Where is the database SERVICE NAME defined and what is the proper method for changing it? I'm researching the connection methods for an Oracle 12c database and I understand the difference between an SID and Service Name, but I cannot figure out where the service name is defined or how to change it.

Presumably it was named the same as the SID I typed in during installation, but can it be changed post-installation?  Is there a configuration file where that is done?

Thanks in advance!
Understanding Database Services


  The service name defaults to the global database name, a name
  comprising the database name (DB_NAME initialization parameter) and
  domain name (DB_DOMAIN initialization parameter).


You can find service information in ALL_SERVICES.

You can manage services with DBMS_SERVICE.

In an Oracle Restart or clustered environment, you can manage services with srvctl, which uses DBMS_SERVICE in the background.

No, you should not use the service_names parameter. That should be left to maintained by the above.

The default services should not be used by clients, and you should always create your own service(s) with the required properties.

Default Service Connections


  Your Oracle RAC database includes an Oracle database service
  identified by DB_UNIQUE_NAME, if set, or DB_NAME or PDB_NAME, if not.
  This default service is always available on all instances in an Oracle
  RAC environment, unless an instance is in restricted mode. You cannot
  alter this service or its properties. Additionally, the database
  supports the following two internal services:
  
  SYS$BACKGROUND is used by the background processes only
  
  SYS$USERS is the default service for user sessions that are not
  associated with any application service
  
  All of these services are used for internal management. You cannot
  stop or disable any of these internal services to do planned outages
  or to failover to Oracle Data Guard. Do not use these services for
  client connections.


The above is about RAC from the RAC documentation, but it is true for single instance environments as well.