Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!uswnvg!cjackso
From: cjackso@uswnvg.UUCP (Clay Jackson)
Newsgroups: comp.databases
Subject: Re: Cancelling a query in Oracle on Unix
Summary: It's possible, but not easy
Keywords: Interrupt, Pro*C, V6, Sun, TCP-IP
Message-ID: <712@uswnvg.UUCP>
Date: 26 Mar 91 23:52:32 GMT
References: <49507@seismo.CSS.GOV>
Organization: US West NewVector, Bellevue, Wash.
Lines: 26

We had the same problem here, on a Pyramid, with bunches of clients.
Basically, what you need to do is be sure that the signalling gets
done correctly.  

In your IUG there should be some pages that talk
about signal handling and Oracle.  Oracle uses some signals (I forget
which off the top of my head, but it's documented in TFM) to 
communicate between the client and the server processes (this is true
even in the case where you're using either the Pipe or Fast drivers
as opposed to some network driver.

Anyway, to make things stop, the client process should be sent a 
SIGINT. Once the client sees this, it will send other stuff 'down the
line' to the oracle background process, and things will eventually
wind down.  Exactly how long this takes is a function of a number of
things, including how much work the server is doing (ie, how busy is
PMON). If you'rn impatient, you can send a 'kill -ALRM' to the PMON
process, which will sometimes speed things along.  

DO NOT, under any except the most dire circumstances take matters into
your own hands and start doing 'kill's, you'll wind up with all sorts
of zombies.

Good luck!

Clay Jackson