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I tried to install ROracle today, after having managed to install RPostgreSQL and RMySQL on my Mac OS X. Unfortunately, the Oracle website drives me crazy. I just cannot figure out which minimum package I need to install in order to use ROracle. Intuitively I thought I just need a client and downloaded the instant client.

Is this enough? Where should I put the unzipped instant client? I also tried SQLDeveloper but my setup seems lack some Oracle installation seems still. If I start compiling anyway: 

R CMD INSTALL Roracle.tar.gz

I end up with the following error:

You must set the shell variable ORACLE_HOME to the directory where Oracle resides and re-run R CMD INSTALL e.g., (using Bourne shell syntax):

  export ORACLE_HOME=/opt/oracle
  R CMD INSTALL ROracle

So my simple question is, which package do I need to install and which location do you recommend? Setting up the compiler is not the problem here (at least so far :) )

Note I just want to connect to some database which is NOT on my system, so I really should just need a client (if ROracle allows for that).

Matt Bannert
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1 Answers1

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If you need an Oracle client installation you should be able to use the Oracle Instant Client. For documentation and download see Instant Client Downloads for Mac OS X (Intel x86) . Depending on what type of client you need you have a list of choices there. The Basic Client is allways needed and you could add a supplemental package to it depending on your needs. The basic client will work for many.

Choose a location to for ORACLE_HOME (/Application/oracle/product/client/10.2) create a lib directory in that ORACLE_HOME/ unzip the basic client and put the dylib files in ORACLE_HOME/lib. ORACLE_HOME=/Application/oracle/product/client/10.2 DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=$ORACLE_HOME/bin:$DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH PATH=$ORACLE_HOME/bin:$PATH

If you need a more complete client, check wich supplemental installation you need and add it to the $ORACLE_HOME that you build here. If you need jdbc, add the jdbc supplement, if you need sqlplus, add the sqlplus supplement. Make sure that executables go to $ORACLE_HOME/bin/

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    quite some hustle for just a client installation, probably I just could not believe all these pre-installation task were necessary and thus though I was wrong... Thanks for your explanation and patience. – Matt Bannert Apr 05 '11 at 13:48
  • @ran2: yes, you are right, Oracle on the mac is not like we are used to..... (not from a mac users point of view and not from any other os users point of view) It's not mac like and not Oracle like. –  Apr 05 '11 at 13:56