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Home -> Community -> Mailing Lists -> Oracle-L -> RE: PROD without TEST
I had the same fight with management in my last job many times. I supported
lots of canned apps, so the argument always was "but we won't be doing any
development."
The reasons that they should not deny you a test server:
(1) To test your backup and recovery strategy - where else can you do this? By not allowing you to have a test server, they are CERTIFYING that your backup and recovery strategy IS AND WILL ALWAYS BE flawless. Let them think long and hard about taking responsibility for the fact that the database is unrecoverable and that the data is lost. DBAs can always find another job, middle management can't.
Get this one in email form, and tack it to the wall. They are PREVENTING you from testing your recovery.
(2) They are CERTIFYING that all code sent to you by the application vendor will run flawlessly with your paticular combination of hardware and software.
(3) They are CERTIFYING that any patches sent to you by the database vendor will work flawlessly.
(4) They are CERTIFYING that any patches sent to you by the operating system vendor will work flawlessly.
(5) They are CERTIFYING that they will never need to upgrade any software on the production server, or if they do, that any and all software upgrades that you perform will be flawless and will never need to be tested first. Let them ponder for a while about what will happen when the vendor sells them the latest and greatest upgrade and it does not work in your system. You will have to take the server offline for an indeterminate period to roll everything back, assuming your untested recovery will work!
(6) They are CERTIFYING that they will never require any development or customization of the software on the server, or if they DO need development, they are CERTIFYING that ANY development that occurs will NEVER compromise the integrity of the production data.
(7) They are CERTIFYING that if any of the above is not true, you will be able to hack the prodcucion server until you find out what is true.
If you inform the world via email (nicely, of course, not CAPITALIZATING everything IN SIGHT), they might begin to discover that it is in their personal best interest to get you a dev server and keep you away from prod!
And if not, find a real shop where they understand the necessity of such things, not a place where they are cheap and/or not in the know.
And now I can fairly say that I have had my say today!
:)
Jack Silvey
ocp x 2
Senior @ xol.com
-----Original Message-----
From: Rachel Carmichael [mailto:carmichr_at_hotmail.com]
Sent: Thursday, June 22, 2000 4:31 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L
Subject: Re: PROD without TEST
David,
If you don't have test databases, where are the developers doing their development and testing. I'm cringing here, waiting for you to say "in production".... then I'll scream.
You need to document to your management the possible problems. NOW. And be prepared to fight over this.
Rachel
>From: "David Lee" <dba_lee_at_HOTMAIL.COM>
>Reply-To: ORACLE-L_at_fatcity.com
>To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L <ORACLE-L_at_fatcity.com>
>Subject: PROD without TEST
>Date: Thu, 22 Jun 2000 11:25:22 -0800
>
>Hi All,
>This is more of a survey than a question, but how many of you DBAs out
>there who are administering production databases that don't have a test
>database to go with it?
>We are a new but rapidly changing shop and we have a bunch of small
>to medium size databases that are running without a test database. This
>makes DBA tasks like upgrade more difficult. I am having a hard time trying
>to get the management to allocate the resources for this. I wonder how
>other
>DBAs are doing to deal with situations like this.
>
>TIA
>
>David
>________________________________________________________________________
>Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com
>
>--
>Author: David Lee
> INET: dba_lee_at_hotmail.com
>
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-- Author: Rachel Carmichael INET: carmichr_at_hotmail.com Fat City Network Services -- (858) 538-5051 FAX: (858) 538-5051 San Diego, California -- Public Internet access / Mailing Lists -------------------------------------------------------------------- To REMOVE yourself from this mailing list, send an E-Mail message to: ListGuru_at_fatcity.com (note EXACT spelling of 'ListGuru') and in the message BODY, include a line containing: UNSUB ORACLE-L (or the name of mailing list you want to be removed from). You mayReceived on Thu Jun 22 2000 - 17:23:57 CDT
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