Oracle8 Clusters

Clusters
Oracle8 provides an additional method for storing Tables and Indexes called clusters. An Oracle8 cluster is a Schema Object containing a group of Tables which share one or more common Columns (cluster Key), which are stored on the same data block. Once Tables are created in clusters, their storage format is transparent to the end User. You can access these Tables like any other nonclustered Table. Cluster Tables should be predominantly used together in queries. Tables and Indexes stored in a cluster have the following immediate advantages: 3 Disk I/O and access times are reduced for queries involving joins of clustered Tables. 3 The cluster Key value in a cluster is only stored once, regardless of how many Rows in the cluster Tables contain the Value. This condition can reduce the physical Table storage requirements of a cluster Schema Object.
Example

22
C H A P T E R

In This Chapter
Introduction to Oracle8 clusters Creating clusters, cluster Tables, and cluster Indexes Guidelines in creating clusters Managing clusters Gathering statistics on clusters

Figure 22-1 illustrates the comparison of storing the STUDENT and DEPARTMENT Tables in a clustered and nonclustered format. The cluster Key is the D_NO. The right side of the diagram shows a typical, nonclustered format. The STUDENTS Table and the DEPARTMENT Tables each reside in separate data blocks. The left side of the diagram shows how clustered Tables are stored. The values in the two related tables are merged into a single table structure and sorted by the cluster Key (D_NO, D_NAME, ID). All merged data is stored together in one area in the database.

556

Chapter 22 3 Oracle8 Clusters

DEPARTMENT TABLE D_NO D_NAME

104 340 DEPARTMENT / STUDENT CLUSTER D_NO D_NAME ID FIRST_NAME LAST_NAME 104 Acct Acct Acct 340 Engr Engr Engr 22 56 47 44 11 83 John Lani Fred Amy Patricia Laurel Smith Kaupo Savage Johnson Butler Watson 11 22 83 44 47 56 STUDENTS TABLE ID FIRST_NAME LAST_NAME D_NO Patricia John Laurel Amy Fred Lani Butler Smith Watson Johnson Savage Kaupo 340 104 340 340 104 104 Acct Engr

DEPARTMENT DATA BLOCK STUDENTS DATA BLOCK CLUSTER DATA BLOCK

Figure 22-1: Cluster and noncluster Table formats

Creating clusters, cluster Tables, and cluster Indexes

The following Objects comprise a cluster: 3 The cluster Schema Object 3 The cluster Table 3 The cluster Index

Creating cluster Schema Objects

To create a cluster in your Schema, you must have the CREATE CLUSTER system privilege. To create a cluster in another Schema, you must use the CREATE ANY

Chapter 22 3 Clusters

557

CLUSTER system privilege. Since the cluster requires storage space, you must also have a quota for the Tablespace intended to contain the cluster or have the UNLIMITED TABLESPACE system privilege.
See Reference Section

CREATE CLUSTER

Create a cluster by executing the SQL CREATE CLUSTER command with the SQL*Plus or Oracle SQL Worksheet Oracle8 tools. The following syntax creates a cluster:
CREATE CLUSTER Cluster Name (Column_Name Datatype Column_Name Datatype,...) [SIZE integer] [PCTFREE integer] [PCTUSED integer] [INITRANS integer] [MAXTRANS integer] [TABLESPACE Tablespace_Name] [STORAGE CLAUSE]

A cluster can also be created using the Oracle8 Schema Manager. Figure 22-2 introduces the Schema Manager Create Cluster dialog box. Enter general information about the cluster, such as the clusters name and the creation Tablespace location, in this dialog box.

Figure 22-2: Create clusters using the Oracle8 Schema Manager.

558

Chapter 22 3 Oracle8 Clusters

Figure 22-3 illustrates the addition of CREATE CLUSTER parameters via the Oracle8 Schema Manager Create Cluster interface.
Figure 22-3: Specify cluster parameters by clicking the Storage tab in the Cluster Definition box.

The following list describes the CREATE CLUSTER syntax parameters: 3 Cluster Name. The name of the cluster to be created. 3 Column_Name. The name of a Column in the cluster Key. 3 Datatype. The datatype of the cluster Key Column. 3 SIZE. The amount of byte space to store all rows with the same cluster Key Value. 3 PCTFREE. The limit Oracle8 uses to determine when you can add additional rows to a clusters data block. 3 PCTUSED. The space reserved in each clusters data blocks for future updates. 3 INITRANS. The initial number of concurrent update transactions allocated for data blocks of the cluster. This value cannot be less than two or greater than MAXTRANS. 3 MAXTRANS. The maximum number of concurrent update transactions for any given data block belonging to the cluster. This value cannot be less than the value of INITRANS parameter or greater than 255. The default value is the MAXTRANS value of the Tablespace containing the cluster. 3 TABLESPACE. The Tablespace in which the cluster is to be created. 3 STORAGE. The method of data blocks allocation to the cluster.
See Reference Section

For example, the following SQL statement uses the CREATE CLUSTER command to create the student_dept cluster:

Chapter 22 3 Clusters

559

CREATE CLUSTER student_dept (dept_id INTEGER) PCTUSED 80 PCTFREE 5 SIZE 600 TABLESPACE library STORAGE ( INITIAL 200k NEXT 300k MINEXTENTS 2 MAXEXTENTS 20 PCTINCREASE 33);

Creating clustered Tables

To create a Table in a cluster, you must either have the CREATE TABLE or CREATE ANY TABLE system privilege. The Tablespace quota or the UNLIMITED TABLESPACE system privilege is not required to create a clustered Table. The Table is contained in a cluster that already has allocated space. A Table can be created in a cluster using the CREATE TABLE SQL command with the CLUSTER option. Execute this command with SQL*Plus or Oracle SQL Worksheet. Cluster Tables can also be created interactively using the Oracle8 Schema Manager.
Note

The Table name must be unique within the Users Schema. For example, the following SQL statement creates the STUDENTS Table in the
student_dept cluster: CREATE TABLE STUDENTS ( STUDENT_ID INTEGER NOT NULL, STUDENT_FIRST_NAME VARCHAR2(25) NULL, STUDENT_LAST_NAME VARCHAR2(25) NULL, STUDENT_DEPT_ID INTEGER NULL, STUDENT_ADDRESS VARCHAR2(50) NULL, STUDENT_CITY VARCHAR2(25) NULL, STUDENT_STATE VARCHAR2(15) NULL, STUDENT_ZIP VARCHAR2(10) NULL, CONSTRAINT PK_STUDENTS_1 PRIMARY KEY (STUDENT_ID) ) CLUSTER student_dept (STUDENT_DEPT_ID);

The following SQL statement creates the DEPARTMENT Table in the student_dept cluster:
CREATE TABLE DEPARTMENT ( DEPT_ID INTEGER NOT NULL, DEPT_NAME VARCHAR2(25) NULL, CONSTRAINT PK_DEPARTMENT1 PRIMARY KEY (DEPT_ID) ) CLUSTER student_dept (DEPT_ID);

560

Chapter 22 3 Oracle8 Clusters

Note

A clustered Table can be created in a different Schema than the Schema containing the cluster.

Creating cluster Indexes

A cluster Index must be created before you can load any data into a clustered Table. To create a cluster Index, one of the following conditions must be true: 3 Your Schema contains the cluster and you have the CREATE INDEX system privilege. 3 You have the CREATE ANY INDEX system privilege. In either case, you must also have a quota for the Tablespace intended to contain the cluster Index or the UNLIMITED TABLESPACE system privilege.
See Reference Section

CREATE INDEX

Create a cluster Index in a cluster using the CREATE INDEX SQL command with the CLUSTER option. For example, the following SQL statement creates the student_dept_index for the student_dept cluster:
CREATE INDEX student_dept_index ON CLUSTER student_dept INITRANS 2 MAXTRANS 5 PCTFREE 10 TABLESPACE OBJECTMIND_DATA STORAGE ( INITIAL 50k NEXT 300k MINEXTENTS 2 AXEXTENTS 10 PCTINCREASE 33);
Note

When estimating the size of cluster Indexes, remember the Index is on each cluster Key, not the actual rows; therefore, each Key only appears once in the Index.

Guidelines in creating clusters

Caution

In comparison with storing Tables separately with their own Indexes, clusters can reduce the performance of SQL DML statements (INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE). This reduction occurs because multiple cluster Tables share the same data block. Thus, Oracle8 may require more blocks to store a clustered Table than a nonclustered Table. This storing method can increase the space required to hold the clustered Tables and the number of blocks that it must traverse for a SQL query.

Chapter 22 3 Heading 1

561

The following sections discuss the following guidelines to help you determine which tables you should cluster: 3 Selecting candidate cluster Tables 3 Identifying the cluster Key 3 Optimizing the cluster Index 3 Using the PCTFREE and PCTUSED parameters 3 Using the SIZE parameter 3 Using the TABLESPACE parameter

Selecting candidate cluster Tables

To identify candidate Tables that should be created in a cluster, look for Tables: 1. Related via referential integrity Constraints 2. Joined together in SELECT statements Oracle8 stores all rows sharing the same cluster Key in the same data block. Thus, clustering Tables based on Columns used in joins reduces the number of data blocks you must scan to process the query all rows needed for a join on a cluster Key are in the same data block. This reduction improves the performance on join queries. Single Tables that you do not access via SQL joins can also be good candidates for creation in a cluster. This creation is advantageous if a Table is queried predominately by a particular Column. For example, if the STUDENTS Table is queried department by department, the STUDENTS Table could be created in a cluster where the cluster Key would be the dept_id. Clusters do not affect application design because their format for storing Tables is transparent to the end User. Regardless, only Tables predominately queried using SQL SELECT statements that involve table joins should be created in clusters. Therefore, application developers should be aware of Tables created in clusters to monitor transactions types executed against the respective cluster Tables.

Identifying the cluster Key

The cluster Key is the Column or group of Columns that the cluster Tables have in common. You specify the cluster Key Columns when creating the cluster and every Table added to the cluster. Every Table created in the cluster must have a Column that matches the size and type of the Columns specified in the cluster Key. The actual Column names of each Table do not have to match. The maximum number of Columns available in a cluster Key is 16, with a maximum length of 239 bytes. Thus, cluster Keys cannot include Columns that include the LONG or LONG RAW datatypes.

562

Chapter 22 3 Oracle8 Clusters

Cluster Keys should contain unique values allowing their respective Rows to fill approximately one data block. If you choose cluster Keys incorrectly, only a few rows per cluster Key are stored in a data block. This situation wastes space and causes queries to scan unnecessary data blocks. Data contained in cluster Tables can be inserted, updated, and deleted. The placement of data depends on the cluster Key, however. Changing the cluster Key of a row in an UPDATE operation may cause Oracle8 to physically relocate the row. Therefore, frequently updated Columns are not good candidates for the cluster Key.

Optimizing the cluster Index

You must create a cluster Index before you can execute any SQL DML statements against any clustered Tables. Thus, clustered Tables cannot be populated without a cluster Index. A cluster Index must be created on the cluster Key Columns after you have created a cluster. Defined specifically for clusters, a cluster Index contains an entry for each cluster Key value. Use the cluster Index to point to the data block that contains a cluster row based on a cluster Key value. You can place cluster Indexes in clusters that are not Indexed.
Note

Oracle assesses a given row with a minimum of two I/Os, depending on the number of levels traversed in the Index. Cluster Indexes differ from nonclustered Indexes in the following ways: 3 They can contain Keys with a NULL value. 3 The cluster Indexes point to the first data block in the chain for a given cluster Key value. 3 A cluster Index contains one entry per cluster Key value, rather than one entry per cluster row.

Caution

If you drop a cluster Index, data in the cluster remains but is inaccessible. Oracle8 only permits access to the cluster data after another cluster Index is created based on the cluster Key values. Suppose you want to move an Index to another Tablespace or alter its storage requirements. These actions require you to drop and re-create a cluster Index. The clusters data is not available after you drop the cluster Index, but becomes available again after you re-create the cluster Index.

Using the PCTFREE and PCTUSED parameters

Use the PCTFREE and PCTUSED parameters specified in the CREATE CLUSTER command to optimize space utilization. These parameters also optimize the amount of space reserved for updates to the current rows in a data block of a clusters data segment.

Chapter 22 3 Clusters

563

Note

PCTFREE and PCTUSED parameters set for Tables created in a cluster are ignored

because cluster Tables automatically use the settings for the cluster in which they are created.

Using the SIZE parameter

The SIZE parameter in the CREATE CLUSTER command specifies the average amount of space required to store all rows for a cluster Key value. Use the SIZE parameter to optimize the number of cluster Keys that can fit in a cluster data block. This optimization maximizes the storage efficiency of Keys within a cluster. The maximum number of cluster Key values per data block is fixed by the SIZE parameter. Actually, Oracle8 does not reserve space for each cluster Key value or guarantee the number of cluster Keys you can assign to a block.
Example

For example, if each data block has 2100 bytes of available space and the specified cluster Key size is 600 bytes, each data block can potentially hold rows for three cluster Keys. If the SIZE parameter is greater than the amount of available space per data block, each data block contains Rows for only one cluster Key value. If the cluster Key rows grow and no longer fit in one data block, the cluster Key data rows flow onto other data blocks in the cluster. This overflow causes the data blocks to chain together. The cluster Index points to the beginning of the chain of the data blocks, each of which contains the cluster Key value and the associated rows. This chaining action speeds data access to all values within the given cluster Key. For example, if the SIZE parameter determines that four cluster Key values are allowed per data block, this limitation does not prevent rows for one cluster Key Value from taking up all available space in the block. If more rows exist for a given Key than can fit in a single block, the block is chained.

Note

A cluster Key value is only stored once in a data block.

Using the TABLESPACE parameter

Use the TABLESPACE parameter in the CREATE CLUSTER or CREATE INDEX statements to identify the Tablespace in which you wish to store the new cluster or Index. Specifying a Tablespace allows the cluster and Index Schema Objects to be created in different Tablespaces. If a cluster and its respective Index are created on two different Tablespaces stored on different physical devices, you can retrieve the cluster data and Index data simultaneously.

564

Chapter 22 3 Oracle8 Clusters

Managing cluster Schema Objects

Managing a cluster involves the modification and deletion of the following Oracle8 Schema Objects: 3 Clusters 3 Cluster Tables 3 Cluster Indexes You can manage cluster Schema Objects using the Oracle Schema Manager or by executing the code in the following section using SQL*Plus or Oracle SQL Worksheet.

Altering clusters
One of the following conditions must exist to alter a cluster: you must have the ALTER ANY CLUSTER system privilege or the cluster must exist in your Schema.
See Reference Section

ALTER CLUSTER

To alter a cluster, use the ALTER CLUSTER command. The syntax follows:
ALTER CLUSTER Cluster Name {PCTUSED integer |PCTFREE integer |SIZE |INITRANS integer integer

|MAXTRANS integer |STORAGE CLAUSE}

Only the following cluster parameters can be altered using the ALTER CLUSTER command: 3 The PCTFREE and PCTUSED data block space usage parameters 3 The average cluster Key SIZE parameter 3 The INTRANS and MAXTRANS transaction entry settings 3 The storage parameters If you alter the PCTFREE and PCTUSED data block usage parameters or the cluster SIZE parameter, this alteration applies to all currently allocated and subsequently assigned data blocks used by the cluster.

Chapter 22 3 Heading 1

565

Note

Oracle8 recognizes altering data blocks already allocated for the cluster on an as needed basis, not immediately! When you alter the INITRANS or MAXTRANS transaction entry parameters of a cluster, the new setting for INITRANS applies only to the data blocks subsequently allocated for a cluster. Alternately, a new MAXTRANS value applies to all presently and subsequently allocated blocks for a cluster. The storage parameters INITIAL and MINEXTENTS cannot be altered. All new settings for the other storage parameters only affect extents subsequently allocated for the cluster. For example, the following SQL statement alters the PCTFREE and PCTUSED parameters for the student_dept cluster:
ALTER CLUSTER student_dept PCTFREE 25 PCTUSED 65;

Altering clustered Tables

One of the following conditions must exist to alter a clustered Table: you must have the ALTER ANY TABLE system privilege or the clustered Table must exist in your Schema. Use the ALTER TABLE command to alter clustered Tables. Only the following SQL operations can be executed with the ALTER TABLE command for clustered Tables: 3 Create or modify cluster Table Columns 3 Create, drop, enable, or disable integrity Constraints or Triggers for a clustered Table You cannot use data block-related parameters, transaction entry parameters, or storage parameters in conjunction with the ALTER TABLE statement for a clustered Table. Oracle8 uses the parameters of the cluster to apply to all clustered Tables. Use the standard ALTER INDEX SQL command to alter cluster Indexes.

Dropping clusters
One of the following conditions must exist to drop a cluster: you must have the DROP ANY CLUSTER system privilege or the cluster must exist in your Schema. The following syntax drops a cluster:
DROP CLUSTER Cluster Name

566

Chapter 22 3 Oracle8 Clusters

For example, the following SQL statement drops the student_dept cluster:
DROP CLUSTER student_dept;

When a cluster is dropped, the following Schema Objects are also dropped: 3 Tables within the respective cluster 3 The corresponding cluster Index All extents belonging to both the clusters data segment and Index segment are returned to the containing Tablespace. They immediately become available for other segments within the Tablespace to occupy.

Dropping clustered Tables

One of the following conditions must exist to drop a clustered Table: your Schema must contain the cluster or you must have the DROP ANY TABLE system privilege. Clustered Tables can be dropped individually without affecting the actual cluster, other clustered Tables, or even cluster Indexes.
Note

A clustered Table is dropped like a nonclustered Table by using the DROP TABLE command. For example, the following syntax drops the STUDENTS Table from the student_dept cluster:
DROP TABLE students;

While dropping a clustered Table, Oracle8 deletes each row individually. To avoid this time-consuming task, drop the entire cluster with the INCLUDING TABLES option. For example:
DROP CLUSTER student_dept INCLUDING TABLES;
Note

If you do not use the INCLUDING TABLES option when the cluster contains Tables, Oracle8 returns an error message to the end User.

Dropping cluster Indexes

A cluster Index can be dropped without affecting the cluster or its clustered Tables. Dropping a cluster Index immediately marks the cluster as inaccessible. To enable end Users to access the cluster, You must re-create the cluster Index. Cluster Indexes are dropped as part of a Procedure to rebuild the fragmented cluster Indexes. To drop a cluster without Tables and its respective cluster Index, use the SQL command DROP CLUSTER. For example:
DROP CLUSTER student_dept;

Chapter 22 3 Clusters

567

If one or more Tables in a cluster contain Primary or Unique Keys referenced by Foreign Key Constraints of Tables outside the cluster, the cluster cannot be dropped unless the dependent FOREIGN KEY Constraints are dropped first. Remove FOREIGN KEY dependencies by using the following CASCADE CONSTRAINTS option of the DROP CLUSTER command:
DROP CLUSTER student_dept INCLUDING TABLE CASCADE CONSTRAINTS

Gathering information on clusters

Use the following Data Dictionary views to gather statistics on clusters in your Schema: 3 USER_CLUSTERS 3 USER_CLU_COLUMNS You can also use the ANALYZE command to collect statistics about clusters. The cluster must be in your own Schema or you must have the ANALYZE ANY system privilege to use the ANALYZE command. Use the ANALYZE command to: 3 Collect statistics about clusters used by the Optimizer and store the results in the Oracle8 Data Dictionary. 3 Validate the structure of the cluster Schema Object. 3 Identify migrated and chained rows of a cluster into a Table local to your Schema. The general syntax for using the ANALYZE command follows:
ANALYZE CLUSTER Cluster Name {COMPUTE STATISTICS |ESTIMATE STATISTICS |DELETE STATISTICS |VALIDATE REF UPDATE |VALIDATE STRUCTURE |LIST Chained ROW INTO Table Name}

For example, the following statement computes statistics for the STUDENTS Table and its respective Indexes in the cluster STUDENT_DEPT:

568

Chapter 22 3 Oracle8 Clusters

ANALYZE TABLE STUDENTS COMPUTE STATISTICS;

View the actual results of this operation using the USER_CLUSTERS and USER_CLU_COLUMNS Data Dictionary views.

Summary
Striving to optimize storage allocation for Tables, Oracle8 provides technique of clustering to the DBA . An Oracle8 cluster can be thought of as a container that stores Tables sharing the same Primary Key. Clustered Tables, are stored on the same data block, with their respective storage format transparent to the User. The following key points summarize this chapter: 3 Oracle8 can cluster Tables and their respective Indexes. 3 Two types of Table clustering techniques can be implemented: Clusters based on a cluster Key (Primary Key) and clusters based on a hash function. 3 Cluster Keys are only stored once. 3 Clustering, if implemented correctly, can reduce disk I/O for queries that involve complex joins. 3 A cluster index must be created before any data can be loaded into any cluster Table. 3 Only use hash clusters on Tables where the queries use equality operators and the Tables are relatively static in size. 3 Upon creation, the storage parameters can be used to optimize the storage allocation and performance of the clusters.