If you want to see the current values of SQL*Plus system settings, you can use t

he SHOW command as shown in the following tutorial exercise:

SQL> SHOW AUTOCOMMIT
autocommit OFF
SQL> SHOW HEADING
heading ON
SQL> SHOW LINESIZE
linesize 80
SQL> SHOW PAGESIZE
pagesize 14
SQL> SHOW FEEDBACK
FEEDBACK ON for 6 or more rows
SQL> SHOW TIMING
timing OFF
SQL> SHOW NULL
null ""
SQL> SHOW ALL
appinfo is OFF and set to "SQL*Plus"
arraysize 15
autocommit OFF
autoprint OFF
autorecovery OFF
autotrace OFF
blockterminator "." (hex 2e)
cmdsep OFF
colsep " "
compatibility version NATIVE
concat "." (hex 2e)
copycommit 0
COPYTYPECHECK is ON
define "&" (hex 26)
describe DEPTH 1 LINENUM OFF INDENT ON
echo OFF
...
What Are SQL*Plus Environment Variables?
Behaviors of SQL*Plus are also controlled a some environment variables predefine
d on the local operating system. Here are some commonly used SQL*Plus environmen
t variables:
ORACLE_HOME - The home directory where your Oracle client application is install
ed.
PATH - A list of directories where SQL*Plus will search for executable or DLL fi
les. PATH should include $ORACLE_HOME\bin.
SQLPLUS - The directory where localization messages are stored. SQLPLUS should b
e set to $ORACLE_HOME\sqlplus\mesg
TNS_ADMIN - The directory where the connect identifier file, tnsnames.ora is loc
ated. TNS_ADMIN should be set to $ORACLE_HOME/network/admin.
How To Generate Query Output in HTML Format?
If you want your query output to be generated in HTML format, you can use the "S
ET MARKUP HTML ON" to turn on the HTML feature. The following tutorial exercise
gives you a good example:
SQL> connect HR/retneciyf
SQL> SET MARKUP HTML ON
SQL> SELECT FIRST_NAME, LAST_NAME, HIRE_DATE
<br>
2 FROM EMPLOYEES WHERE FIRST_NAME LIKE 'Joh%';
<br>
<p>
<table border='1' width='90%' align='center' summary='Script output'>
<tr>
<th scope="col">
FIRST_NAME
</th>
<th scope="col">
LAST_NAME
</th>
<th scope="col">
HIRE_DATE
</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
John
</td>
<td>
Seo
</td>
<td>
12-FEB-98
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
John
</td>
<td>
Russell
</td>
<td>
01-OCT-96
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>
What Is Output Spooling in SQL*Plus?
The output spooling a nice feature of the command-line SQL*Plus tool. If the spo
oling feature is turned on, SQL*Plus will send a carbon copy of the everything o
n your screen to a specified local file.
Output spooling is used mostly for quick dump of data to local files. Here are t
he commands to turn on and off output spooling in SQL*Plus:
SPOOL fileName - Turning on output spooling with the specified file.
SPOOL OFF - Turning off output spooling and close the spool file.
How To Save Query Output to a Local File?
Normally, when you run a SELECT statement in SQL*Plus, the output will be displa
yed on your screen. If you want the output to be saved to local file, you can us
e the "SPOOL fileName" command to specify a local file and start the spooling fe
ature. When you are done with your SELECT statement, you need to close the spool
file with the "SPOOL OFF" command. The following tutorial exercise gives you a
good example:
SQL> connect HR/retneciyf
SQL> SET HEADING OFF
SQL> SET FEEDBACK OFF
SQL> SET LINESIZE 1000
SQL> SPOOL \temp\employees.lst
SQL> SELECT * FROM EMPLOYEES;
......
SQL> SPOOL OFF
You should get all records in employees.lst with fixed length fields.
What Is Input Buffer in SQL*Plus?
Input buffer is a nice feature of the command-line SQL*Plus tool. It allows you
to revise a multiple-line command and re-run it with a couple of simple commands
. By default, input buffer is always turned on in SQL*Plus. The last SQL stateme
nt is always stored in the buffer. All you need is to remember to following comm
only used commands:
LIST - Displays the SQL statement (the last executed SQL statement) in the buffe
r.
RUN - Runs the SQL statement in the buffer again. ";" is a quick command equival
ent to RUN.
CLEAR BUFFER - Removes the SQL statement in the buffer.
INPUT line - Adds a new line into the buffer.
APPEND text - Appends more text to the last line in the buffer.
DEL - Deletes one line from the buffer.
CHANGE /old/new - Replaces 'old' text with 'new' text in the buffer.
How To Revise and Re-Run the Last SQL Command?
If executed a long SQL statement, found a mistake in the statement, and you don'
t want enter that long statement again, you can use the input buffer commands to
the correct last statement and re-run it. The following tutorial exercise gives
you a good example:
SQL> connect HR/retneciyf
SQL> SELECT FIRST_NAME, LAST_NAME, HIRE_DATE
2 FROM EMPLOYEE WHERE FIRST_NAME LIKE 'Joh%';
FROM EMPLOYEE WHERE FIRST_NAME LIKE 'Joh%'
*
ERROR at line 2:
ORA-00942: table or view does not exist
SQL> LIST
1 SELECT FIRST_NAME, LAST_NAME, HIRE_DATE
2* FROM EMPLOYEES WHERE FIRST_NAME LIKE 'Joh%'
SQL> CHANGE /EMPLOYEE/EMPLOYEES/
2* FROM EMPLOYEES WHERE FIRST_NAME LIKE 'Joh%'
SQL> RUN
(Query output)
SQL> INPUT ORDER BY FIRE_DATE
SQL> LIST
1 SELECT FIRST_NAME, LAST_NAME, HIRE_DATE
2 FROM EMPLOYEE WHERE FIRST_NAME LIKE 'Joh%'
3* ORDER BY HIRE_DATE
SQL> RUN
(Query output)
SQL> CLEAR BUFFER
buffer cleared
SQL> LIST
SP2-0223: No lines in SQL buffer.