Oracle Database Discussions

Hi,

My IT department recently installed Oracle10G client utilities on my work laptop and I can't access any of the systems on our network. After further investigation I noted that I don't have any Oracle services installed on the system and when I attempt to connect using Oracle Enterprise Manager I receive the error ORA-12541, No Listener.

I then tried to check the status of the listener using lsnrctl and received another error indicating that the utility wasn't installed either.

When I informed a member of the staff and made mention that the listener service wasn't installed nor the utility present, I was told that it was required for access from a client. Needless to say I was shocked at the remark, but nonetheless I don't claim to know everything about Oracle but I thought the listener service was most definitely a requirement to connect to the Oracle systems whether via client or on the actual server.

Could someone please validate my assumptions as being true or no so I can go back to the staff well-informed when I push my point across, unless anyone here can say that I am wrong on this?

Thanks in advance.