Control file backup

Having a valid backup of the control file of a database is crucial for the successful recovery of a database. Due to this we will take a closer look at the available methods to make a user-managed backup of a control file.

Tip

Always do a backup of the control file after making a structural change to a database operating in the ARCHIVELOG mode such as creating, deleting, or modifying a tablespace, due that this new information will not be available on previous backups of the control file.

Binary backup

You can generate a binary copy of the control file via a simple SQL statement. A binary copy of the control file contains additional information such as the archived redo log history, offline range for read-only and offline tablespaces, temp files entries (since 10.2) and RMAN backup sets, and copies of data.

Here is one example of the SQL statement used to create a binary copy of the control file:

SQL> ALTER DATABASE BACKUP CONTROLFILE TO 
'[filename_including_location]...