When to Create New Control Files

It is necessary for you to create new control files in the following situations:

• All control files for the database have been permanently damaged and you do not have a control file backup.
• You want to change one of the permanent database parameter settings originally specified in the CREATE DATABASE statement. These settings include the database's name and the following parameters: MAXLOGFILES, MAXLOGMEMBERS, MAXLOGHISTORY, MAXDATAFILES, and MAXINSTANCES.

  For example, you would change a database's name if it conflicted with another database's name in a distributed environment. Or, as another example, you can change the value of MAXLOGFILES if the original setting is too low.