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RE: Oracle Untested Infuriator

From: MacGregor, Ian A. <ian_at_SLAC.Stanford.EDU>
Date: Tue, 20 May 2003 13:31:41 -0800
Message-ID: <F001.0059E4AF.20030520133141@fatcity.com>


I did the 9.2.0 to 9.2.3 patch installation on automatic pilot. It was brand new server with no databases to upgrade. A few days later I checked the README which says if you don't upgrade the installer first, then you'll never be able to upgrade anything much again.

OUI slows down the WAN eh? Perhaps Larry has seen http://www-iepm.slac.stanford.edu/rtg/ . All you need do is to move the database machines to the nearest major network hub and install a few million dollars worth of equipment and OUI's network problems will disappear until the next release.

Oracle has a sorry history of bad installers/install scripts. I'm not sure that OUI is the worst of the lot.

Ian Macgregor

-----Original Message-----
Sent: Tuesday, May 20, 2003 11:13 AM
To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L

Hi Jeremiah,

Now that was a RIGHTEOUS rant I can identify with! A glorious indignation indeed. Don't you just want to stick your head out the window and shout: "I'm as mad a hell and I'm not taking it anymore!" ??

Have you ever felt dumb confessing to an SA that, as a seasoned DBA you're having difficulties installing the product? If so stand strong in the knowledge that it's not you who's dumb. Seasoned SA's will understand. Meanwhile damagement wonders why it takes so long to merely install software. Not very good PR Mr. Larry E. You only have one chance to make you're best first impression and you blew it right out the gate with this OUI crap.

OK, I feel better... for now. :-)

Steve Orr
Bozeman, MT

-----Original Message-----
Sent: Tuesday, May 20, 2003 11:27 AM
To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L

Speaking of GUIs, lets hear it for the most horrendous GUI of them all, the nearly unusable Oracle Universal Installer.

Although I avoid it religiously, opting to copy around tarballs instead, I still occasionally must run the installer on my master installation.

Well, the master copy is in Seattle and I am in London. Why? because you have to have a dedicated host not running any instances for use as the master install location, due to the fact that the ORACLE_HOME is hardcoded into all sorts of files, and the thing refuses to run if there is an instance running, even if it isn't going to touch anything that instance is using. If you install in an alternate directory of one of your normal servers, you can never upgrade the thing.

Although our WAN is fairly fast, it is no match for the OUI. You click a button, and 60 seconds later it visibly depresses. Then you wait for the results. Today I discovered that if you install 9.2 and patch it up to 9.2.0.3, you can't add components like JDBC drivers etc. from media without having the OUI automatically DOWNGRADE the Oracle Server binaries in the process. Sure you can copy them into place manually, but they won't get picked up in future upgrades with the... OUI!!

Combine that with incorrect instructions, faulty readme files and just flat out non-QA'd software (oops forgot to make that file executable in the distribution!), and you get one frustrated DBA.

All I can say is the OUI is the biggest piece of crap Oracle has ever produced (maybe I am forgetting Oracle Mail). I can't believe they haven't rearchitected it since its fateful inception and the demise of orainst. Who wouldn't give up a finger to have character mode orainst back?

If I wrote a reliable character mode perl script that does the same thing as runInstaller, does anyone think I could sell it?

The OUI has blown so much of my time this week. Companies should start asking Oracle for license fee discounts equal to the time their expensive DBAs flush down the toilet running the OUI and screwing with broken Oracle software (We have over 10 one-off patches on top of 9.2.0.3).

I hereby declare that I will use all of my powers to get the present OUI scrapped in time for 10i. Stay tuned for updates.

--
Jeremiah Wilton
http://www.speakeasy.net/~jwilton

On Tue, 20 May 2003, Freeman Robert - IL wrote:


> As for me and my house, we will choose manual migrations over GUI any
> time.
>
>
> Robert 12:23-24
>
> -----Original Message-----
> To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L
> Sent: 5/20/2003 9:31 AM
>
> No problem, you are more than welcome and for your sarcasm, when
> you've reached the point where you have done oracle work for 12
> years(yes clear back to BEFORE MIGRATION ASSISTANTS EXISTED), you can
> feel free to verbally abuse me, in the mean time:
>
> BYTE ME.
>
> joe
>
>
>
> >Thanx a lot for your valuable info' JOE.
> >
> >Regards,
> >Jp.
>
> 19-5-2003 12:27:52, Joe Testa <jtesta_at_dmc-it.com> wrote:
>
>
> >>all migrations/upgrades are done manually, i've never trusted them
>
> dang
>
> >>gui tools
> >>joe
>
> Joseph S Testa
> Chief Technology Officer
> Data Management Consulting
> p: 614-791-9000
> f: 614-791-9001
> --
> Please see the official ORACLE-L FAQ: http://www.orafaq.net
> --
> Author: Joseph S Testa
> INET: jtesta_at_dmc-it.com
>
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-- Please see the official ORACLE-L FAQ: http://www.orafaq.net -- Author: Jeremiah Wilton INET: jwilton_at_speakeasy.net Fat City Network Services -- 858-538-5051 http://www.fatcity.com San Diego, California -- Mailing list and web hosting services --------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 may also send the HELP command for other information (like subscribing). -- Please see the official ORACLE-L FAQ: http://www.orafaq.net -- Author: Orr, Steve INET: sorr_at_rightnow.com Fat City Network Services -- 858-538-5051 http://www.fatcity.com San Diego, California -- Mailing list and web hosting services --------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 may also send the HELP command for other information (like subscribing). -- Please see the official ORACLE-L FAQ: http://www.orafaq.net -- Author: MacGregor, Ian A. INET: ian_at_SLAC.Stanford.EDU Fat City Network Services -- 858-538-5051 http://www.fatcity.com San Diego, California -- Mailing list and web hosting services --------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 may also send the HELP command for other information (like subscribing).
Received on Tue May 20 2003 - 16:31:41 CDT

Original text of this message

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