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Oracle® Database Client Installation Guide
11g Release 1 (11.1) for Solaris Operating System

Part Number B32069-01
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1 Overview of Oracle Client Installation

This chapter describes the different installation types of Oracle Client for Solaris Operating System and issues to consider before you install Oracle Database:

1.1 Planning Your Installation

The Oracle Database installation process consists of the following phases:

  1. Read the release notes: Read Oracle Database Release Notes for Solaris Operating System before you begin the installation. The release notes are available with the platform-specific documentation. The latest version of the release notes is available on Oracle Technology Network at:

    http://www.oracle.com/technology/documentation
    
  2. Review the licensing information: Although the installation media in your media pack contain many Oracle components, you are permitted to use only those components for which you have purchased licenses.

    Oracle Support Services does not provide support for components for which licenses have not been purchased.

  3. Plan the installation: This chapter describes the Oracle products that you can install and issues that you must consider before starting the installation.

    You can also refer to Appendix D, which covers frequently asked questions about installing Oracle Database components, such as how to install Oracle client if the site uses Oracle applications or if you need multiple Oracle client connections.

  4. Complete preinstallation tasks: Chapter 2 describes preinstallation tasks that you must complete before installing the product.

  5. Install the software: Use the following sections to install Oracle Database:

    • Chapter 3 describes how to use Oracle Universal Installer to install Oracle Client.

    • Appendix A provides information on performing noninteractive (silent) installations, which you may want to use if you need to perform multiple installations of Oracle Client.

    • Appendix B describes globalization support information.

    • Appendix C provides troubleshooting advice in case you encounter problems with the installation.

    • Chapter 5 describes how to remove Oracle DatabaseClient.

  6. Complete postinstallation tasks: Chapter 4 describes recommended and required postinstallation tasks.

1.2 Installation Considerations

This section contains information that you should consider before deciding how to install this product. It contains the following sections:

1.2.1 Hardware and Software Certification

The platform-specific hardware and software requirements included in this installation guide were current at the time this guide was published. However, because new platforms and operating system software versions might be certified after this guide is published, review the certification matrix on the OracleMetaLink Web site for the most up-to-date list of certified hardware platforms and operating system versions. The OracleMetaLink Web site is available at the following URL:

https://metalink.oracle.com

You must register online before using OracleMetaLink. After logging in, click Certify from the top right-hand side of the screen. The Certifications page appears. Other options include Product Availability, Desupport Notices, and Alerts.

1.2.2 Multiple Oracle Homes Support

This product supports multiple Oracle homes. This means that you can install this release or earlier releases of the software more than once on the same system, in different Oracle home directories.

1.2.2.1 Installing the Software on a System with an Existing Oracle Installation

You must install this product into a new Oracle home directory. You cannot install products from one release of Oracle Database into an Oracle home directory of a different release. For example, you cannot install release 11.1 software into an existing Oracle9i Oracle home directory. If you attempt to install this release into an Oracle home directory that contains software from an earlier Oracle release, then the installation fails.

You can install this release more than once on the same system if each installation is installed in a separate Oracle home directory.

1.3 Oracle Client Installation Methods

You can choose different installation methods to install Oracle Client, as follows:

1.3.1 Interactive Installation Methods

When you use the interactive method to install Oracle Client, Oracle Universal Installer displays a series of screens that enable you to specify all of the required information to install the Oracle Client software.

1.3.2 Automated Installation Methods Using Response Files

By creating a response file and specifying this file when you start Oracle Universal Installer, you can automate some or all of the Oracle Database installation. These automated installation methods are useful if you need to perform multiple installations on similarly configured systems or if the system where you want to install the software does not have X Window system software installed.

When you use a response file, you can run Oracle Universal Installer in the following modes, depending on whether you specify all of the required information or not:

  • Silent Mode: Oracle Universal Installer runs in silent mode if you use a response file that specifies all required information. None of the Oracle Universal Installer screens are displayed.

  • Suppressed Mode: Oracle Universal Installer runs in suppressed mode if you do not specify all required information in the response file. Oracle Universal Installer displays only the screens that prompt for the information that you did not specify.

For more information about these modes and about how to complete an installation using response files, refer to Appendix A.

1.4 Oracle Client Installation Types

You can choose one of the following installation types when installing Oracle Client:

Caution:

AL32UTF8 is the Oracle Database character set that is appropriate for XMLType data. It is equivalent to the IANA registered standard UTF-8 encoding, which supports all valid XML characters.

Do not confuse Oracle Database database character set UTF8 (no hyphen) with database character set AL32UTF8 or with character encoding UTF-8. Database character set UTF8 has been superseded by AL32UTF8. Do not use UTF8 for XML data. UTF8 supports only Unicode version 3.0 and earlier; it does not support all valid XML characters. AL32UTF8 has no such limitation.

Using database character set UTF8 for XML data could potentially cause a fatal error or affect security negatively. If a character that is not supported by the database character set appears in an input-document element name, then a replacement character (usually "?") is substituted for it. This terminates parsing and raises an exception.