Re: Workgroup Server vs Oracle7 Server

I can't help you with your comparison, but I've heard the same thing about Workgroup -- that it's the same engine without some of the optional stuff.

A word of encouragement though -- I've been running Workgroup 7.2.2 on an Alphastation 400/233 with 96MB RAM under NT 3.51 for about five months. It has worked reasonably well. I'm running a query-heavy system with about 3GB of data. The system is up 7x24 and has been fairly reliable (an unexplainable failure in Oracle about once a month, with no loss of data).  The machine itself has been no problem at all.

A cautionary note also -- I've seen Oracle peg the CPU numerous times, but never severely loads down memory (good SGA hit rates) or the disk channel (F/W SCSI). I can't explain this. We're going to a dual-pentium-pro Compaq Proliant to help alleviate this, and we plan to add the third and fourth processors in the near future. I would have liked to have stuck with Alphas, but the price was just to high.

A gotcha on Oracle pricing -- as soon as you go to more than one CPU, unless they are Intel CPUs, you are in 'enterprise server' territory. Don't add another Alpha CPU to that box, unless you really like paying five times as much for Oracle (only about a 2.5x difference in yearly maintenance cost, though).

I hope this helps.

Barry Schader
Phoenix, AZ Received on Fri Feb 28 1997 - 00:00:00 CST