Re: Oracle 9i2 RAC on Linux - some basic questions

Mark van Duren wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I am wondering what I would need to install an oracle 9i2 ha-setup under
> linux for my company.
>

You might want to reference Oracle's document #A95979_02

"Oracle9i Real Application Clusters Real Application Clusters Guard I Configuration Guide for Unix Systems: AIX-Based Systems, Compaq Tru64 UNIX, HP 9000 Series HP-UX, Linux Intel, and Sun Solaris"

It might have some related information. Check out http://otn.oracle.com/documentation/oracle9i.html

>
> The hardware setup will consists of a Dell PowerVault 220 storage unit (with
> 4x 36GB 15K RPM disks in a RAID 5 setup - i don't know if this will be
> sufficent?) and two Dell PowerEdge 1750 servers (with 2x 36GB 10K RPM disks,
> an Intel Xeon processor and 1GB RAM). So the config will be a SCSI-cluster
> instead of an Fibre-channel (we don't have enough money to pay for this kind
> of "luxury").
>

The same document might have some comments.

>
> Is it possible to install an oracle 9i2 ha-setup under linux (slackware 9)
> with this hardware? Which basic things do I have to keep in mind, like,
> which file system(s) do I have to use? Which problems can I expect to run
> into? Any information is welcome, if you have a working example, please
> inform me!
>

You might want to review the information on http://otn.oracle.com (click on Linux near the top of the left column) for some fairly reasonable notes, install guides and white papers. (Did I mention the documentation at http://docs.oracle.com? There is a bit of info there.)

Each certified distro also has an Oracle list - ask there as well. I'm personally pleased with SuSE SLES8 and ext2, others have other experiences. (And there is also some docco available at http://docs.oracle.com <g>)

>
> A second point of concern is, when do I have to pay for a license? It is not
> very clear to me because of all the different information you can find on
> the internet. For instance, do I only have to pay when I want service or
> support from Oracle? Or do I also have to pay if I use the Oracle 9i2 RAC
> software (enterprise edition) in an commercial environment (my business)?

The rule of thumb is ... it's not open source: if you use it, you pay for it. It's probably similar to the interaction between your customers and your business. (Of course, you might be giving away your product/service - I really don't know.)

Only Oracle, and their certified partners, can legally give you an answer on this. But you could approximate it like this (see disclaimer at end):

• you want to put a database in place for development - you can download the software for free for development purposes. This license is available on http://otn.oracle.com and the previous statement is subject to all terms, conditions and overrides described there;
• you want to put a database in place to run your business or to sell as part of your product, you pay. (or you could say, you are making/saving money from the use of the database, Oracle wants their 'fair' share.) This license is obtained from Oracle or a partner; from Oracle, it usually looks like the license you can read at http://oraclestore.oracle.com. Again, Oracle's terms and conditions, not my interpretation, is what is important.
• Oracle sells much of their software with a perpetual or a term license. Perpetual - you keep the software as long as you want; term - you destroy it at the end of the term.
• Support & Update is entirely optional. However, remember that there are unlimited patches, unlimited upgrades, unlimited support calls and unlimited use of the support database during the time paid.
• Support: All support calls are included in the support fee - you do not pay per support call (or by the minute of waiting time) as you do with some other vendors. And you can get any relevant bug fixes for no additional fees. And you can log as many TARs (Trouible Activity Report/Request) as you want for any reason for no added charge. And you can search the TAR database and noes database for additional help.
• Update: The Update fee is new - they reduced the overall Support fee and split out the 'upgrades' .... with the 'update fee' - if they release Oracle10i in September (if - I don't know!!!!!) you would get a copy if you wanted it, then 10iR2, 10iR3, etc. as part of your update fee instead of a 'new release, new "upgrade license" fee' for each release as some use.
• If you want support after the fact, my experience is that you might need to get it instated retroactively ... again, only Oracle (and maybe your hairdresser) knows for sure!
• One bit of clarification: Oracle comes in 3 sizes .... Enterprise, Standard and Lite. RAC is an option available only as an add-on to Enterprise (so you buy both Enterprise and RAC). Don't even think about Lite - it's mainly there to provide a database-ish thing for Palm Pilots' and the like. There is also a 'Personal Oracle' which really is 'Enterprise' but restricted to 1 single user and meant to provide a platforms for developers.

All the above licensing discourse is based on my understanding of the documents from Oracle's web site ... http://oracle.com > Licensing & Pricing, http://otn.oracle.com and http://oraclestore.com - your mileage may vary and your understanding should be derived from an official Oracle source! /Hans Received on Sat Jun 07 2003 - 00:36:58 CDT