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HyperBac for Oracle - High Performance Backup Software for Oracle

RMAN FORMAT STRINGS

RMAN format strings are evaluated at RMAN execution time, these are typically used to generate unique backup set attributes (TAG, FORMAT, etc). The entire FORMAT string is processed in a port-specific manner by the target instance to derive the final backup piece name. The following substitution variables are available in FORMAT strings to aid in generating unique filenames. The formatting of this information varies by platform.

Syntax

%c

Specifies the copy number of the backup piece within a set of duplexed backup pieces. If you did not duplex a backup, then this variable is 1 for backup sets and 0 for proxy copies. If one of these commands is enabled, then the variable shows the copy number. The maximum value for %c is 256.

%d

Specifies the name of the database (without padding). See also %n.

%D

Specifies the current day of the month from the Gregorian calendar in format DD.

%F

Combines the DBID, day, month, year, and sequence into a unique and repeatable generated name.

%M

Specifies the month in the Gregorian calendar in format MM.

%n

Specifies the name of the database, padded on the right with x characters to a total length of eight characters. For example, if orcl is the database name, then the padded name is orclxxxx.

%p

Specifies the piece number within the backup set. This value starts at 1 for each backup set and is incremented by 1 as each backup piece is created. Note: If you specify PROXY, then the %p variable must be included in the FORMAT string either explicitly or implicitly within %U.

%s

Specifies the backup set number. This number is a counter in the control file that is incremented for each backup set. The counter value starts at 1 and is unique for the lifetime of the control file. If you restore a backup control file, then duplicate values can result. Also, CREATE CONTROLFILE initializes the counter back to 1.

%t

Specifies the backup set time stamp, which is a 4-byte value derived as the number of seconds elapsed since a fixed reference time. The combination of %s and %t can be used to form a unique name for the backup set.

%T

Specifies the year, month, and day in the Gregorian calendar in this format: YYYYMMDD.

%u

Specifies an 8-character name constituted by compressed representations of the backup set number and the time the backup set was created.

%U

Specifies a convenient shorthand for %u_%p_%c that guarantees uniqueness in generated backup filenames. If you do not specify a format, then RMAN uses %U by default.

%Y

Specifies the year in this format: YYYY.

%%

Used to represent the '%' character, for example '%%U' would equate to '%U'.