BR*Tools for Oracle DBA

The BR*Tools are installed automatically on the database server in the directory /usr/sap/<SAPSID>/SYS/exe/run.

We classify BR*Tools as functional, help, batch, and interactive tools:

Tool Types for BR*Tools

Type	Tool	Description
Functional	BRBACKUP, BRARCHIVE, BRRESTORE, BRRECOVER, BRSPACE, and BRCONNECT	Perform actions directly on database files or objects
Help	BRTOOLS and BRCONNECT	●      BRTOOLS is the menu program that can call all other functional tools interactively ●      BRTOOLS and BRCONNECT are also called internally: ○       BRTOOLS is called by BRBACKUP, BRARCHIVE, and BRRESTORE for backup, restore, and verification. ○       BRCONNECT is called by BRBACKUP  to monitor the database during a backup
Batch	BRBACKUP, BRARCHIVE, BRRESTORE, BRCONNECT	Only run on their own in batch, without menus. You can call them interactively with BRTOOLS.
Interactive	BRSPACE, BRRECOVER, BRTOOLS	Run interactively with their own menus. BRSPACE and BRRECOVER can also run in batch mode.

There is a menu in BRCONNECT to change the database password in GUI mode.

Toolset for BR*Tools

Tool	Purpose
BRBACKUP	Backs up data files, control files, and online redo log files of the database
BRARCHIVE	Backs up offline redo log files
BRRESTORE	Restores data files, control files, and redo log files
BRRECOVER	Recovers database files and restores profiles and log files
BRSPACE	Manages the database instance, space, and segments (that is, tables and indexes)
BRCONNECT	●      Performs database administration tasks such as statistics update, check database system, adapt next extents, clean up logs and DBA tables ●      Functions as a help tool to monitor the database during a backup
BRTOOLS	●      Displays the menus from which the other BR programs are called ●      Functions as an internal help tool started by BRBACKUP, BRARCHIVE, and BRRESTORE
BRGUI	Functions as a Java-based GUI, working as the front-end display program for BR*Tools

SAP Naming Conventions for Tablespaces and Data Files

Tablespace Naming Convention as of SAP Web Application Server 6.10

The following table contains an overview of all the tablespaces in an SAP system and how they are used:

Tablespace Name	Use
SYSTEM	Oracle system tablespace
SYSAUX	Oracle auxiliary system tablespace
PSAPTEMP	Temporary obejcts (system default temporary tablespace)
PSAPTEMP<name>	Additional temporary objects, if required. Example: PSAPTEMP2.
PSAPUNDO	Undo tablespace (used from Oracle 9i instead of PSAPROLL)
PSAP<SID>	All objects of the SAP component <SID>. Example: PSAPC11.
PSAP<SID>ES<rel>[X] or PSAP<SID>EL<rel>[X]	Exchange tablespace for component <SID> upgrade. Example:PSAPC11ES640.
PSAP<SID>USR	Customer-specific objects for component <SID>. Example:PSAPC11USR.
PSAP<SID><name>	Additional customer-specific objects for component <SID>. Example: PSAPC11DAT.

The association of objects to PSAP<SID>, PSAP<SID>USR, or PSAP<SID><name> is controlled using the TABART in DD09L, TAORA, and IAORA. Exchange tablespaces have no TABART.

Tablespace Naming Convention Before SAP Web Application Server 6.10

The following syntax is used for naming tablespaces (TSP):

PSAP<name>D     for data tablespaces
PSAP<name>I     for index tablespaces
PSAP<TSP>         if it is not important to differentiate

The following table contains an overview of all the tablespaces in an SAP system and how they are used:

Tablespace name	Use
Oracle Tablespaces	These tablespaces are required for operation of the Oracle DBMS, and contain no SAP data.
SYSTEM	Oracle system tablespace
SYSAUX	Oracle auxiliary system tablespace
PSAPROLL	Rollback segments
PSAPTEMP	Sort processes
SAP Netweaver Tablespaces
PSAPLOADD/I	Screen and report loads (ABAP)
PSAPSOURCED/I	Screen and report sources (ABAP)
PSAPDDICD/I	ABAP Dictionary
PSAPPROTD/I	Log-like tables (such as spool)
PSAPEL46D/I	Exchange tablespace loads
PSAPES46DD/I	Exchange tablespace sources
Application
PSAPCLUD/I	Cluster tables
PSAPPOOLD/I	Pooled tables (such as ATAB)
PSAPSTABD/I	Master data, transparent tables
PSAPBTABD/I	Transaction data, transparent tables
PSAPDOCUD/I	Doc., Sapscript, Sapfind
Customers
PSAPUSER1D/I	Customer tables

Data Files

When you add a new data file to extend a tablespace, BRSPACE attempts to add a new file to the standard SAP directory in which the most recent data file of the tablespace was stored. The most recent file is the one with the highest relative file number.

The naming conventions are as follows:

·        Directory: <SAPDATA_HOME>/sapdata<n>/<tablespace suffix>_<file number>

·        File: <tablespace suffix>.data<file number>

<tablespace suffix> is the second half of the tablespace name, for example, UNDO for the tablespace PSAPUNDO.

<n> is the sequentially assigned number of the SAP directory in which the data file will be stored.

<file number> is the sequentially assigned number of the data file in the tablespace. The same number also appears in the subdirectory that is created for each new file in a tablespace.

For example, the first data file for PSAPUNDO is called:

·        Directory: <SAPDATA_HOME>/sapdata<n>/undo_1

·        File: undo.data1

Operating System Users and Groups & Database Users and Roles

Operating System Users

In the SAP system the roles of the users ora<dbsid> and <sapsid>adm on UNIX, or <sapsid>adm and SAPSERVICE<SID> on Windows, used to be separate. Due to the requirements for RMAN backup, this is no longer true. Both users now belong to the operating system groups dba andoper, as shown in the tables below.

Database Roles

·        SYSDBA
All authorizations

·        SYSOPER
Operator activities, but no read or write authorizations.

·        SAPDBA
Read and write authorizations to work with BR*Tools command options, and therefore the DBA functions in the Computer Center Management System (CCMS).

To be able to use the CCMS DBA functions or BR*Tools command options without restrictions, the OPS$ user must have both the SYSOPER role and the SAPDBA role.

Operating System Users and Groups, Database Users and Roles

UNIX

Operating System Users	Operating System Group	Database Role	Database Users
ora<dbsid>	dba oper	SYSDBA SYSOPER	OPS$ORA<DBSID>
<sapsid>adm	dba oper	SYSDBA SYSOPER	OPS$<SAPSID>ADM

 

Windows

Operating System Users	Operating System Group	Database Role	Database Users
<sapsid>adm	ORA_<SID>_DBA ORA_<SID>_OPER	SYSDBA SYSOPER	(SYS) OPS$<DOMAIN>\<SAPSID>ADM
SAPSERVICE<SID>	ORA_<SID>_DBA ORA_<SID>_OPER	SYSDBA SYSOPER	OPS$<DOMAIN>\SAPSERVICE<SID>

The OS group on Windows can also be specified globally (without instance name) (ORA_DBA, ORA_OPER).

OPS$ Database User

The Oracle OPS$ mechanism moves the entire DB security mechanism to the operating system level.

The prerequisite is that a DB user OPS$<OS_user> corresponding to the OS user is defined on the database, and identified as externally. It must have been granted the SAPDBA role.

Once you have logged on successfully with the OS user, you can connect to the database with:

 SQL>connect /

This means you do not have to enter another password. You are then working as OPS$<OS_user>. In the same way you can start the program BRBACKUP with:

OS> brbackup –u /

This OPS$ mechanism is always used if you call BR*Tools from the CCMS transaction DB13 in the SAP System.

The OPS$ Mechanism (UNIX)

BR*Tools Database User

The standard DB user used by BR*Tools is always SYSTEM. BR*Tools connects with the Oracle option AS SYSOPER or AS SYSDBA for actions such as startup, shutdown, recover and so on, as well as selecting from V$ tables when the database is not open.