RMAN not always use incremental backup if it has archivelog backup too Refer: metalink 134214.1 if there is an archive log backup set, then RMAN will not necessarily select an incremental backup set. Let's use the following RECOVER command as an example: [SQL] RMAN> run {2> allocate channel x type disk; 3> restore datafile 7; 4> recover datafile 7; 5 >}first, RMAN will overwrite the data file 7 from the last 0-level Incremental backup. Next, RMAN will have two paths: ① overwrite all existing incremental backups since the last backup of level 0 and then use all existing archive logs since the last Incremental backup to the current time point ② ignore the Incremental Backup set select all archived logs from the last 0-level backup to the current time point. RMAN will evaluate and select the path with the minimum recovery time. Oracle allows starting from the last Incremental backup time point. recover and allow the application of all archived logs starting from the backup of level 0. Oracle will evaluate the cost of both, my personal understanding is that Oracle's evaluation is a simple computing example, oracle finds that there is not much archive logs between the last Incremental backup and the backup at level 0, and the archive logs are restored from level 0.