Re: Raw device type for data files

In article <DBKzKy.1xE_at_iquest.net>, Paul Singleton <pws_at_iquest.net> wrote:
>Does anyone have any comments regarding running Oracle under UNIX
>(specifically HP UX) on raw devices rather than file systems? My concerns
>are performance vs. flexibility in backups and restores for multiple
>instances. Any experiences you could pass along would be appreciated.
>Thanks,
>
>Paul

Paul,

        In my previous position, I worked on a data warehouse application which needed to handle VERY complex queries. We used raw slices for our tablespaces and redo logs. Yes, you can realize performance gains, but alot of that can be dependent on the application. Yes, it does require a good UNIX system administrator to set up the raw partitions. Once that is done, managing the database is similar to managing one with file systems.

        For backups, we used a tool called volcopy to write the raw partitions to DAT tapes. I worked on an AT&T GIS 3555 running UNIX System V Release 4. I believe that HP-UX is based on System V Release 3, but I imagine that HP's would have similar tools, if not something better.

        If you'd like more details, sed me some E-mail.

Lou Avrami ( attmail!lavrami )

All opinions stated are my own, not my employer's. Received on Wed Jul 19 1995 - 00:00:00 CEST