Oracle 11g Release 2 Installation Steps

1. The Oracle Database 11g Release 2 files are broken down into two zip files on the Oracle site. That means you need to download both files, and then expand them into an installation directory. I called my installation directory C:\OracleInstall, but you can call it whatever works for you. Here’s a screen shot of the directory after expanding both compressed files (done with WinZip 15).

You should notice that the two expanded compressed files put everything into a database directory (or folder). Within the installation folder (C:\OracleInstall\database), you double click on the oui icon to launch (start) the Oracle Universal Installer. It’ll open a command prompt that may dwell on the screen for a few seconds up to maybe fifteen seconds.

2. It’s a good idea to provide an email address for security updates no matter what. You can uncheck the box if you don’t want updates via Oracle Support Services. Click the Next button to continue.

3. Most developers want to Create and configure a database. If that’s your desire, leave the default radio button checked. Click the Next button to continue.

4. Most developers install their test instance on a desktop or laptop. If that’s your desire, leave the defaultDesktop Class radio button checked. Click the Next button to continue.

5. These are default settings and generally the easiest to use. I’d suggest you change the Character Set drop down to Unicode. Then, enter a password twice. Oracle requires that you use at least one capital letter and one number in a 6 character or more long password. Click the Next button to continue.

6. The next screen is a progress bar that checks for prerequisites. You shouldn’t have to do anything here because it automatically advances you to the next dialog screen. This generally takes less than a minute to run but can take two or so. If you’re much beyond 3 minutes there may be a resource problem with your Windows PC or virtual machine.

7. This shows you all the selected values for the installation. Unless you want to abort the installation, click the Finish button to proceed.

8. This screen is the main progress bar, and you’ll be here somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes. The downside is that there are some dialogs that will popup during this phase and you need to authorize them, so it’s a bad time to take a break.

9. The first popup screen requires you to authorize the Java runtime to call home. You should click the Allow Access button to proceed.

10. When the progress bar starts configuring the instance, failures can occur. The first may occur during the network configuration, which typically happens if you didn’t preconfigure the hosts file. You don’t need to do anything but watch here unless the installer triggers an error.

11. The following progress bar is launched by the Oracle Database Configuration Assistant. It typically runs without a problem. You don’t need to do anything but watch here unless the installer triggers an error. This takes a few minutes, and unfortunately requires you to stick aroung to again authorize Java.

12. The second popup screen requires you to authorize the Java runtime to call home. You should click theAllow Access button to proceed.

13. The third and last popup screen asks you to whether you want to open other scheme. Generally, you should click the OK button to proceed.

14. The next dialog shows you that the network and database instances are configured. It’s also running the OEM (Oracle Enterprise Manager) installation. You can wait here but it won’t be a long wait.

15. This is the last dialog and says you’ve installed Oracle Database 11g Release 2 successfully. You can theClose button to complete the installation.