Page Comparison

Dbvisit Standby version 6 has been developed so that Dbvisit Standby is compatible with all versions of Oracle from Oracle 8i (8.1.7.4 recommended).
When Oracle is upgraded or patched to a new version, Dbvisit Standby will not have to be upgraded.  

When patching or upgrading Oracle Databases - You must follow the Oracle Documentation and Patch note instructions when installing patches or upgrading.

This guide is just a high level guide on some of the processes.  With later versions of Oracle (11g and later) the process would slightly be different as you would normally install for example a new patch set into a new separate Oracle Home.  

IMPORTANT:  As always please test upgrades and patching on a test system first before doing it on production.  This will help you get familiar with the process as well as get to know detail timing.

...

 It is however recommended to stay up to date with the Dbvisit Standby releases and updates.

For more detail on the latest change log please see - http://www.dbvisit.com/products/standby_latest_changes_v6/ 

IMPORTANT:

• Even though Dbvisit Standby upgrades is not required when doing database upgrades, it is always recommended to stay up to date with the latest version of Dbvisit Standby

...

1. Stop the Dbvisit Standby schedule for the database being upgraded on both the primary and standby servers.

2. Shutdown the primary database on the primary server using command:

%dbv_oraStartStop stop <DDC>

Where DDC is the name of the Dbvisit Database Configuration. In most cases this is the same as the database name. 

The DDC refers to the DDC file name which is in the form: dbv_DDC.env and contains the Dbvisit Standby settings 

for a particular primary and standby configuration.

3. Shutdown the standby database on the standby server using command:

% dbv_oraStartStop stop <DDC>

4. Stop all listeners and agents on primary and standby servers.

5. Patch or upgrade the Oracle software on the primary server as specified by Oracle in the accompanied release notes. This is normally done by running the installer:

% ./runInstaller

If this is an interim patch, run opatch per the patch README.

6. Patch or upgrade the Oracle software on the standby server as specified by Oracle in the accompanied release notes. This is normally done by running the installer:

% ./runInstaller

If this is an interim patch, run opatch per the patch README.

7. Startup the primary instance on the primary host.

%sqlplus "/ as sysdba" 
SQL> startup migrate

8. On the primary instance run the following script:

SQL> @?/rdbms/admin/catpatch.sql

For the interim patch, run any scripts as outlined in the accompanied README.

9. On the primary instance run the following command:

SQL> alter system disable restricted session;

10. Complete the remainder of the "Post Install Actions" from the Patch Set readme on the primary host.

11. Only if ORACLE_HOME is changed:

If the ORACLE_HOME is set in the Dbvisit Standby Database Configuration (DDC) file, then update the DDC file to the new ORACLE_HOME. If the ORACLE_HOME is not set in the DDC file, then Dbvisit Standby will automatically pick up the new ORACLE_HOME.

12. Run Dbvisit Standby manually on the primary server. This will force a log switch and will verify if archiving is working successfully:

% dbvisit <DDC>

13. Start all listeners and agents on primary and standby servers.

14. Verify that the patch or upgrade has been successful on the primary server.

15. Start the standby database on the standby server with command:

%dbv_oraStartStop start <DDC>

16. Run Dbvisit Standby manually on the standby server. This will apply the log and changes from the primary database:

% dbvisit <DDC>

17. Restart the Dbvisit Standby schedule on both the primary and standby servers.

...

• .
• Please make sure you follow the Oracle support documentation and patch notes when upgrading Oracle software or applying patches.
• It is also recommended (and it is good practice) to test Oracle patches or upgrades on a test environments first before applying them to a production system.

Below are some key notes with regards to Dbvisit Standby and Patching or Upgrading Oracle Database Software:

KEY NOTES:

1. Make sure that your Standby Database is up to date - meaning it is not lagging behind primary.
• Run a log gap report to verify if there are gaps. On the primary, execute:  dbvisit -i <DDC>
• where DDC is the name of the Dbvisit Database Configuration. In most cases this is the same as the database name. The DDC refers to the DDC file name which is in the form: dbv_DDC.env and contains the Dbvisit Standby settings for a particular primary and standby configuration.
• If there are gaps (Archive log gap and/or Transfer log gap is > 0), run the default dbvisit commands on the primary and on the standby to send and apply the archive logs accordingly.
• On the primary, execute:  dbvisit <DDC>  to send logs to standby.
• On the standby, execute:  dbvisit <DDC>  to apply logs to standby.
• Once completed, run a log gap report again to verify if primary and standby are sync.
2. Disable Dbvisit Schedules on primary and standby database servers.
3. Make sure there are backups prior to any upgrades / patches - This is critical in any patching or upgrading scenario.
4. Make sure Dbvisit Standby is stopped while Oracle Patching or software upgrades are performed.
5. Make sure "force logging" is enabled in the primary database - this is recommended.
6. There is n need to run any patch scripts against the standby database - it cannot be opened read/write.  Only the standby server's Oracle executables (software) should be updated/installed as per Oracle documentation (patch notes).
7. Follow the Oracle supplied patch/upgrade notes and run required scripts as directed by the patch readme on the primary database.  The standby database will be updated via the archive logs.
8. Once all the patch/upgrade scripts  have finished successfully on the primary database, start the primary database as normal.
9. Start the standby database as a standby database (you can use the command: dbv_oraStartStop start <DDC>)
10. Perform a number of manual log switches on the primary using the command:  sql> alter system switch log file;
11. Only if ORACLE_HOME is changed, 
• On the primary, update the DDC file with the new ORACLE_HOME/ORACLE_HOME_DR  and run Dbvisit Standby:  dbvisit -c <DDC> to sync the DDC files between primary and standby servers.
12. Run dbvisit as normal on the primary - archive logs will be shipped to the standby.
13. Run dbvisit as normal on the standby. The archive logs will be applied to standby.
14. Optionally, the standby database can be opened on read-only if you want to run some queries on the dictionary to view versions, etc using the command: dbv_oraStartStop open <DDC>
15. Enable the Dbvisit Standby schedules on both the primary and standby servers.