Normally, Oracle does not propagate the adding of datafiles on the primary database to the standby database. This must be done manually on the standby database.
Dbvisit Standby will automatically add the datafile to the standby database. Dbvisit Standby version 6.0.26 and later, will attempt to generate a new name for a standby datafile, in case the primary name cannot be used due to different storage type (ASM and non ASM) or different database file structure between the primary and standby.
There are some restrictions to adding automatically adding the datafiles to the standby database.
Note 1: There must be sufficient space on the standby server for Dbvisit Standby to add the datafile. If there is not sufficient space, then Oracle will generate an error message which will be captured by Dbvisit Standby and an alert will be sent.
Note 2: This feature is independent of the Oracle parameter STANDBY_FILE_MANAGEMENT. Dbvisit Standby will detect if STANDBY_FILE_MANAGEMENT has added the datafile to the standby database, and if so, Dbvisit Standby will not add the datafile.
Note 3: Version 6.0.40 and earlier do not suppport adding more than one datafile per dbvisit run. so if multiple datafiles are to be added then it should be done as follows:
1. Add datafile
2. Run Dbvisit Standby on the primary
3. Add second datafile
4. Run Dbvisit Standby on the primary again
Every time Dbvisit Standby runs on the primary, it takes a snapshot of primary datafile ids and names and saves it in the repository. It also detects if new data files have been added to the primary since the last run. If so Dbvisit Standby creates a new standby control file and ships it to the standby server to the location specified by parameter LOGDIR_DR, before proceeding with transferring redo logs.
Every time Dbvisit Standby runs on the standby, it checks for a presence of a new standby control file under LOGDIR_DR. If a new standby control file is found, Dbvisit recreates it before proceeding with applying of archive logs. This functionality is similar to “Recreate Standby control file: dbv_functions –Q”
Actions related to recreating of a new standby control file are logged to Dbvisit Standby output and trace file. Should recreating of a standby control file fail, the locking mechanism explained under section "Recreate Standby control file" will prevent Dbvisit Standby from continuing running on the standby to apply archive logs. Follow the instructions in the lock file to investigate the issue and manually resolve it. It may be necessary to restore the old standby control file (backed up by Dbvisit Standby) and add datafile(s) to the standby database manually.