Latest Contributions by JoshuaBixby

ArcGIS simply makes the call to the Oracle client which would be the first one in the library path as the DLL is loaded. I haven't had a chance to test with ArcGIS 10.0 or 10.1, but I just don't believe the situation is so with ArcGIS 9.3/9.3.1.  On our organization's machines that are configured with Oracle 10g and 11g clients and ArcGIS 9.3.1, it seems ArcGIS is looking for specific Oracle clients and not just the first Oracle client in the path. The behavior on our machines is: [INDENT]System PATH           SDE direct connect string    Result 10g path;11g path  sde:oracle10g                    Connection Succeeded 10g path;11g path  sde:oracle11g                    Connection Succeeded 11g path;10g path  sde:oracle10g                    Connection Succeeded 11g path;10g path  sde:oracle11g                    Connection Succeeded 10g path                  sde:oracle10g                    Connection Succeeded 10g path                  sde:oracle11g                    Failed:  Server library could not be loaded 11g path                  sde:oracle10g                    Failed:  Server library could not be loaded 11g path                  sde:oracle11g                    Connection Succeeded[/INDENT] If ArcGIS was simply looking for the first Oracle client in the system  path, then errors would be generated if the SDE direct connect string  called a different Oracle version than the first one in the system path. ... View more

The example in my earlier post isn't hypothetical, it exists for ArcGIS 9.3.1.  I realize ArcGIS 10.1 won't connect to SDE 9.2; my question was really about the larger issue of specifying Oracle clients or libraries.  If Esri has added code for the database connection to " automatically figure out which direct connect driver to use", then that is what I needed to know because I could not find documentation that explicitly stated that information. Prior to ArcGIS 10.1, in the not-so-distant past, the user had to specify different clients or libraries on one machine.  Automatic is good, as long as it works.... ... View more

It is common in our organization for GIS staff, and occasionally other GIS users, to have 2 versions of Oracle client on their machines:  Oracle 9i and Oracle 11g.  The need for 2 Oracle clients is driven by non-GIS reasons; however, depending on which SDE instance people connect to, the direct connect strings vary.  For example, the two most common direct connects are:      SDE:ORACLE9i:LEGACYINSTANCE      SDE:ORACLE11G:INSTANCE Since the LEGACYINSTANCE has SDE 9.2 SP6, Oracle 11g client cannot be used to connect from ArcGIS Desktop 9.3/9.3.1. It could very well be that both connections are using the Oracle 11g client since it is the first Oracle client in the system's path.  I guess that is a question for Esri.  If that is the case, i.e., both use the same Oracle client, then my original question should have been:    How does one specify different Oracle direct connect libraries in the Database Connection? ... View more

And thank you for providing additional information to clarify the situation. ... View more

It was the fact that 10.0 was connecting that was throwing me off.  Accepting that ArcGIS Desktop 10 direct connects using Oracle 11g to SDE 9.2 should not work but do, the behavior of 9.3/9.3.1 and 10.1 make sense. Thanks. ... View more

OK, bear with me on this one.... I understand why 11g server DLLs were created for SDE 9.3 and later and not SDE 9.2 or earlier.  That being said, I am trying to understand why I can direct connect using Oracle 11g client in ArcGIS Desktop 10 to SDE 9.2 but why I can't direct connect using Oralce 11g client in ArcGIS Desktop 9.3/9.3.1 to that very same SDE 9.2?  Is the fact it works in ArcGIS Desktop 10 a bug, i.e., it works but it shouldn't really work, or was there a change in support between ArcGIS Desktop 9.3/9.3.1 and ArcGIS 10? The situation I am seeing: [INDENT]ArcGIS Desktop 9.3.1 Oracle 11g Direct Connect to SDE 9.2  -->  Doesn't work ArcGIS Desktop 10 Oracle 11g Direct Connect to SDE 9.2     -->  Works ArcGIS Desktop 10.1 Oracle 11g Direct Connect to SDE 9.2  -->  Doesn't work [/INDENT]From everything said in response to my original question, none of the above scenarios should work, right? [INDENT] [/INDENT] ... View more

I did come across the Help page that shows 10.1 is not compatible for direct connects to SDE 9.2.  That being said, if backwards compatibility for 3 versions is an Esri standard design, why doesn't ArcGIS 9.3.1 SP2 support direct connect using Oracle 11g client to SDE 9.2 SP6 but ArcGIS 10.0 SP2 does?  ArcGIS 9.3.1 is a whole lot closer to 9.2 than 10.0. ... View more

Does the SDE user password meet strong password requirements?  When running Mixed Mode authentication, the default is for SQL Server to enforce strong password requirements.  I don't recall the exact error codes at the moment, but I definitely ran into strong password problems once at the same installation steps you are at now. ... View more

Oops, forgot to ask, are you trying to install ArcGIS Server Workgroup or Enterprise edition?  If you are installing ArcGIS Server Workgroup, then ArcSDE Workgroup is included on the same disc.  The separate discs I spoke of earlier apply to ArcGIS Server Enterprise. ... View more

Although ArcSDE was "integrated" or "incorporated" into ArcGIS Server, that was pretty much just for licensing and marketing purposes.  From a technical perspective, ArcSDE remains a separate product in most ways from the rest of ArcGIS Server.  Before media downloads directly from ESRI, it use to be the ArcGIS Server Media Kits would include 2 DVDs for ArcSDE, one for Windows and one for UNIX/Linux.  What you are looking for is a separate ISO file or DVD for ArcSDE. ... View more

How ArcGIS Server directly connects to ArcSDE on SQL Server depends upon how the SQL Server server and client are configured. According to a SQL Server 2008 R2 MSDN web page on Configuring Client Network Protocols, " he protocols available for SQL Server clients are TCP/IP, Named Pipes, VIA, and shared memory." Both the server and client can allow or disallow certain protocols as well as prioritize them. Since VIA is deprecated and shared memory is only local, that leaves Named Pipes and TCP/IP. Unless you have modified defaults, I am guessing your configuration is using TCP/IP. ... View more

If you are interested in a bit of background on WM and WMAS at ESRI, you might want to check out the following older forum thread: [INDENT]ArcGIS Desktop - Projections, Projection Engine forum - Why are there 2 Web Mercator PCS's? [/INDENT] ... View more