Symptom
Trying to start the Planning server service after a new installation in Cognos configuration manager. The Content Store is Oracle 10g. The Cognos 8 service with same content store is starting without a problem.
Problem
Failed HRESULT [0x80004005] :The service failed to start because it could not successfully open a database connection with the Planning Store or the Content Store configured in Cognos Configuration. Details: Provider cannot be found. It may not be properly installed.
Cause
This is caused by a bug with the Oracle client. Oracle client cannot resolve third party software applications which have “special” characters in their install paths (which includes parentheses).
or
There is a problem with Oracle Home
Environment
windows 2008 server 64 bit, Oracle 10G 32 bit client
Diagnosing the problem
First of all check that the Oracle Client tools are correctly installed, and if the ojdbc14.jar file has been copied over.
Solution
1. Uninstall and reinstall the Cognos 8 software to a directory structure NOT containing special characters ie. d:\Apps\Cognos\C8
2. Install latest patches to Oracle client install as per the link in the Related information section.
or
1. Under ‘Environment Variables’, check to make sure ORACLE_HOME is set on the server (under ‘System Variables’). Make sure it is also set to the correct home location.
2. If there are two Oracle homes defined then remove the incorrect one from the ‘Path’ variable (also under ‘Environment Variables’).