RMAN architecture

There are a few key entities for RMAN to start with. Some of them are mandatory and the rest are optional. We will list these components along with whether they are optional or mandatory in the following list:

• Target database (mandatory)

• Target Control File (mandatory)

• Channels (mandatory)

• Recovery Catalog (optional)

• Oracle Secure Backup (optional)

• Media Management Library (optional)

• Auxiliary database (optional)

• Cloud Control 12c (optional)

Putting them all in the form of a diagram would appear as shown in the following figure:

Now, let's take a closer look at each one of the components.

Target database

This is the database for which RMAN is supposed to perform all the tasks of the backup and if needed, recovery as well. Since RMAN binary is just an interface, by using a valid network service, you can make it work for all the databases of your company. The database to which RMAN would be connected and working for would be termed as the target database.

Target Control File

By default...