B Installing Oracle Database Client Using Response Files

This appendix describes how to use response files to perform a silent or noninteractive installation of Oracle Database Client. It covers the following topics:

How Response Files Work?
Preparing a Response File
Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File
Performing an In-place Oracle Database Client Upgrade Using the Response File

B.1 How Response Files Work?

You can automate the installation and configuration of Oracle software, either fully or partially, by specifying a response file when you start Oracle Universal Installer. Oracle Universal Installer uses the values in the response file to provide answers to some or all of the Oracle Universal Installer prompts.

Typically, Oracle Universal Installer runs in interactive mode, which means that it prompts you to provide information in graphical user interface (GUI) screens. When you use response files to provide this information, you run Oracle Universal Installer at a command prompt using either of the following modes:

Silent mode: Oracle Universal Installer does not display any screens. Instead it displays progress information in the command window where you started it. To use silent mode, you run setup.exe with the -silent parameter and include a response file, which contains responses to the Oracle Universal Installer prompts.
Noninteractive (or suppressed) mode: Oracle Universal Installer only displays screens for which you did not supply information in the response file. You can use variables in the response file or command-line prompts to suppress other Oracle Universal Installer screens, such as Welcome and Summary, that do not prompt for information. To use noninteractive mode, run setup.exe without the -silent parameter, but include the response file or any other parameters that apply.

You define the settings for a silent or noninteractive installation by entering values for the variables listed in the response file. For instance, to specify the Oracle home, you would supply the appropriate value for the ORACLE_HOME variable, as in the following example:

ORACLE_HOME="C:\app\product"

Another way of specifying the response file's variable settings is to pass them as command line arguments when you run Oracle Universal Installer. For example:

DRIVE_LETTER:\setup.exe_location> setup -silent "ORACLE_HOME=C:\app\product" ...

Ensure that you enclose the variable and its setting in quotes.

B.1.1 Reasons for Using Silent Mode or Noninteractive Mode

Table B-1describes several reasons why you might want to run Oracle Universal Installer in silent mode or noninteractive mode.

Table B-1 Reasons for Using Silent Mode or Noninteractive Mode

Mode	Uses
Silent	Use silent mode to: Complete an unattended installation Complete several similar installations on multiple systems without user interaction Oracle Universal Installer displays progress information in the window that you used to start it, but it does not display the Oracle Universal Installer screens.
Noninteractive	Use noninteractive mode if you want to complete similar Oracle software installations on multiple systems, providing default answers to some, but not all, of Oracle Universal Installer prompts. If you do not specify information required for a particular Installer screen in the response file, Oracle Universal Installer displays that screen. It suppresses screens for which you have provided all of the required information.

Mode

Uses

Silent

Use silent mode to:

Complete an unattended installation
Complete several similar installations on multiple systems without user interaction

Oracle Universal Installer displays progress information in the window that you used to start it, but it does not display the Oracle Universal Installer screens.

Noninteractive

Use noninteractive mode if you want to complete similar Oracle software installations on multiple systems, providing default answers to some, but not all, of Oracle Universal Installer prompts.

If you do not specify information required for a particular Installer screen in the response file, Oracle Universal Installer displays that screen. It suppresses screens for which you have provided all of the required information.

B.1.2 General Procedure for Using Response Files

You follow these general steps to install Oracle Database Client using response files:

Customize or create a response file for the installation settings that you need.

You can create the response file by using either of the following methods:
- Modify one of the sample response files that is provided with the installation.
- Save response file option during run time.
"Preparing a Response File" explains how to customize or create the response file.
Run Oracle Universal Installer from a command prompt, specifying the response file, using either silent or noninteractive mode.

Note:
Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2 require Administrator privileges at the command prompt.

"Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File" explains how to run Oracle Universal Installer with a response file.

B.2 Preparing a Response File

This section describes the methods that you can use to prepare a response file for use during silent-mode or noninteractive-mode installations:

Editing a Response File Template
Saving a Response File

B.2.1 Editing a Response File Template

Oracle provides response file templates for the database client and the configuration tool. These files are located in the client\response directory on the Oracle Database installation media.

Table B-2 lists the available Oracle Database Client sample response files:

Table B-2 Response Files

Response File Name	Purpose
`client_install.rsp`	Oracle Database Client installation
`netca.rsp`	Oracle Net Configuration Assistant to perform the configuration with the client installation types.

To copy and modify a response file:

Copy the appropriate response files from the client\response directory on the Oracle Database media to your hard drive.
Modify the response files with a text file editor.

Remember that you can specify the response file variables at the command line rather than within the response file. "How Response Files Work?" explains this method.

See Also:
Oracle Universal Installer and OPatch User's Guide for detailed information about creating response files. In an installed Oracle Database, select Start, then Programs, then Oracle - HOME_NAME, then Oracle Installation Products, then Universal Installer Concepts Guide. It appears in HTML format.
Run the response file by following the instructions in the "Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File" section.

B.2.2 Saving a Response File

You can use the Oracle Universal Installer in interactive mode to save a response file, which you can edit and then use to complete silent mode or response file mode installations. This method is useful for custom or software-only installations.

Starting with Oracle Database 11g Release 2 (11.2), you can save all the installation steps into a response file during installation by clicking Save Response File on the Summary page. You can use the generated response file for a silent installation later.

When you save the response file, you can either complete the installation, or you can exit from the installer on the Summary page, before it starts to copy the software to the system.

If you save a response file during a silent installation, then Oracle Universal Installer saves the variable values that were specified in the original source response file into the new response file.

Note:

Oracle Universal Installer does not save passwords in the response file.

To save a response file:

Ensure that the computer on which you are creating the response file has met the requirements described in Chapter 2.

When you run Oracle Universal Installer to save a response file, it checks the system to verify that it meets the requirements to install the software. For this reason, Oracle recommends that you complete all of the required preinstallation tasks and save the response file while completing an installation.
At the command prompt, use the cd command to change to the directory that contains the Oracle Universal Installer setup.exe executable.

Note:
Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2, and Windows 7 require Administrator privileges at the command prompt.

On the installation DVD, setup.exe is located in the database directory. Alternatively, navigate to the directory where you downloaded or copied the installation files.
Run setup.exe.
After Oracle Universal Installer starts, enter the installation settings, to save the response file.
When the installer displays the Summary screen, perform the following:
- Click Save Response File and specify a file name and location for the response file. Then, click Save to save the values to the file.
- Click Finish to create the response file and continue with the installation.
  
  Click Cancel if you only want to create the response file but not continue with the installation. The installation will stop, but the settings you have entered will be saved in the response file.
Before you use the saved response file on another system, edit the file and make any required changes.

Use the instructions in the file as a guide when editing it.

B.3 Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File

At this stage, you are ready to run Oracle Universal Installer at the command line, specifying the response file you created, to perform the installation. On Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2, you must open the command prompt with Administrator privileges. The Oracle Universal Installer executable, setup.exe, provides several options. For help information about the full set of these options, run setup.exe with the -help option, for example:

DRIVE_LETTER:\setup.exe_location setup -help

A new command window appears, with the "Preparing to launch..." message. In a moment, the help information appears in that window.

To run Oracle Universal Installer and specify a response file:

Place the response file on the computer where you want to install Oracle Database Client.
At a command prompt, run Oracle Universal Installer with the appropriate response file. On Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2, you must open the command prompt with Administrator privileges.

To start Oracle Universal Installer in silent or response file mode, enter a command similar to the following:
```
DRIVE_LETTER:\setup.exe_location [-silent] "variable=setting" [-nowelcome] [-nowait] [-noconfig]  -responseFile filename 
```
Note:
Do not specify a relative path to the response file. If you specify a relative path, then Oracle Universal Installer fails.

In this example:
- DRIVE_LETTER: Path of the database directory on the DVD.
- setup.exe_location: Indicates the location of setup.exe.
- -silent: Indicates that you want to run Oracle Universal Installer in silent mode.
- "variable=setting" refers to a variable within the response file that you may prefer to run at the command line rather than set in the response file. Enclose the variable and its setting in quotes.
- -nowelcome: Suppresses the Welcome window that appears during installation.
- -nowait: Closes the console window when the silent installation completes.
- -noconfig: Suppresses running the configuration assistants during installation, performing a software-only installation instead.
- filename: The full path and file name of the installation response file that you configured.

B.4 Performing an In-place Oracle Database Client Upgrade Using the Response File

Starting with Oracle Database 11g Release 2 (11.2.0.2), you can perform an in-place Oracle Database Client upgrade using the response file:

Edit the oracle.install.client.upgrading entry in the client_install.rsp file and set it to true. By default, the oracle.install.client.upgrading entry is set to false.
Run Oracle Universal Installer in silent mode as described in "Running Oracle Universal Installer Using the Response File".