Root dbspace

The root dbspace is the initial dbspace that the database server creates.

The root dbspace is special because it contains reserved pages and internal tables that describe and track all physical and logical units of storage. (For more information about these topics, see Tables and the disk structures and storage chapter in the Informix® Administrator's Reference.) The initial chunk of the root dbspace and its mirror are the only chunks created during disk-space setup. You can add other chunks to the root dbspace after disk-space setup.

The following disk-configuration parameters in the onconfig configuration file refer to the first (initial) chunk of the root dbspace:

  • ROOTPATH
  • ROOTOFFSET
  • ROOTNAME
  • MIRRORPATH
  • MIRROROFFSET
  • TBLTBLFIRST
  • TBLTBLNEXT

The root dbspace is also the default dbspace location for any database created with the CREATE DATABASE statement.

The root dbspace is the default location for all temporary tables created by the database server to perform requested data management.

See Size of the root dbspace for information about how much space to allocate for the root dbspace. You can also add extra chunks to the root dbspace after you set up database server disk space.