Trace Files

A trace file is created each time an Oracle instance starts or an unexpected event occurs in a user process or background process. The name of the trace file includes the instance name, the process name, and the Oracle process number. The file extension or file type is usually TRC, and, if different, is noted in your operating system-specific Oracle documentation. The contents of the trace file may include dumps of the system global area, process global area, supervisor stack, and registers.

Two initialization parameters specify where the trace files are stored:

BACKGROUND_DUMP_DES

Specifies the location for trace files created by the Oracle background processes PMON, DBWR, LGWR, and SMON.

USER_DUMP_DEST

Specifies the location for trace files created by user processes such as SQL*DBA, SQL*Plus, or Pro*C.

The Alert file also describes the location of trace files generated when internal errors occur. See the next section for a description of the Alert file.

You may need to format the trace file before using it to diagnose problems. To format a trace file, use the DUMPFMT utility, which is available on most systems and is described in your operating system-specific Oracle documentation. Customer support may ask you for a formatted trace file to help solve a problem.

For more information about trace files, see the Oracle8 Server Administrator's Guide.

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