Specifying Byte Order

To specify the byte order of data in the input data files, use the following syntax in the SQL*Loader control file:

Description of the illustration byteorder.eps follows
Description of the illustration byteorder.eps

The BYTEORDER parameter has the following characteristics:

  • BYTEORDER is placed after the LENGTH parameter in the SQL*Loader control file.

  • It is possible to specify a different byte order for different data files. However, the BYTEORDER specification before the INFILE parameters applies to the entire list of primary data files.

  • The BYTEORDER specification for the primary data files is also used as the default for LOBFILEs and SDFs. To override this default, specify BYTEORDER with the LOBFILE or SDF specification.

  • The BYTEORDER parameter is not applicable to data contained within the control file itself.

  • The BYTEORDER parameter applies to the following:

    • Binary INTEGER and SMALLINT data

    • Binary lengths in varying-length fields (that is, for the VARCHAR, VARGRAPHIC, VARRAW, and LONG VARRAW data types)

    • Character data for data files in the UTF16 character set

    • FLOAT and DOUBLE data types, if the system where the data was written has a compatible floating-point representation with that on the system where SQL*Loader is running

  • The BYTEORDER parameter does not apply to any of the following:

    • Raw data types (RAW, VARRAW, or VARRAWC)

    • Graphic data types (GRAPHIC, VARGRAPHIC, or GRAPHIC EXTERNAL)

    • Character data for data files in any character set other than UTF16

    • ZONED or (packed) DECIMAL data types