UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers

I am newbie on Unix system and seek help for updating env variables. The condition is like this:

On Unix server, I log in as oracle user (this is the super for database on Unix), I type > env

all envirnment variables show up. I saw one variable DBA_LIST contains a few email addreses. I need to update this variable to reflect the new email accounts in this variable. So I update this variable like this:

>DBA_LIST=john@mycompany.com,henry@mycompany.com
>export DBA_LIST
>echo DBA_LIST

the new email accounts show up. Then I log out.

However, when I log in next time. I typed

>echo DBA_LIST

the old email accounts still show up and it indicate that the update only change the variavle in that session. After I login as a new session, the envirnment variables still contain its original contents.

So how to update env variables permanently. I only can login as oracle super user, but don't have root user privileges. Is this because Unix admin create oracle user with that env variable so that I couldn't update it permanently? I have to ask Unix admin with root privilege to make permanent change? Please educate me. Thanks.

That depends on the shell you are using and eventually on the OS too, e.g. if your default shell is the bourne sh or bash, you should be able to modify that variable in the $HOME/.profile file. If your shell is csh, then you should check the $HOME/.cshrc file. At least these are the appropriate files on my FreeBSD system.
Oracle user does not necessarily need root privileges.
Simply check if the files I've mentioned above exist and check the file permissions for them. Take a look into them and see if you can find the DBA_LIST variable.
I can't tell that... not necessarily... though it's probably the best idea, to simply avoid any potential conflicts with him.

---------- Post updated at 07:13 ---------- Previous update was at 07:08 ----------

Update regarding root privileges for oracle user:
IMHO that's less a matter of setting env variables than powering off the machine, manipulating logfiles and the like...

pseudocoder:

Thanks so much. your advice is absolutely correct. I have found that it was caused by .profile on my ksh. If I update .profile at oracle user home, the env variable will be updated. next time, when you log in, variables in .profile will update the system env variables. Thank you for your quick response.