Do You Really Need to Model? Yes!

If you plan to build a database or application, do you really need to spend the time to model? Let's think of it like this. Last year, I just finished a major house remodel. When I say major, I mean the entire house was gutted and stripped down to the foundation. Would I want to tackle such a project without some concrete house plans? Nope, probably not. You get my point.

Here are the reasons why you would want to spend the time and energy up front to design a model.

Great Communication Tool
Remember the saying "A picture is worth a thousand words"? A model is just that. A picture allows you to communicate concepts and ideas.  Having a diagram allows for discussion and analysis. Architects and end users can easily confirm what the requirements are by visually seeing them on a model.

Easy to Change
Mistakes are costly especially in the later stages of a project when resources have been committed. If there is a business discrepancy, you can easily change it on a model compared to a fully developed system.

User Involvement
Having a model will allow end users to get involved in the project in the beginning. Getting users engaged early on improves the quality and adoption of your system.

Documentation
If something goes wrong or if a major change is required, having a model handy allows you to review how the system was set up.

So what are you waiting for? Go forth and model away....

Setting up the Data Modeler Reporting Schema

If you're using the Data Modeler, you should take advantage of the data modeling reports that are shipped with Oracle SQL Developer. To use these reports, you will just need to export your designs to the Reporting Schema. Here's how you do it.

• First, create a schema to hold the reporting repository. It can be an existing schema, but to keep things clean, I recommend creating a new schema.

• The reporting schema will need some permissions. Development has a cool script to do just that. You can find the file Reporting_Schema_Permissions.sql in the datamodeler\datamodeler\reports directory of your Data Model installation. .

Here are the contents of the file opened in SQL Developer

USER - schema user to hold reporting repository
OS DIRECTORY - this is a required temporary directory that resides on the computer where the database is running. The script will create the definition in the database, but you will still need to create this directory after you run the script.

Here is the script I ran after I updated the USER and OS DIRECTORY 

• Once the Reporting Schema is set up, go back into Data Modeler to export your designs to the Reporting Schema.

• A dialog will appear, select the reporting schema connection and click OK.

•  Go to the Reports tab in SQL Developer and you can now run any of the Data Modeler Reports.

Where is the Data Modeler in SQL Dev?

In version 3.0, SQL Developer fully integrated the Data Modeler. That means everything you can do in the Data Modeler can be done in SQL Developer. A user at the Houston Oracle Developer Day asked me, "Well, if the Modeler is available in SQL Developer, why would I want to download it separately?" Good question. It depends on what you're doing. If you're just doing purely modeling, you may not want to see all the extra navigators, buttons and menus that comes with SQL Developer.  I personally like to keep my workspace as simple as possible. Easier to get to the stuff that I need to do. Now if you're already in SQL Developer, you have all the modeling features at your fingertips. Here's how to get to them.

To open the Data Modeler browser, go to the View menu. Select Browser and the Browser navigator will be displayed below the Connections.

Similar to the standalone product, go to File to open a model or to import a schema.

I imported a few tables from the data dictionary to create this relational model.

Oracle Developer Day - Houston, TX

I was just in Houston yesterday for the Oracle Developer Day. This event is where we provide free Database Application Development training to the user community. This is an all day event where you get hands on training from the experts. There are various tracks you can choose from: Oracle Application Express, Database Development, Java and .NET. We host these events in various cities around the US. The next event will be in Denver, CO. No date yet, but keep tabs on upcoming event announcements by following us on twitter or facebook. If your not able to attend in person, we plan to have more virtual events in 2012. Our last one was hugely popular. Until then, if you want to take a stab at playing with the virtual machine, here it is. Both SQL Developer and the Modeler are installed. You can also access the hands on labs. Have fun!

RMAN is in the house!

If you're a DBA, you may know RMAN all too well. RMAN stands for Oracle Recovery Manager. To protect your database, you will need to be able to backup and recover your data. With RMAN, there are many options to choose from for backing up, restoring and recovering your database. If you downloaded SQL Developer 3.1 Early Adopter, you will see the RMAN node on the DBA Navigator. The DBA Navigator is where we house all of our DBA features. To open this navigator, go to the View menu and select DBA. Expand the RMAN Backup/Recovery node and you will be able to view your Backup Jobs, Sets and Image Copies. You can configure your RMAN settings and view your scheduled jobs.

Further customize your backup.

Select from the Restore and Recover options.

If you're interested in learning more about RMAN, the Oracle doc is a good place to start. I'm working on getting a demonstration out so check back.