2
Installing SQL*Plus Help and Demonstration Tables

This chapter provides information to help you install SQL*Plus components.

Specific topics discussed are:

Installing SQL*Plus

The CD-ROM insert that accompanies your product CD-ROM includes the following information about SQL*Plus:

System requirements
Installation instructions

Note:
Before installing SQL*Plus, refer to the generic SQL*Plus documentation on the CD-ROM, and to the Release Notes and Readme files on the CD-ROM for late-breaking information.

Installing SQL*Plus Online Help

Online help is available from the command line of either the graphical user interface or the command line interface while you are using SQL*Plus. The database administrator creates the SQL*Plus help tables and populates them with SQL*Plus help data.

Prerequisites

Before you can install SQL*Plus help, ensure that:

SQL*Plus is installed, otherwise, you cannot create and load the help tables.
The default tablespace for the SYSTEM user is large enough to accommodate the help system. You must have at least 128K of free space.
The SQL*Plus help script files are available in
```
%ORACLE_HOME%\SQLPLUS\ADMIN\HELP\ 
```
The help script files are:
- HELPBLD.SQL - to drop and create new help tables.
- HELPUS.SQL - to populate the help tables with the help data.
- HELPDROP.SQL - to drop existing SQL*Plus help tables.
The Windows command file, HELPINS.BAT, is available in
```
%ORACLE_HOME%\BIN\ 
```

Installing SQL*Plus Help

To install SQL*Plus help:

Select the "Enable InterMedia demos and add SQL*Plus help tables" from the Database Configuration Assistant during installation.

Set an environment variable, SYSTEM_PASS, to hold the SYSTEM user login with:
```
SET SYSTEM_PASS=SYSTEM/PASSWORD
```
where PASSWORD is the password you have defined for the SYSTEM user. The default SYSTEM user password is MANAGER.

The HELPINS utility reads this login from SYSTEM_PASS to run successfully.
Run the batch file, HELPINS.BAT, from a command line prompt with:
```
C:\> %ORACLE_HOME%\BIN\HELPINS US
```

Run SQL*Plus as the SYSTEM user with:
```
C:\> SQLPLUS SYSTEM/PASSWORD
```
where PASSWORD is the password you have defined for the SYSTEM user.

Run the SQL script, HELPBLD.SQL, from SQL*Plus with:

SQL> @%ORACLE_HOME%/SQLPLUS/ADMIN/HELP/HELPBLD.SQL

Accessing SQL*Plus Help

To access SQL*Plus help, enter one of the following commands in SQL*Plus:

	SQL> HELP

	SQL> HELP INDEX

	SQL> HELP TOPICS

If you know the topic for which you want help, enter the following:

SQL> 	HELP topic

where topic is a SQL*Plus help topic. For example, enter

SQL> HELP COLUMN

for help on the COLUMN command.

If you get a response that help is unavailable, check that you have correctly installed SQL*Plus help in the SYSTEM schema.

For more information about the HELP command, see Chapter 8, "Command Reference" in the SQL*Plus User's Guide and Reference.

Accessing Demonstration Tables

To load the demonstration tables, start SQL*Plus with the user account that allows you to complete the exercises. The SQL*Plus User's Guide and Reference refers to the user name SCOTT with the password TIGER, but you can use any account with the same privileges.

Enter the following command at the SQL*Plus prompt:

SQL> @%ORACLE_HOME%\SQLPLUS\DEMO\DEMOBLD.SQL

When you finish working through the examples, you can remove the demonstration tables from the database by entering the following command:

SQL> @%ORACLE_HOME%\SQLPLUS\DEMO\DEMODROP.SQL

2 Installing SQL*Plus Help and Demonstration Tables