Upgrade to Oracle Databases 11g

Your Oracle database and applications were designed years ago without growth in mind.

You notice increased performance degradation with your database and applications.

Upgrade to Oracle Database 11g.

Oracle Database 11g is compatible with all earlier Oracle Database releases. Therefore, databases upgraded can work in the same manner as in earlier releases and, optionally, can leverage new Oracle Database 11g features and functions.

Oracle Database 11g supports the following tools and methods for upgrading a database to the new release:

• Database Upgrade Assistant (DBUA)
  
  Provides a graphical user interface (GUI) that guides you through the upgrade of a database. DBUA can be launched during installation with the Oracle Universal Installer, or you can launch DBUA as a standalone tool at any time in the future. DBUA is the recommended method for performing a major release upgrade or patch release upgrade.
• Manual upgrade using SQL scripts and utilities
  
  Provides a command-line upgrade of a database, using SQL scripts and utilities.
• Export and Import utilities
  
  Uses the Oracle Data Pump Export and Import utilities, available as of Oracle Database 10g, or the original Export and Import utilities, to perform a full or partial export from your database, followed by a full or partial import into a new Oracle Database 11g database. Export/Import can copy a subset of the data, leaving the database unchanged.
  
• CREATE TABLE AS SQL statement
  
  Copies data from a database into a new Oracle Database 11g database. Data copying can copy a subset of the data, leaving the database unchanged.

Step 1: Prepare to Upgrade

• Become familiar with the features of Oracle Database 11g.
• Determine the upgrade path to the new release.
• Choose an upgrade method.
• Choose an Oracle home directory for the new release.
• Develop a testing plan.
• Prepare a backup strategy.

Step 2: Test the Upgrade Process

• Perform a test upgrade using a test database. The test upgrade should be conducted in an environment created for testing and should not interfere with the actual production database.

Step 3: Test the Upgraded Test Database

• Perform the tests you planned in Step 1 on the test database and on the test database that was upgraded to Oracle Database 11g.
• Compare results, noting anomalies between test results on the test database and on the upgraded database.
• Investigate ways to correct any anomalies you find and then implement the corrections.
• Repeat Step 1, Step 2, and the first parts of Step 3, as necessary, until the test upgrade is completely successful and works with any required applications.

Step 4: Prepare and Preserve the Production Database

• Prepare the current production database as appropriate to ensure the upgrade to Oracle Database 11g is successful.
• Schedule the downtime required for backing up and upgrading the production database.
• Back up the current production database. Perform a full or an incremental backup, as necessary, to ensure your database is protected against data loss.

Step 5: Upgrade the Production Database

• Upgrade the production database to Oracle Database 11g.
• After the upgrade, perform a full backup of the production database and perform other post-upgrade tasks.

Step 6: Tune and Adjust the New Production Database

• Tune the Oracle Database 11g production database. The new production database should perform as well as, or better than, the database prior to the upgrade.
• Determine which features of Oracle Database 11g you want to use and update your applications accordingly.
• Develop new database administration procedures, as needed.
• Do not upgrade production users to the new release until all applications have been tested and operate properly.
• During the upgrade, consider running multiple releases of the database software so you can use the existing release as your production environment while you test the new release.

Required Tasks After Database Upgrades

Complete the following tasks after you have upgraded your database, regardless of whether you performed the upgrade manually or by using Database Upgrade Assistant (DBUA):

• Update Environment Variables (Linux and UNIX Systems Only)
• Upgrade the Recovery Catalog
• Upgrade Statistics Tables Created by the DBMS_STATS Package
• Upgrade Externally Authenticated SSL Users
• Install Oracle Text Supplied Knowledge Bases
• Update Your Oracle Application Express Configuration
• Configure Fine-Grained Access to External Network Services
• Enable Oracle Database Vault
• Deploy Database Vault Administrator (DVA)

More Tips

Performing the following tasks is recommended, but not required, after you have upgraded your database.

• Back Up the Database
• Reset Passwords to Enforce Case-Sensitivity
• Upgrade Automatic Storage Management (ASM)
• Add New Features as Appropriate
• Develop New Administrative Procedures as Needed
• Set Threshold Values for Tablespace Alerts
• Migrate From Rollback Segments to Automatic Undo Mode
• Configure Oracle Data Guard Broker
• Migrate Tables from the LONG Data Type to the LOB Data Type

These are the main factors to upgrading to Oracle Database 11g; there are many more considerations to take into account. Please read Oracle documentation before making any changes to your database. If you need more information or help with your Oracle databases, contact our sales team at 800.734.9304 or visit the Ross Group Inc web site at www.rossgroupinc.com.