group was added successfully by inspecting the contents of the /etc/group file. Here is a typical entry created in the /etc/group file:
dba:x:501:
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CHAPTER 1 ■ INSTALLING THE ORACLE BINARIES
If for any reason you need to remove a group, use the groupdel command. If you need to modify a group, use the groupmod command.
Next, use the useradd command to add operating system users. This command requires root access.
The following command creates an operating system account named oracle, with the primary group being dba and the oinstall group specified as a supplementary group:
# useradd -g dba -G oinstall oracle
If you don’t have access to a root account, then you need your system administrator to run the useradd command. If you have a company requirement that a user be set up with the same user ID
across multiple servers, then use the -u option. This example explicitly sets the user ID to 500:
# useradd -u 500 -g dba -G oinstall oracle
You can verify user account information by viewing the /etc/passwd file. Here is what you can expect to see after running the useradd command:
oracle:x:500:500::/home/oracle:/bin/bash
You can also use the id command to display the operating system user and group information: $ id
uid=500(oracle) gid=500(dba) groups=500(dba)
On most Linux systems, the default value for the HOME variable is /home/oracle, and the default shell is the Bash shell. You can display the value of HOME and SHELL as follows: $ echo $HOME
$ echo $SHELL
If you need to modify a user, use the usermod command. If you need to remove an operating system user, use the userdel command. You need root privileges to run the userdel command. This example removes the oracle user from the server:
# userdel oracle
Step 2. Ensure That the Operating System Is Adequately
Configured
The tasks associated with this step vary somewhat for each database release and operating system. You must refer to the Oracle installation manual for the database release and operating system vendor to get the exact requirements. To perform this step, you’re required to verify and configure operating system components such as the following:
Memory and swap space
System architecture (processor)
Free disk space (Oracle now takes almost 5GB of space to install)
Operating system version and kernel
Operating system software (required packages and patches)
Run the following command to confirm the size of memory on a Linux server: $ grep MemTotal /proc/meminfo
To verify the amount of memory and swap space, run the following command: 6
CHAPTER 1 ■ INSTALLING THE ORACLE BINARIES
$ free -t
To verify the amount of space in the /tmp directory, enter this command: $ df -h /tmp
To display the amount of free disk space, execute this command:
$ df -h
To verify the operating system version, enter this command:
$ cat /proc/version
To verify kernel information, run the following command:
$ uname -r
To determine whether the required packages are installed, execute the following and provide the required package name:
$ rpm -q
Again, database server requirements vary quite a bit by operating system and database version. You can download the specific installation manual from Oracle’s web site at www.oracle.com/documentation.
■ Note The OUI displays any deficiencies in operating system software and hardware. Running the installer is covered in the “Step 5” section.
Step 3. Obtain the Oracle Installation Software
Usually, the easiest way to obtain the Oracle software is to download it from the Oracle software web site: www.oracle.com/technology/software. Navigate to the software download page, and download the Oracle database version that is appropriate for the type of operating system and hardware on which you want to install it (Linux, Solaris, Windows, and so on).
Step 4. Unzip the Files
Before you unzip the files, I recommend that you create a standard directory where you can place the Oracle installation