Then the client is quite simply preventing you from doing the job they hired you to do???

Here is a solution that I'm proposing in my next book I'm working on, I'll let you peek at it. This is the 817 way using global temp tables -- there is an easier way using pipelined functions in 9i. We'll give client sessions -- regardless of platform or access to the database servers filesystem -- access to THEIR trace files via sqlplus. you'll set up a user:

create user trace_files identified by trace_files default tablespace users quota unlimited on users;

grant create any directory, /* to read user dump dest */
create session , /* to log on in the first place */
create table , /* used to hold users -> trace files */
create view , /* used so users can see what traces they have */
create procedure , /* to create the function that returns the trace data */
create trigger , /* to capture trace file names upon logoff */
administer database trigger /* to create the logoff trigger */
to trace_files;

/* these are needed to find the trace file name */
grant select on v_$process to trace_files;
grant select on v_$session to trace_files;
grant select on v_$instance to trace_files;



in that user, you'll execute:

create view session_trace_file_name
as
select d.instance_name || '_ora_' || ltrim(to_char(a.spid)) || '.trc' filename
from v$process a, v$session b, v$instance d
where a.addr = b.paddr
and b.audsid = userenv('sessionid')
/

create table avail_trace_files
( username varchar2(30) default user,
filename varchar2(512),
dt date default sysdate,
constraint avail_trace_files_pk primary key(username,filename)
)
organization index
/

create view user_avail_trace_files
as
select * from avail_trace_files where username = user;

grant select on user_avail_trace_files to public;

create global temporary table trace_file_text
( id number primary key,
text varchar(4000)
)
/
grant select on trace_file_text to public
/

create or replace directory UDUMP_DIR
as '/export/home/ora817/admin/ora817dev/udump'
/
note -- that is MY user dump dest, use the right one for you of course

create or replace trigger capture_trace_files
before logoff on database
begin
for x in ( select * from session_trace_file_name )
loop
if ( dbms_lob.fileexists( bfilename('UDUMP_DIR', x.filename ) ) = 1 )
then
insert into avail_trace_files (filename) values (x.filename);
end if;
end loop;
end;
/

create or replace procedure trace_file_contents( p_filename in varchar2 )
as
l_bfile bfile := bfilename('UDUMP_DIR',p_filename);
l_last number := 1;
l_current number;
begin
select rownum into l_current
from user_avail_trace_files
where filename = p_filename;

delete from trace_file_text;
dbms_lob.fileopen( l_bfile );
loop
l_current := dbms_lob.instr( l_bfile, '0A', l_last, 1 );
exit when (nvl(l_current,0) = 0);
insert into trace_file_text (id,text)
values (l_last, utl_raw.cast_to_varchar2(
dbms_lob.substr( l_bfile, l_current-l_last+1,
l_last ) )
);
l_last := l_current+1;
end loop;
dbms_lob.fileclose(l_bfile);
end;
/
grant execute on trace_file_contents to public
/



Now, a developer can use a script like this (i called it tklast)

column filename new_val f
select filename
from trace_files.user_avail_trace_files
where dt = ( select max(dt)
from trace_files.user_avail_trace_files
)
/

exec trace_files.trace_file_contents('&f')
set termout off
set heading off
set feedback off
set embedded on
set linesize 4000
set trimspool on
set verify off
spool &f
select text from trace_files.trace_file_text order by id;
spool off
set verify on
set feedback on
set heading on
set termout on
host tkprof &f tk.prf
edit tk.prf



and have a session like this:


SQL> alter session set sql_trace=true;
SQL> run some sql
SQL> connect user/password (to log out and log in)
SQL> @tklast


there you go -- that'll trace THEIR last session. You can modify tklast to suite your needs but thats the idea.


Now access to the servers file system is moot, you do not need it

TKPROF for the masses!