dbverify does not work with default Oracle character set WE8MSWIN1252 on Windows.

Answer

   
1. Does Sterling MCF 8.x support using Oracle default character set i.e. WE8MSWIN1252? Why?
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      No. WE8MSWIN1252 is not a Unicode character set and has limitations in storing some of the multilingual characters. For Ex: Japanese, German etc. Third party vendor Oracle recommends using the Unicode character set as of Oracle version 9i.
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2. Which is the recommended character set for Sterling MCF 8.x version and why?
      
      AL32UTF-8 or the UTF-16 character set is recommended. Reference: Installation_Guide.pdf -> Section entitled "Installing Oracle (UNIX/Linux)."
      AL32UTF-8 is a global character set. It can be used to store all the Unicode characters and the number of bytes used to store each of the character is relatively less (1-4 bytes).
      
      
   
3. When Oracle is installed on Windows XP, default character set provided for new database is WE8MSWIN1252. Does this mean we should not install Oracle in Windows XP at all?
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      We can definitely install Oracle on Windows XP. When the user creates a new database, the default character set needs to be changed accordingly. Kindly refer to Section entitled "Installing Oracle (Windows)" from the MCF Installation_Guide.pdf for more information.
      
      
   
4. Is dbverify dependent on the character set? If yes, why?
      
      Yes. dbverify generates DDL’s based on how Oracle stores the characters in the database. Alter statements are generated based on the number of bytes occupied. dbverify is designed to identify and generate the differences depending on the character set used.
      
      
   
5. Is it mandatory for customers to switch to recommended character sets in case of any issues?
      
      Yes. Sterling Commerce product documentation provides the system requirements and specific details about setting up third-party application. This means that the Sterling product has been thoroughly tested and certified by our QA team with these parameters.
      
      
   
6. Do we have to re-install the database if tables have already been created?
      
      It is not required to reinstall the database. Using the Database Configuration Assistant tool provided by Oracle, create a new database and create new users and schema as per the recommended character sets mentioned in the product documentation. Run the database scripts available in the MCF <INSTALL_DIR>/database folder to create the tables, indices, etc. that get generated when the product is installed for the first time. We can also use a database export/import option feature if required.
      
      Creating a new database and new schema/user is a one time set-up and it is always good to be on the recommended and supported versions by Sterling. This will help prevent encountering any unknown problems with dbverify not generating the differences or generating incorrect differences, and save time in rounds of simulation and debugging.
      
      
   
7. How to find which character set is used in the database?
      
      Run the query: select * from nls_database_parameters; Check for the value in the parameter NLS_CHARACTERSET.