TNSPing & SQLPlus just hang without errors

November 22, 2016

TNSPing & SQLPlus just hang without errors

Usually, when you connect to Oracle, you get errors that give you some feedback on what is happening.

Today, I got an issue where when trying to connect to SQLplus or even running a tnsping command was hanging. Not getting any error to start the troubleshooting. The issue was definitely some sort of connectivity but not able to point it out

In our case, we use “nameserver” in addition to tnsnames.ora. Our sqlnet.ora file looks like this:

NAMES.DIRECTORY_PATH= (ONAMES,TNSNAMES)
I needed to trace my “tnsping” command to see where it is getting hung.

To troubleshoot the issue with tnsping hanging, all you need to do is add these settings in sqlnet.ora to trace tnsping

TNSPING.TRACE_LEVEL = ADMIN
TNSPING.TRACE_DIRECTORY =/d01/abc/product/8.0.6/network/admin

My being a linux box and hence the path. You may need to modify according to your OS and directory

I ran the “tnsping” to the same Oracle SID again, a trace file “tnsping.trc” got generated in the path defined in the above “TNSPING.TRACE_DIRECTORY” variable.

Careful review of the trace file revealed that he connection was having an issue with the “name server” defined in my sqlnet.ora file.
I asked the Oracle DBA to confirm if the “name server” is started and she confirmed that it is not. Once she started the “name server”, tnsping command went successfully and I was able to connect to SQLplus.

Hope this helps you in some way.

Happy learning!!!

-Anand M

Oracle Apps, Oracle Database, Unix/Linux

hang, sqlplus, tnsping

Posted by:

anandmandilwar

Enterprise Solutions Architect with 8x AWS Certified & Project Management Professional (PMP). Passionate about solving customer problems through innovative solutions and improving operational efficiency by automating everything possible.

About Me

I’m a Hands-On Technical & Entrprise Solutions Architect based out of Houston, TX. I have been working on Oracle ERP, Oracle Database and Cloud technologies for over 20 years and still going strong for learning new things.

You can connect me on Linkedin and also reach out to me

I am certified for 8x AWS, OCP (Oracle Certified Professionals), PMP, ITTL and 6 Sigma.

Disclaimer

This is a personal blog. Any views or opinions represented in this blog are personal and belong solely to the blog owner and do not represent those of people, institutions or organizations that the owner may or may not be associated with in professional or personal capacity, unless explicitly stated.
All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site.

The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information. Any script available on the blog post MUST be tested before they are run against Production environment.

My Journey to the cloud…