1Z0-043 · Question #158
Which six files are maintained in the Flash Recovery Area? (Choose six.)
The correct answer is A. control file B. RMAN files E. flashback logs F. data file copies H. archived log files J. control file autobackups. See the full explanation below for the reasoning.
Question
Which six files are maintained in the Flash Recovery Area? (Choose six.)
Options
- Acontrol file
- BRMAN files
- Cpassword file
- Dparameter file
- Eflashback logs
- Fdata file copies
- Gcore dump files
- Harchived log files
- Jcontrol file autobackups
How the community answered
(53 responses)- A74% (39)
- C15% (8)
- D8% (4)
- G4% (2)
Community Discussion
10
Dragan P.Jun 26, 2026The correct answers are A, B, E, F, H, J, and this is one of those questions where people lose points by second-guessing themselves. The Flash Recovery Area in 10g is designed to manage recovery-related files, so you get control files, RMAN backup sets and pieces, flashback logs, data file copies, archived redo logs, and control file autobackups all living there and counted against the DB_RECOVERY_FILE_DEST_SIZE quota. What trips people up is C, D, and G, because the password file and parameter file (spfile) live in ORACLE_HOME/dbs on Unix or the database directory on Windows, they have nothing to do with the FRA, and core dump files go to the core dump destination defined by CORE_DUMP_DEST, not the recovery area. Oracle has been consistent on this boundary since the FRA was introduced in 9i R2 as the "Flash Recovery Area" before they rebranded it to Fast Recovery Area in 11g, and MOS Note 276416.1 spells out exactly what the database will and will not place there automatically. If you remember that the FRA is purely about recoverability artifacts managed by RMAN and the database itself, you will never pick the wrong six.
Lena V.Jun 28, 2026The FRA-in-9i-R2 origin is worth flagging, because Oracle's own documentation puts the Flash Recovery Area introduction squarely in 10g Release 1, so citing 9i R2 may confuse people who go back to verify and find the feature formally landed with 10.1.
Luis F.Jun 26, 2026Took this one cold and almost missed control file autobackups, that one trips everyone up. A, B, E, F, H, J locked it in for me.
Orla P.Jun 28, 2026Cold run or not, control file autobackups get people every time because the default setting is OFF and the question stem usually buries that detail in a scenario about RMAN configuration, so if you go in knowing to flip CONFIGURE CONTROLFILE AUTOBACKUP ON before anything else, the rest of those answer choices fall into place pretty naturally.
Orla P.Jun 26, 2026I almost circled C and D because the password file and pfile feel like recovery-critical files, but then I remembered Oracle explicitly excludes those from the Flash Recovery Area since they live in fixed OS locations and get managed outside of RMAN. Once I went back to the Oracle docs on FRA-managed files, the six clicked into place: control file, RMAN files, flashback logs, data file copies, archived logs, and control file autobackups.
Dragan P.Jun 26, 2026Orla, you have it right, though I would separate "RMAN backup pieces" and "RMAN image copies" since the docs list those as distinct FRA-managed file types, and forgetting that split is exactly how you drop a point on the multiple-choice.
Lena V.Jun 26, 2026Yep, A, B, E, F, H, and J are exactly right, and this one trips people up because they want to include the password file or parameter file out of habit. The FRA is a disk location Oracle manages specifically for recovery-related files, so anything that does not directly support backup and recovery has no business being there. Password files and parameter files live in platform-specific OS locations like $ORACLE_HOME/dbs on Linux, and core dump files go to the ADR under the diagnostic_dest path, not the FRA. The key supporting detail to lock in is that control file autobackups (J) are separate from the multiplexed control file copy (A), so both are valid FRA residents and both show up on the exam as distinct items.
Luis F.Jun 29, 2026Good breakdown, and I would add that archived redo logs are probably the most common FRA resident people forget to mention, so if the question asks you to list what goes there, make sure archivelogs are on your list alongside those control file autobackups.
Viktor S.Jun 22, 2026The tricky part here is C and D, because people see "recovery area" and assume it stores everything Oracle needs to survive a crash, but the password file and parameter file are not maintained there, they live in their own fixed OS locations and Oracle does not manage them through the FRA. The six correct ones are A, B, E, F, H, J, and if you understand that the FRA is specifically for Oracle-managed backup and recovery files, not general configuration files, you will not get baited by C or D on exam day.
Luis F.Jun 24, 2026Good call on C and D, though I would add that folks also get tripped up on the archived redo logs angle because the FRA can store them but only when Oracle manages the archiving, so if you have a custom archive log destination set outside the FRA that one can catch you off guard too.