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The DEFAULTS keyword

The DEFAULTS keyword

Release 9.3 E-mail This TopicPrintable VersionGive Us feedback
Note:This topic was updated for 9.3.1.

NOTE: Present in all ArcSDE geodatabases but can only be altered in geodatabases created under an ArcGIS Server Enterprise license

NOTE: Also present in file geodatabases; however, this topic covers ArcSDE geodatabases. Please see Configuration keywords for file geodatabases in the "Defining the properties of a geodatabase" section of the help for information on the DEFAULTS keyword for file geodatabases.

The DBTUNE table has a fully populated DEFAULTS configuration keyword upon geodatabase creation. You can think of the parameters in the DEFAULTS configuration keyword of the DBTUNE table as the master, or fall back, storage parameters for user data; if you don't supply a configuration keyword or you supply an incomplete keyword (one that is missing parameters) when data is created or imported, the missing parameters are read from the DEFAULTS keyword. Therefore, when you alter the DEFAULTS keyword parameter group, you should populate it with values that represent the most common storage configuration of your data. Doing so relieves you of the need to define all the parameters for each of the keywords you define.

For example, if you create a configuration keyword to create tables in a storage space segregated from the rest of the data, you only need to add the parameters that specify the tables' storage location. The rest of the parameters, such as the geometry storage type, can be picked up from the DEFAULTS keyword parameter group.

Populating the DEFAULTS keyword with the most commonly used values for your particular site also makes it easier for the users who create data; if the DEFAULTS keyword contains the settings they will need for 95 percent of the data, they will only have to worry about selecting a different keyword for the remaining 5 percent.

The DEFAULTS configuration keyword can be selected whenever you create a table, index, feature class, or raster dataset. If you don't supply a keyword when you create or load data, the DEFAULTS keyword parameter group is used automatically.

The configuration parameters present by default in the DEFAULTS parameter group vary by DBMS. Below are the DEFAULTS parameter groups for each database management system type with the ArcGIS 9.3 release. They are represented as how they would appear in the dbtune file, not how they look in the DBTUNE table. (For instance, there would be no double pound sign in front of the configuration keyword in the DBTUNE table.)

Consult the following topics to see the DEFAULTS keyword parameter lists for each DBMS.

DB2 DEFAULTS

Informix DEFAULTS

Oracle DEFAULTS

PostgreSQL DEFAULTS

SQL Server DEFAULTS

See Also

  • DBTUNE configuration keywords
  • The dbtune file and the DBTUNE table