The database server cache is arranged in pages—fixed-size areas of memory. Since the database 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 when the database is created. Every database page must fit into a cache page. By default, the database server page size is the same as the largest page size of the databases that are specified when the database server is started. Once the database server starts, you cannot start a database with a larger page size than the database server page size.

To allow databases with larger page sizes to be started after startup, you can force the database server to start with a specific page size by 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 database server that reserves a 64 MB cache and can accommodate databases of page sizes up to 8192 bytes.

dbsrv12 -gp 8192 -c 64M -n myserver

 See also