Oracle Database 11g:The Top New Features for DBAs and Developers

Database Replay


Explore Database Replay, the new tool that captures SQL statements and lets you replay them at will.


Partitioning


Learn about Referential, Internal, and Virtual Column partitioning; new sub-partitioning options; and more.

Schema Management


Add columns with a default value easily and explore invisible indexes, virtual columns, and read only tables.


SQL Performance Analyzer


Accurately assess the impact of rewriting of SQL statements and get suggested improvements.


SQL Access Advisor


Get advice about optimal table design based on actual use of the table, not just data.


Transaction Management


Get an introduction to Flashback Data Archive and explore EM's Log Miner interface.

SQL Plan Management


Learn how to baseline and compare optimizer plans and then choose the best one.


SQL Repair Advisor


Explore how to use SQL Repair Advisor to identify problematic SQL statements and gather diagnostic information.


Manageability Features


Explore automatic memory management, multicolumn statistics, online patching, and more features.


PL/SQL: Coding


Avoid unneeded invalidation during changes, track null exceptions, interchange cursors, and more.

Security

Learn about Tablespace Encryption, case-sensitive passwords, data masking, and other features.


Result Cache

Don't go to the database if data has not changed. Use result cache instead, both in SQL and PL/SQL.


Resiliency


Explore Automatic Health Monitor, Automatic Diagnostic Repository, and other new resiliency features.


SQL Operations: Pivot and Unpivot
Make creating pivot operation on tables a breeze using new keywords.


ASM Improvements


Learn about variable AU sizing, rolling upgrades, and node affinity in RAC environments, among other things.


SecureFiles


Explore next-generation LOBs: LOB encryption, compression, de-duplication, and asynchronicity.

Data Guard Improvements


Query the physical standby database in real time without shutting down recovery, just for starters.


PL/SQL: Performance

Explore in-lining of code, native compilation without C compiler, PLS timer, use of simple integer, and more.

RMAN Improvements


Explore Data Recovery Advisor, Virtual Private Catalog, parallel backup of the same datafile, and other features.


Other...

COPY command, Export/Imports, Data Pump improvements, PHP Connection Pooling, and more.


more information click here

Oracle 11g security & auditing new features

Enhanced Password - Pete Finnigan notes some new Oracle 11g security features "[Oracle 11g] will have case sensitive passwords and also the password algorithm has changed to SHA-1 instead of the old DES based hashing used."

Oracle SecureFiles - replacement for LOBs that are faster than Unix files to read/write. Lots of potential benefit for OLAP analytic workspaces, as the LOBs used to hold AWs have historically been slower to write to than the old Express .db files. Mark Rittman Securefiles are a huge improvement to BLOB data types. Faster, with compression, encryption. Source: Laurent Schneider

Oracle 11g audit vault - Oracle Audit Vault is a new feature that will provide a solution to help customers address the most difficult security problems remaining today, protecting against insider threat and meeting regulatory compliance requirements.

Proxy connect for SQL*Plus - New with 10r2 proxy identification in SQL*Plus, the "connect" command has been enhanced to allow for a "proxy", to aid applications that always connect with the same user ID:

connect sapr3[scott]/tiger

FGAC for UTL_SMTP, UTL_TCP and UTL_HTTP. You can define security on ports and URLs. Source: Lewis Cunningham

Fine Grained Dependency Tracking (FGDT). This means that when you add a column to a table, or a cursor to a package spec, you don't invalidate objects that are dependant on them. Sweet! Source: Lewis Cunningham

Database Workload Replay - Oracle "Replay" allows the total database workload to be captured, transferred to a test database created from a backup or standby database, then replayed to test the affects of an upgrade or system change. Currently, they are working to a capture performance overhead of 5%, so you could conceivably capture real production workloads. Source: Dr. Tim Hall

Source: http://www.dba-oracle.com/oracle11g/oracle_11g_new_features.htm#security

Oracle 11g PL/SQL New Features

• PL/SQL "continue" keyword - This will allow a C-Like continue in a loop, to bypass any "else" Boolean conditions. A nasty PL/SQL GOTO is no longer required to exit a Boolean within a loop.
  

• Disabled state for PL/SQL - Another 11g new feature is a "disabled" state for PL/SQL (as opposed to "enabled" and "invalid" in dba_objects).
  

• Easy PL/SQL compiling - Native Compilation no longer requires a C compiler to compile your PL/SQL. Your code goes directly to a shared library. Source: Lewis Cunningham
  

• Improved PL/SQL stored procedure invalidation mechanism - A new 11g features will be fine grained dependency tracking, reducing the number of objects which become invalid as a result of DDL.
  

• Scalable PL/SQL - The next scalable execution feature is automatic creation of "native" PL/SQL (and Java code), with just one parameter for each type with an "on/off" value. This apparently provides a 100% performance boost for pure PL/SQL code, and a 10%-30% performance boost for code containing SQL. Mark Rittman
  

• Enhanced PL/SQL warnings - The 11g PL/SQL compiler will issue a warning for a "when others" with no raise.
  

• Stored Procedure named notation - Named notation is now supported when calling a stored procedure from SQL.

• Source : http://www.dba-oracle.com/oracle11g/oracle_11g_new_features.htm
• By : Burleson Consulting

Oracle Development: JDeveloper 10G – Java, J2EE, EJB, MVC, XML - overview for programmer

by: Boris Makushkin

In 2004 Oracle, Inc. made its new step toward J2EE application development simplification, releasing new RAD Oracle JDeveloper 10G. First of all JDeveloper 10G is targeted to rapid web application building, utilizing all the achievements of J2EE World: web service, EJB, MVC frameworks, XML, etc. Oracle JDeveloper 10G allows you to conduct all full development cycle for complex system – from UML diagram-based concept to debugging, profiling and deployment.

Let’s look at the product main features а:

1. Cross-platform (works under main Unix/Linux platforms and in Microsoft Windows environment) friendly development environment with high level of integration and third party plug-ins switching on. Syntax highlighting, re-factoring, transparent work with RDBMS, bi-directional code generation between UML models, EJB models, required J2EE patterns generation with one click of the button, visual web application builders and other capabilities open the doors for developer, who had never before being dreaming to create industrial-strength J2EE application!

2. PL/SQL stored procedures development and testing, plus integration with major database platforms – Oracle, Sybase, MS SQL Server etc. via JDBC mechanism.

3. Deployment capability for all major application servers – Oracle Application Server, IBM WebSphere, BEA WebLogic, JBoss. OC4J – J2EE container comes with this environment, which perfectly fits for application development and testing.

4. Oracle JDeveloper 10G provides possibility to realize persistent layer for applications on the ADF component base, EJB components or O/R Mapper – TopLink, which is also included.

5. Team Development feature with interoperability with major VCS systems – CVS, Rational ClearCase, Oracle SCM

6. Oracle JDeveloper 10G unique feature is utilization of Oracle ADF (Application Developer Framework) – MVC realization, enabling rapid J2EE application development. View Layer makes it possible to build applications for data exposure as for thin clients, based on web browser viewing, as well as for rich client and even wireless. Controller Layer is built on Jakarta Apache project platform – popular Open Source framework Struts. Business Components Layer may be realized with various technologies - Java POJO, Oracle ADF Components, WebServices, EJB or Oracle TopLink Objects

7. At this moment (December 2004) Oracle is testing new version - Oracle JDeveloper 10g (10.1.3) Developer Preview. The new features of this new version will be completely redesigned user interface, additional re-factoring capabilities, advanced UML diagrams features, web services simplified creation, support for the web application building on Java Server Faces base, complete support for J2EE 1.4 specification, ADF Faces – JSF components and others.

8. You can get production and developer preview for Oracle JDeveloper 10G here http://www.oracle.com/technology/products/jdev/index.html