Automatic Memory Management = unchecked

# Initialization Parameters, tab Sizing
Initialization Parameters / Sizing / Block Size = 8192 Bytes
Initialization Parameters / Sizing / Processes = 350

# Initialization Parameters, tab Character Sets
Initialization Parameters / Character Sets / Use Unicode (AL32UTF8) = checked
Initialization Parameters / Character Sets / National Character Set = UTF8 - Unicode 3.0 UTF-8 Universal character ser, CESU-8 compliant
Initialization Parameters / Character Sets / Default Language = American
Initialization Parameters / Character Sets / Default Territory = United States

# Initialization Parameters, tab Connection Mode
Initialization Parameters / Connection Mode / Dedicated Server Mode = checked

# The defaults were used; nothing was changed.
Database Storage / (all fields) = defaults

Creation Options / Create Database = checked
Creation Options / Generate Database Creation Scripts = checked
Creation Options / Destination Directory = /data/u01/app/oracle/admin/clsdb/scripts

Finish = clicked

The spellings "wany" and "character ser" in the fence are slips of the notes; the screens say "want" and "character set".

Answer	What it means
Admin-Managed	Each instance is tied to a named node: `clsdb1` to `oradb01`, `clsdb2` to `oradb02`. The alternative, policy-managed, lets the cluster place instances in server pools
SID Prefix = `clsdb`	DBCA appends the instance number, which gives `clsdb1` and `clsdb2`
Database Control for local management	Enterprise Manager runs from the database home on the nodes themselves, with no central management server. The notes do not record its address or port
Enable Daily Disk Backup = unchecked	Backup was planned with Backup Exec, see Backup Exec agent
Oracle-Managed Files on `+DATA`	Oracle names and places the data files itself inside the disk group
ASMSNMP password	The password of the ASM monitoring account, set in the Grid Infrastructure installer; Database Control needs it to monitor ASM
Fast Recovery Area `+FRA`, archiving	The database runs in archive log mode and the archived logs go to the recovery area. The notes do not record a size limit for the area
6307 MB, 80 %, no Automatic Memory Management	DBCA's typical setting at 80 % of the memory it found on the node. The notes do not record the memory of the virtual machines nor the reason for switching Automatic Memory Management off
Generate Database Creation Scripts	DBCA also writes the scripts it runs. They were not copied into the notes

The setuid fix in the comment after Database Area is explained in the Article. The notes write it with the placeholder <Grid_Home> and give the full path of the binary only in the sentence before it; the output of ls -l oracle was not kept.

The database is called clsdb here and in the srvctl output after creation. The header of the preparation notes calls it csldb, and the Backup Exec notes call it clsopdb.

Checked against Oracle AI Database 26ai

As built	Today
`dbca` in graphical mode	DBCA still exists, graphical and silent (`dbca -silent -createDatabase`)
Admin-Managed	The only style left. Policy-managed databases were deprecated in 21c and are desupported in 26ai
A database without containers, the only architecture of 11.2	The non-CDB architecture was deprecated in 12c and is desupported from 21c; 19c is the last release that can run such a database
Enterprise Manager Database Control	Desupported and no longer available from 12c. Its successor, EM Express, is desupported in 26ai
6307 MB without Automatic Memory Management	The right choice then and now: when the instance has more than 4 GB of physical memory, Automatic Memory Management cannot be selected during database creation and automatic shared memory management is used instead. Automatic Memory Management and HugePages are not compatible on Linux
National character set changed to `UTF8`	Both `UTF8` and `AL16UTF16` are allowed; the default is `AL16UTF16`, and for new deployments Oracle recommends `AL32UTF8` as the database character set with `AL16UTF16` as the national character set. The build chose `UTF8`, not the default
Standard Edition RAC database	Not possible from 19c, see Database software installer answers

Three of the answers describe things that no longer exist: a non-CDB database, Database Control, and RAC in Standard Edition. The memory answer has aged best.