index

• Usability
• Visibility

An index is an optional structure, associated with a table or table cluster, that can sometimes speed data access. By creating an index on one or more columns of a table, you gain the ability in some cases to retrieve a small set of randomly distributed rows from the table. Indexes are one of many means of reducing disk I/O.

Usability

Indexes are usable (default) or unusable. An unusable index is not maintained by DML operations and is ignored by the optimizer. An unusable index can improve the performance of bulk loads. Instead of dropping an index and later re-creating it, you can make the index unusable and then rebuild it. Unusable indexes and index partitions do not consume space. When you make a usable index unusable, the database drops its index segment.

Visibility

Indexes are visible (default) or invisible. An invisible index is maintained by DML operations and is not used by default by the optimizer. Making an index invisible is an alternative to making it unusable or dropping it. Invisible indexes are especially useful for testing the removal of an index before dropping it or using indexes temporarily without affecting the overall application.
A key is a set of columns or expressions on which you can build an index. Although the terms are often used interchangeably, indexes and keys are different. Indexes are structures stored in the database that users manage using SQL statements. Keys are strictly a logical concept.

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