Preface

This user guide provides operating system-specific information on using the Oracle Networking Products for Windows platforms. This preface provides information about:

Intended Audience

This user guide is for both end-users and network administrators who install, configure, and use Oracle Networking Products.

Prerequisites

This guide assumes that:

you have installed and tested your network
you are familiar with your operating system (commands for deleting and copying files; concepts of search path, configuration files, and directory structure) and server and client concepts
you know how to use a text editor to make changes to an ASCII text file

Conventions Used in this Guide

Oracle Home Directories

Oracle Installer creates a top-level directory on your hard disk called Oracle home. The default Oracle home directory for Windows NT is ORANT and for Windows 95 is ORAWIN95. These directories are referred to as ORACLE_HOME throughout this document.

In examples, an implied carriage return occurs at the end of each line, unless otherwise noted. Press the Return key at the end of a line of input.

Terminology

The term Oracle8 Server is used to mean any Oracle8 database product including:

Oracle8 Enterprise Edition
Oracle8 (formerly known as Workgroup Server)
Personal Oracle8

Typographical Conventions

Note these typographical conventions when reading this guide:

Convention	Meaning	Example
Monospace text	Indicates text that must be typed exactly as shown.	`SET ECHO OFF`
All uppercase plain	Indicate command names, SQL reserved words, and keywords. All uppercase plain is also used for directory names and file names.	ALTER DATABASE \ORANT\DATABASE\INITORCL.ORA
Italics	Indicate a value that you must provide. Italics are also used for emphasis in the text and to indicate the titles of other manuals.	INITSID.ORA where SID represents the SID of your database.
Horizontal ellipsis . . .	Indicates that parts of the statement or command not directly related to the example have been omitted.	`CHKVAL` fieldname value 1 value 2... valueN
Vertical bar \|	Represents an `or' option between several options. Enter only one of the options. Do not enter the vertical bar. The set of alternative choices is enclosed by curly braces if one of the items is required, or by square brackets if the item is an optional alternative.	`...DEFINE {` macro1 \| macro2 `}`
Curly braces {}	Encloses required items. Choose one of the options.	`...DEFINE {` macro1 \| macro2 `}`
Square brackets [ ]	Enclose optional items. You can choose one or none of the options. Square brackets also indicate a function key, for example [Enter].	`cvtcrt` termname `[`outfile`]`
C:\>	Represents the Windows NT command prompt of the current hard disk drive. Your prompt may differ and may, at times, reflect the subdirectory in which you are working.
Backslash (\) before a name in all uppercase letters	Indicates a subdirectory.	ORACLE_HOME\NET80