Oracle Log on Notes
(last updated August 23, 2006)
Authentication Procedures:
The Department of Information Technology Oracle Server authenticates users in one of two ways:
Individual students accounts use the first method. All ITEC students will have an Oracle account with the same name as their RU Network account. A Student's oracle password will not be the same as their RU network password. Students and faculty can set their Oracle account password by going to the following web site:
http://itecAdmin.asp.radford.edu/orapwmaint.htm
Once your Oracle account password is set you can start Oracle from an RU lab computer by going to START-> Programs-> RU Courseware -> College of Information Science and Technology -> Oracle -> OracleHome -> Application Development -> SQL Plus. An easier way to start Oracle is to paste a copy of the SQLPlus shortcut from the menu system to your home directory. You can then change the "start in" property of the the shortcut to point to whatever folder you want your SQL scripts stored to (e.g. H:\ITEC340).
As with all connections to Oracle, SQL Plus will require you to provide three pieces of information:
The final field may be referred to in the dialogue box as a "host string", "connect string", or "service name" depending on which Oracle component and which version of that component is running. Resolution of the service name can be accomplished using several different methods including Windows Active Directory Services. Currently, service name resolution on lab computers is being accomplished using defined service names. A defined service name is contained in the tnsnames.ora file on the workstation. The tnsnames entry points the client component toward an instance of the Oracle Database Server on a particular host using a particular network transport (tcp, named pipes, etc). The primary Department of Information Technology Oracle server uses the connect string "ITEC".
Oracle instructors also use Oracle password authentication. With Oracle Password authentication the user must enter their Oracle UserId, Oracle password, and the proper connect/host string (such as ITEC). Since the user is identifying themselves to Oracle it does not matter which Windows/network account they are logged in with.
Connecting to your Oracle Account from off-campus or from the residence halls
The easiest way to work with Oracle from at home is to Telnet or SSH to RUCS or RUCS2 using your normal Radford userid and password. If Radford is not your ISP make sure that you are using the FQDN for rucs which is rucs.radford.edu. After you have successfully authenticated the telnet session type SQLPLUS to execute the Oracle client. You will then be prompted to log in to. At this point you must specify the database service name as part of the user name as shown below:
An alternate way to connect from home or the dorm is to install the Oracle client on your own computer. You are on your own here so proceed with caution. You would need to obtain an Oracle client from Oracle's website. You can then make a connection back to the ITEC Oracle Server if you are connecting to an Oracle Authenticated Account. This can only be done from the residence halls or from off-campus when connecting via the Radford Modem Pool or the VPN. A connection cannot be made from other Internet Service Providers such as AOL or MSN without using the VPN. This is because Oracle Network Traffic is blocked by the campus firewall.
If you are running Windows you should:
1. Modify the tnsnames.ora file on your home computer to include the following entry (NOTE: do not delete any service definitions already in your tnsnames.ora file as these define your local database services):
ITEC.RADFORD =
(DESCRIPTION =
(ADDRESS_LIST =
(ADDRESS = (PROTOCOL = TCP)(HOST = picard.radford.edu)(PORT = 1521))
)
(CONNECT_DATA =
(SERVICE_NAME = teaching.radford)
)
)
2. Modify the sqlnet.ora file on your home computer. If the line
SQLNET.AUTHENTICATION_SERVICES= (NTS)
is included CHANGE it to read:
SQLNET.AUTHENTICATION_SERVICES= (NONE)
3. If you are dialing in then go ahead and connect to Radford
4. Start SQL+ or another Oracle Component and log in but use ITEC.RADFORD as your host string instead of ITEC.