TOra, The Linux Alternative To TOAD

December 22nd, 2003 by Mark Rittman

One of my New Year Resolutions is to move my work laptop over to Linux, to be more in sync with Oracle’s development effort and to benefit from the extra performance that you get from running Oracle on a Unix platform. One of the things that’s put me off in the past is the thought of losing TOAD, but I’ve just come across an open-source alternative that runs on Linux and Windows that seems a suitable replacement.

TOra is a Toolkit for Oracle which aims to help the DBA or developer of database application, and features a PL/SQL debugger, SQL worksheet with syntax highlighting, DB browser and a comprehensive set of DBA tools.

The TOra project is maintained on Sourceforge and comes bundled on the RedHat installation CDs, and is free for use on Linux (Windows users need to purchase a commercial license)

Some of the features included with TOra include

TOra is released under the GPL and there’s an active community built around the product, with discussion lists, a comprehensive user manual  and the source code available at the project CVS repository.

UPDATE: Michael Wexler contacted me about another TOAD alternative for Linux:

“Not quite as impressive as Tora but catching up quickly. AquaDataStudio at http://www.aquafold.com/ is not open source, but is completely java based, and is very, very friendly with Oracle.  The author is extremely responsive in making changes and enhancements. Like Tora, free for personal use, but commercial (now) have to pay. And, since its all java, all you need is a JVM and the ability to use JDBC or other Java database connections.”

Thanks Michael!

Posted in Linux |

Comments

  1. test Says:

    December 24th, 2003 at 9:39 pm

    test comment

  2. Johan Snyman Says:

    February 11th, 2004 at 1:13 am

    Why don’t you just use jDeveloper ?

  3. Steve Says:

    June 30th, 2004 at 4:37 am

    I came accross this press release on the TOra web site:
    2004-01-12 —-
    Today I am happy to announce that the purchase of TOra by Quest Software has been finalized and they will also employ me. I am very excited about this as it will ensure me being able to work with developing database products. Let’s face it, the development pace of TOra the last 6 months has left a bit wanting. Initially there will be no change at all except that the next Windows version of TOra will only be available to registered users. The current Linux, Unix and Macintosh versions will of course still be GPL and nothing can change that.
    At Quest I will in part work with supporting the existing TOra application, and also help in moving features from TOra into their core application TOAD as well as extending it with exciting new features. I have also received assurances from Quest that the existing registered TOra users will not be left lacking.
    Quest and I are working on product integration plans, so stay tuned for more information coming soon.
    As part of the deal I will also get a sponsored visa to the US and I will relocate to California in a few weeks. Finally I will be able to skate inlines all year round. I have also spoken to the developer of EzSQL another Oracle tool that was acquisitioned by Quest a little over a year ago and he has been very well taken care of by Quest, so I’m sure I will like it at my new job.
    Finally I’m sorry for not having responded to the questions and rumours that have been circulating both on the net and on this mailinglist, but having been at least partially self employed for more than a decade now nobody knows that something isn’t final until the ink is in place more than me.

  4. Shuvro Says:

    December 17th, 2006 at 9:33 am

    I could not configure TOra with Oracle Database and alert me “no connection provider”. Please guide me to configure Tora.

    I am using Oracle 10 DS and OS is Linux Redhat Enterprise 3 ES.

    Please guide me by total process to connect TOra.