Re: Benefits of RMAN

On 2004-07-09, Mark J. Bobak <mark_at_bobak.net> wrote:
> On Thu, 08 Jul 2004 16:36:40 -0500, JEDIDIAH wrote:
>
>> On 2004-07-07, Mark J. Bobak <mark_at_bobak.net> wrote:
>>> On Thu, 01 Jul 2004 17:48:11 -0500, JEDIDIAH wrote:
[deletia]
>>> Now who are you kidding? That's what RMAN does *best*! It manages
>>> lots and lots of files and keeps track of which versions of which files
>>> go with what databases and what archive logs you'll need and where they
>>> are. That's RMAN. It's what it does.
>>
>> Enterprise backup managers already do this.
>>
>> What will RMAN do if you happen to be missing a tape during a disaster?
>>
> What will an enterprise backup manager do if you happen to be missing a

	That's not really relevant. What does the warm-and-fuzzy-highly-
	automated RMAN do when there is a tape missing from the optimal
	(or perhaps even "complete") set of backup tapes?

	Will it just get silently confused like the less sophisticated
	backup manager clients? Will it give you some feedback like the
	better backup manager clients? Will it actually do something more
	interesting/automated?

	Now that I think about it, an interactive backup manger client
	with an interactive UI should be able to match the any functionality
	that RMAN has (could have) in terms of easy disaster recovery.

> tape? Also, consider that most folks implement an enterprise backup
> manager along with RMAN. Many vendors today supply the media management
        

	Most folks implement an enterprise backup manager completely
	indepenent of Oracle anything.

> library (MML) that allows you to directly interface RMAN with the various
> EBMs. So, it's not a mutually exclusive proposition.
>>
>>> Try it, you'll like it....;-)
>>
>> It's entirely too proprietary.
>
> Well, you're certainly entitled to your opinion. I'll leave you with one
> last thought. With the advent of ASM in 10g, RMAN is the only game in

ASM doesn't impress me either. Oracle's attempts to automate things have been hit or miss in the past and I see no reason that Oracle will do any better in future.

> town. Now, granted, you aren't required to use ASM, at least in 10g. What
> about future versions? I have no knowledge of Oracle's future plans, but
> the writing does seem to be on the wall. And if, in fact, that ends up
> being the long-term direction, you've certainly got plenty of time yet.
> But, I think ultimately, that's the direction we will all end up going in.

-- 
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