Oracle Recovery Manager (RMAN) enables you to apply level 1 incremental backups to an older image copy of your data files. You can roll forward the copy to the point in time of the most recent level 1 incremental backup. All blocks changed since the image copy was created are overwritten with their new contents as of the time of the last level 1 incremental backup. The effect is to roll forward the file in time, so that its contents are equivalent, for the purposes of database recovery, to an image copy of the data file made at the time of the last incremental level 1 backup.
Incorporating incrementally updated backups into your backup strategy shortens expected recovery times. Media recovery to the present time or to a point in time in the recent past can begin at the time of the last level 1 backup applied, rather than at the time of the last full database backup.
See Also: