Deleting RMAN Backups

Summary of RMAN Methods for Deleting Backups

Table 9-1 describes the functionality of the various RMAN commands that can cause backups to be deleted.

Table 9-1 Maintenance Commands and Scripts

Command or Script	Purpose
DELETE	To delete backups, update the control file records to status DELETED, and remove their records from the recovery catalog (if a recovery catalog is used). You can specify that DELETE should remove backups that are EXPIRED or OBSOLETE. If you run DELETE EXPIRED on a backup that exists, RMAN issues a warning and does not delete the backup. You can override this behavior and delete the backup by using DELETE... FORCE .
BACKUP ... DELETE [ALL] INPUT	To back up archived logs, datafile copies, or backup sets, then delete the input files from the operating system after the successful completion of the backup. RMAN also deletes and updates repository records for the deleted input files. If you specify DELETE INPUT (without ALL), then RMAN deletes only the specific files that it backs up. If you specify ALL INPUT, then RMAN deletes all copies of the files recorded in the RMAN repository.
CHANGE ... UNCATALOG	To delete recovery catalog records for specified backups and change their control file records to status DELETED. Note that the CHANGE ... UNCATALOG command only changes the RMAN repository record of backups, and does not actually delete backups.

本文转自
http://web.njit.edu/info/limpid/DOC/backup.102/b14191/advmaint003.htm