The database server cache is arranged in pages—fixed-size areas of memory. Since the server uses a single cache for its lifetime (until it is shut down), all pages must have the same size.

A database file is also arranged in pages, with a size that is specified on the command line. Every database page must fit into a cache page. By default, the server page size is the same as the largest page size of the databases on the command line. Once the server starts, you cannot start a database with a larger page size than the server.

To allow databases with larger page sizes to be started after startup, you can force the server to start with a specified page size using the -gp option. If you use larger page sizes, remember to increase your cache size. A cache of the same size accommodates only a fraction of the number of the larger pages, leaving less flexibility in arranging the space.

The following command starts a server that reserves a 64 MB cache and can accommodate databases of page sizes up to 8192 bytes.

dbsrv11 -gp 8192 -c 64M -n myserver