In the recently published blog article Database Transaction Recorder – Adding Who to When and What to make Flashback take over from Journalling tables (http://technology.amis.nl/blog/10911/database-transaction-recorder-adding-who-to-when-and-what-to-make-flashback-take-over-from-journalling-tables) I have discussed how the replacement in database oriented applications of journaling tables by flashback data archives can be completed by recording the transaction history – including the client identifier identifiying the real end user behind a transaction – using the standard auditing features of the Oracle Database.

This same article discusses how there may be situations where standard auditing is not an option to implement – for example because of prohibitive DBA regulations or the [perceived] complexity of managing the contents of the sys.aud$ table. In such circumstances, other alternatives can be considered. Note that these are inferior: they are more complex in terms of code, require more effort and introduce more run time overhead. However, they too will do the job and may be more appropriatefor a particular situation.

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