C Installing and Configuring Oracle Database Using Response Files

This appendix describes how to use response files to perform silent or noninteractive installations, configure network connections, and configure or start an Oracle database. It covers the following topics:

How Response Files Work
Preparing a Response File
Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File
Running Net Configuration Assistant Using a Response File
Running Oracle Database Configuration Assistant Using a Response File

How Response Files Work

You can automate the installation and configuration of Oracle software, either fully or partially, by specifying a response file when you start Oracle Universal Installer. Oracle Universal Installer uses the values in the response file to provide answers to some or all of the Oracle Universal Installer prompts.

Typically, Oracle Universal Installer runs in interactive mode, which means that it prompts you to provide information in graphical user interface (GUI) screens. When you use response files to provide this information, you run Oracle Universal Installer at a command prompt using either of the following modes:

Silent mode: Oracle Universal Installer does not display any screens. Instead it displays progress information in the command window where you started it. To use silent mode, you run setup.exe with the -silent parameter and include a response file, which contains responses to the Oracle Universal Installer prompts.
Noninteractive (or suppressed) mode: Oracle Universal Installer only displays screens for which you did not supply information in the response file. You can use variables in the response file or command-line prompts to suppress other Oracle Universal Installer screens, such as Welcome and Summary, that do not prompt for information. To use noninteractive mode, run setup.exe without the -silent parameter, but include the response file or any other parameters that apply.

You define the settings for a silent or noninteractive installation by entering values for the variables listed in the response file. For instance, to specify the Oracle home name, you would supply the appropriate value for the ORACLE_HOME_NAME variable, as in the following example:

ORACLE_HOME_NAME="OraDBHome1"

Another way of specifying the response file's variable settings is to pass them as command line arguments when you run Oracle Universal Installer. For example:

SYSTEM_DRIVE:\setup.exe_location> setup -silent "ORACLE_HOME_NAME=OraDBHome1" ...

This method is particularly useful if you do not want to embed sensitive information, such as passwords, in the response file. For example:

SYSTEM_DRIVE:\setup.exe_location> setup -silent "s_dlgRBOPassword=binks342" ...

Ensure that you enclose the variable and its setting in quotes.

Reasons for Using Silent Mode or Noninteractive Mode

Table C-1describes several reasons why you might want to run Oracle Universal Installer in silent mode or noninteractive mode.

Table C-1 Reasons for Using Silent Mode or Noninteractive Mode

Mode	Uses
Silent	Use silent mode if you want to: Complete an unattended installation Complete several similar installations on multiple systems without user interaction Oracle Universal Installer displays progress information in the window that you used to start it, but it does not display the Oracle Universal Installer screens.
Noninteractive	Use noninteractive mode if you want to complete similar Oracle software installations on more than one system, providing default answers to some, but not all, of Oracle Universal Installer prompts. If you do not specify information required for a particular Installer screen in the response file, Oracle Universal Installer displays that screen. It suppresses screens for which you have provided all of the required information.

Mode

Uses

Silent

Use silent mode if you want to:

Complete an unattended installation
Complete several similar installations on multiple systems without user interaction

Oracle Universal Installer displays progress information in the window that you used to start it, but it does not display the Oracle Universal Installer screens.

Noninteractive

Use noninteractive mode if you want to complete similar Oracle software installations on more than one system, providing default answers to some, but not all, of Oracle Universal Installer prompts.

If you do not specify information required for a particular Installer screen in the response file, Oracle Universal Installer displays that screen. It suppresses screens for which you have provided all of the required information.

General Procedure for Using Response Files

You follow these general steps to install Oracle Database using response files:

If you plan to use Automatic Storage Management and need to configure new disks, you need to perform the following steps:
1. Create partitions for DAS or SAN disks.
2. Manually configure the disks using the asmtoolg or asmtool utility.
See Also:
- "Step 3: Creating DAS or SAN Disk Partitions for an ASM Instance"
- "Step 4: Manually Configuring Disks for Automatic Storage Management"
Customize or create a response file for the installation settings that you need.

You can create the response file by using one of the following methods:
- Modify one of the sample response files that is provided with the installation.
- Run Oracle Universal Installer at a command prompt using record mode.
"Preparing a Response File" explains how to customize or create the response file.
Run Oracle Universal Installer from a command prompt, specifying the response file, using either silent or noninteractive mode.

"Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File" explains how to run Oracle Universal Installer with a response file.

Preparing a Response File

This section describes the methods that you can use to prepare a response file for use during silent-mode or noninteractive-mode installations:

Editing a Response File Template
Recording a Response File

Editing a Response File Template

Oracle provides response file templates for each product and installation type, and for each configuration tool. These files are located in the database\response directory on the Oracle Database installation media.

Creating a response file using a response file template is most useful for the Enterprise Edition or Standard Edition installation types.

Table C-2 lists the available sample response files:

Table C-2 Response Files

Response File Name	This File Silently Runs The...
`enterprise.rsp`	Enterprise Edition installation type of Oracle Database
`standard.rsp`	Standard Edition installation type of Oracle Database
`personal.rsp`	Personal Edition installation type of Oracle Database
`custom.rsp`	Custom installation type of Oracle Database
`dbca.rsp`	Oracle Database Configuration Assistant
`netca.rsp`	Oracle Net Configuration Assistant
`emca.rsp`	Enterprise Manager Configuration Assistant

To copy and modify a response file:

Copy the appropriate response files from the database\response directory on the Oracle Database media to your hard drive.
Modify the response files with a text file editor.

In addition to editing settings specific to the Oracle Database installation, check that the FROM_LOCATION path is correct and points to the products.xml file in the stage directory in the installation media. You may want to set this variable to point to an absolute path, for example:
```
FROM_LOCATION="\\myserver\database\stage\products.xml"
```
Remember that you can specify sensitive information, such as passwords, at the command line rather than within the response file. "How Response Files Work" explains this method.

See Also:
Oracle Universal Installer and OPatch User's Guide for detailed information on creating response files. In an installed Oracle Database, select Start, then Programs, then Oracle - HOME_NAME, then Oracle Installation Products, then Universal Installer Concepts Guide. It appears in HTML format.
Run the response file by following the instructions in the "Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File" section.

Recording a Response File

You can create a response file by running Oracle Universal Installer in interactive mode using record mode. This method is most useful for custom or software-only installations.

Recording the response file generates the response file immediately after you complete the Summary window, so you do not need to install Oracle Database to create the response file. After you create the response file in this manner, you can customize it to meet your needs.

If you want to use record mode during a noninteractive mode installation, Oracle Universal Installer records the variable values that were specified in the original source response file into the new response file.

Note:

You cannot use record mode to create a response file based on the Basic installation type.

To record a response file:

Ensure that the computer on which you are creating the response file has met the requirements described in Chapter 2.
At the command prompt, use the cd command to change to the directory that contains the Oracle Universal Installer setup.exe executable.

On the installation DVD, setup.exe is located in the database directory. Alternatively, navigate to the directory where you downloaded or copied the installation files.

Enter the following command:

SYSTEM_DRIVE:\setup.exe_location> setup -record -destinationFile response_file_name

Replace response_file_name with the complete path name for the new response file. For example:

SYSTEM_DRIVE:\setup.exe_location> setup -record -destinationFile c:\response_files\install_oracle10_2.rsp

After Oracle Universal Installer starts, enter the installation settings, which will be recorded in the response file.
When the Summary window appears, do one of the following:
- Click Install to create the response file and continue with the installation.
- Click Cancel if you only want to create the response file but not continue with the installation. The installation will stop, but the settings you have entered will be recorded in the response file.
Afterwards, Oracle Universal Installer saves your new response file using the path and file name you specified on the command line.
Edit the new response file to have any environment-specific changes for the computer on which you will run it.

In addition to editing settings specific to the Oracle Database installation, check that the FROM_LOCATION path is correct and points to the products.xml file in the stage directory in the installation media. You may want to set this variable to point to an absolute path, for example:
```
FROM_LOCATION="\\myserver\database\response\stage\products.xml"
```
Remember that you can specify sensitive information, such as passwords, at the command line rather than within the response file. "How Response Files Work" explains this method.
Run the response file by following the instructions in the "Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File" section, next.

Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File

At this stage, you are ready to run Oracle Universal Installer at the command line, specifying the response file you created, to perform the installation. The Oracle Universal Installer executable, setup.exe, provides several options. For help information about the full set of these options, run setup.exe with the -help option, for example:

SYSTEM_DRIVE:\setup.exe_location> setup -help

A new command window appears, with the "Preparing to launch..." message. In a moment, the help information appears in that window.

To run Oracle Universal Installer and specify a response file:

Place the response file on the computer where you want to install Oracle Database.
At a command prompt, run Oracle Universal Installer with the appropriate response file. For example:
```
SYSTEM_DRIVE:\setup.exe_location> setup [-silent] "variable=setting" [-nowelcome] [-noconfig] [-nowait] -responseFile filename 
```
where:
- filename: Identifies the full path of the response file.
- -silent: Runs Oracle Universal Installer in silent mode and suppresses the Welcome window. When you use -silent, then the -nowelcome option is not necessary.
- "variable=setting" refers to a variable within the response file that you may prefer to run at the command line rather than set in the response file. Enclose the variable and its setting in quotes.
- -nowelcome: Suppresses the Welcome window that appears during installation.
- -noconfig: Suppresses running the configuration assistants during installation, performing a software-only installation instead.
- -nowait: Closes the console window when the silent installation completes.

Running Net Configuration Assistant Using a Response File

When you run Net Configuration Assistant with a response file, you run it in silent mode. This lets you configure and start an Oracle Net listener on the system, configure naming methods, and configure Oracle Net service names. To run NetCA in silent mode, use the netca.rsp response file.

To create a Net Configuration Assistant response file:

Copy the netca.rsp response file template from the response file directory to a directory on your system.

The netca.rsp is located in the database\response directory on the Oracle Database installation media.
Open the response file in a text editor.
Edit the file, following the instructions in the file.

Net Configuration Assistant fails if you do not correctly configure the netca.rsp response file.

To run Net Configuration Assistant using the response file you just created:

At a command prompt, set the ORACLE_HOME environment variable to specify the correct Oracle home directory, for example:
```
c:\> set ORACLE_HOME = c:\oracle\product\10.2.0\db_1
```

Run Net Configuration Assistant in silent mode as follows, replacing local_dir with the directory where you placed your version of the netca.rsp response file:

c:\> ORACLE_BASE\ORACLE_HOME\bin> netca /silent /responsefile /local_dir\netca.rsp

For example:

c:\> ORACLE_BASE\ORACLE_HOME\bin> netca /silent /responsefile /c:\oracle_response_files\mynetca.rsp

Running Oracle Database Configuration Assistant Using a Response File

You can run Oracle Database Configuration Assistant in silent or noninteractive mode to configure and start an Oracle database on your system. To run Oracle Database Configuration Assistant in silent or noninteractive mode, use the dbca.rsp response file.

To create a Oracle Database Configuration Assistant response file:

Copy the dbca.rsp response file template from the response file directory to a directory on your system.

The dbca.rsp response file is located in the database\response directory on the Oracle Database installation media.
Open the dbca.rsp response file in a text editor.
Edit the dbca.rsp file, following the instructions in the file.

Oracle Database Configuration Assistant fails if you do not correctly configure the dbca.rsp response file.

To run Oracle Database Configuration Assistant using the response file you just created:

At a command prompt, set the ORACLE_HOME environment variable to specify the correct Oracle home directory, for example:
```
c:\> set ORACLE_HOME = c:\oracle\product\10.2.0\db_1
```
Run Oracle Database Configuration Assistant in silent or noninteractive mode using the following syntax:
```
c:\ORACLE_BASE\ORACLE_HOME\bin> dbca {-progressOnly | -silent} [-cloneTemplate] \[-datafileDestination /datafilepath] -responseFile /local_dir/dbca.rsp
```
where:
- -silent runs Oracle Database Configuration Assistant in silent mode
- -progressOnly runs Oracle Database Configuration Assistant in noninteractive mode
- -cloneTemplate lets you create one of the following preconfigured databases:
  - General purpose
  - Transaction processing
  - Data warehouse
- -datafileDestination specifies the parent directory where you want to create the database files. By default, this directory is ORACLE_BASE\ORACLE_HOME\oradata.
- /local_dir is the full path of the directory where you copied the dbca.rsp response file template.

For example:

c:\> ORACLE_BASE\ORACLE_HOME\bin> dbca -progressOnly -cloneTemplate -responseFile
         /c:\oracle_response_files\mydbca.rsp

As an alternative to creating a database using a response file, you can run dbca at the command line by specifying all the required information as command line options. For information about the list of options supported, enter the following command:

c:\> ORACLE_BASE\ORACLE_HOME\bin\dbca -help