Re: Difference between SYS and SYSTEM

I've often wondered, just like the original poster, why one needs both a sys and a system account. Although the "own" versus "manage" explanations seem to make sense, they are not very satisfying.

For example, to shutdown or startup the database, I would connect as sys not system. Certainly this is a "management" role that should belong to system if the "own" and "manage" dichotomy is to make sense.

Also, if I add a table to the sys schema, does that table become part of the "data dictionary" simply because sys "owns" it? If not, what part of the sys schema is the "data dictionary" and what part is not?

Actually, now that I think of it, I log in as sys quite often. How else would you grant select on code_pieces to a developer, install dbms_shared_pool or shutdown / startup the database?

Frank Hubeny

billmil_at_my-deja.com wrote:

> SYS owns the data dictionary. You use "SYS" when you issue a "CONNECT
> INTERNAL".
>
> SYSTEM "is used to manage the database", and occasionally holds packages and
> tables. (From the O'Reilly Oracle DBA book, p. 466)
>
> You should never have to log on as sys and should never create tables in the
> SYS schema. Some scripts require you to log on as SYSTEM (the script to
> create the SQLPLUS Help, for example).
Received on Thu Apr 06 2000 - 00:00:00 CDT