After DR database is created and synchronization is enabled, there are no specific administration tasks to perform immediately. But during the DR database lifecycle there are certain situations for which you need to perform manual adminitration tasks on the standby database. This will help to keep your standby database configuration same as the configuration of your primary database.

1 1. Changing Init Parameters on SOURCE Database
2 2. Changing Redo Log Configuration on SOURCE Database
3 3. Changing Temporary Tablespaces Configuration on SOURCE Database
4 4. Changing Data and System Tablespaces Configuration on SOURCE Database
5 5. Changing Pluggable Database Configuration on SOURCE Database (CDB configurations only)
6 6. Changing Oracle Home

1. Changing Init Parameters on SOURCE Database

If you want to change any SOURCE (primary) database init parameter, you will need to perform this exact change on standby database as well, if you want to keep your standby database init parameters consistent with primary.

This typically includes steps done on standby server:

A. create pfile from spfile:

SQL> create pfile='/tmp/init.ora' from spfile;

B. edit manually the created pfile and set / unset any parameter as per your liking

C. re-create spfile from edited init file

SQL> shu abort;
SQL> create spfile from pfile='/tmp/init.ora';
SQL> startup mount;

The steps might differ for your specific environment.

Dbvisit doesn’t maintain the standby database init parameters in any way post the standby database creation

2. Changing Redo Log Configuration on SOURCE Database

Any change in redo log configuration on SOURCE database will not be reflected to standby database via standard archivelog synchronization. This includes all redo log related changes:

changing redo member size (which is in fact add & remove group)
adding/removing redo members
adding/removing redo groups

If you need to change the redo configuration of the primary database, then after such change you will need to recreate the standby database controlfile in order to reflect the changes on standby database. The steps for recreating standby database controlfile are following:

A. Disable automated standby update

You can refer to Miscellaneous Oracle Functions | 1. Scheduling archive log send and apply

B. run recreate standby controlfile action using UI:

Miscellaneous Oracle Functions | 5.3 Recreate Standby Control File

or using CLI on primary:

./dbvctl -d <DDC> -f create_standby_ctl

example:

C. enable automated standby update again

You should check log gap report to see that synchronization is working without issues

3. Changing Temporary Tablespaces Configuration on SOURCE Database

Some changes related to temporary tablespace configuration are reflected to standby database via archivelog synchronization automatically. But some changes are not and you will need to re-create standby controlfile in order to reflect these changes. Here are both lists:

A. Temporary Tablespace related configuration changes which are synchronized automatically to standby database:

change of primary database default temporary tablespace
adding temporary tablespace to tablespace group

In these cases, there’s nothing to do on standby side as changes will get applied via archivelog synchronization

B. Temporary Tablespace related configuration changes which are NOT synchronized automatically to standby database:

resize of existing tempfile
changing maxsize of existing tempfile
adding tempfile to existing temporary tablespace
creating new temporary tablespace

In these cases you need to recreate standby controlfile to synchronize these changes to standby database. For how to recreate standby controlfile refer to previous point “Changing Redo Log Configuration on SOURCE Database”

4. Changing Data and System Tablespaces Configuration on SOURCE Database

All user and system datafile changes such as:

change of datafile maxsize
resize of datafile
adding datafile to existing tablespace
creating new tablespace

Are automatically replicated to standby database via the archivelog synchronization. This includes all CDB and PDB user and system tablespaces. There is no need to perform any manual action for these changes.

Dbvisit Standby has internal limit of 10 added datafiles per archivelog. If you create/add more datafiles than 10 on primary, only 10 datafiles will be added during archivelog apply on standby database. An ignorable warning will be raised and then rest of datafiles will be added during next archivelog apply run.

5. Changing Pluggable Database Configuration on SOURCE Database (CDB configurations only)

Dbvisit automatically synchronizes newly added PDB to SOURCE database. The synchronization will be triggered for new PDBs created from PDB$SEED, created as clone or plugged-in.

For more details, please check:

Refresh PDB from Primary

6. Changing Oracle Home

Change Oracle Home might be needed for example because of 19c out-of-place patching. Standby and primary database Oracle Home is set inside Dbvisit Database Configuration File (DDC). To change Oracle Home for primary or standby database in Dbvisit configuration you need to perform following steps:

A. Stop database

Use UI or CLI to stop the database, for example:

Stop only the database which Oracle Home you intend to change

B. Stop dbvagentmanager on primary and standby host

You can use for example:

C. Edit Dbvisit DDC file

DDC file is found in standbymp/oracle directory:

Edit this file on PRIMARY AND STANDBY host and set:

Set only the parameter for Oracle Home you need to change. For example if you’re changing only standby oracle home, set change ORACLE_HOME_DR parameter only on primary and standby DDC file

D. Check/Edit /etc/oratab

You need to make sure that oratab file contents point to a new oracle home for specific primary or standby instance, for example:

make sure the old oracle home entry is commented and make this change only on host where you’re changing the oracle home.

E. Start dbvagentmanager on primary and standby host