Oracle Real Application Clusters is an application that can run on more than one node concurrently. Sun Cluster Support for Oracle Real Application Clusters is a set of packages that, when installed, enables Oracle Real Application Clusters to run on Sun Cluster nodes. This data service also enables Oracle Real Application Clusters to be managed by using Sun Cluster commands.
In earlier versions of Oracle, this application is referred to as Oracle Parallel Server. In this book, references to Oracle Real Application Clusters also apply to Oracle Parallel Server unless this book explicitly states otherwise.
This data service provides fault monitoring only to enable the status of Oracle Real Application Clusters resources to be monitored by Sun Cluster utilities. This data service does not provide automatic fault recovery because the Oracle Real Application Clusters software provides similar functionality.
Before you begin the installation, note the hardware and software requirements in the subsections that follow.
Sun Cluster Support for Oracle Real Application Clusters requires a functioning cluster with the initial cluster framework already installed. See Sun Cluster Software Installation Guide for Solaris OS for details about initial installation of cluster software.
Verify that you have obtained and installed the appropriate licenses for your software. If you install your licenses incorrectly or incompletely, the nodes might fail to boot correctly.
For example, if you are using VxVM with the cluster feature, verify that you have installed a valid license for the Volume Manager cluster feature by running one of the following commands:
If you are using Sun StorEdgeTM QFS shared file system version 4.2, verify that you have installed a valid license for Sun StorEdge QFS on each node. To verify that a valid license is installed on a node, run the samcmd l command on the node.
Check with a Sun Enterprise Services representative for the current supported topologies for Sun Cluster Support for Oracle Real Application Clusters, cluster interconnect, storage management scheme, and hardware configurations.
Ensure that you have installed all of the applicable software patches for the Solaris Operating System, Sun Cluster, Oracle, and your volume manager. If you need to install any Sun Cluster Support for Oracle Real Application Clusters patches, you must apply these patches after you install the data service packages.
Sun Cluster Support for Oracle Real Application Clusters enables you to use the storage management schemes for Oracle files that are listed in the following table. The table summarizes the types of Oracle files that each storage management scheme can store. Ensure that you choose a combination of storage management schemes that can store all types of Oracle files.
Table 1–2 Storage Management Schemes for Oracle Files
Oracle File Type |
Storage Management Scheme |
|||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster |
VxVM |
Hardware RAID |
Sun StorEdge QFS |
Network Appliance NAS Devices |
ASM |
Cluster File System |
Local Disks |
|
RDBMS binary files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
CRS binary files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Configuration files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
System parameter file (SPFILE) |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Alert files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Trace files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Data files |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
Control files |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
Online redo log files |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
Archived redo log files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Flashback log files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Recovery files |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
OCR files |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
CRS voting disk |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Some types of files are not included in all releases of Oracle Real Application Clusters. For information about which types of file are included in the release that you are using, see your Oracle documentation.
You can use the following storage management schemes for the Oracle Real Application Clusters database:
Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster
Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster is supported only with Oracle Real Application Clusters. Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster with Oracle Parallel Server is not supported.
VERITAS Volume Manager (VxVM) with the cluster feature
VxVM is supported only on the SPARC platform.
Hardware redundant array of independent disks (RAID) support
Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system with hardware RAID support
Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system is supported only on the SPARC platform.
Network Appliance network-attached storage (NAS) devices
Oracle Automatic Storage Management (ASM)
You can install the Oracle binary files and Oracle configuration files on one of the following locations.
The local disks of each cluster node
A shared file system from the following list:
The Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system
The cluster file system
A file system on a Network Appliance NAS device
Placing the Oracle binary files and Oracle configuration files on the individual cluster nodes enables you to upgrade the Oracle application later without shutting down the data service.
The disadvantage is that you then have several copies of the Oracle application binary files and Oracle configuration files to maintain and administer.
To simplify the maintenance of your Oracle installation, you can install the Oracle binary files and Oracle configuration files on a shared file system. The following shared file systems are supported:
The Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system
The cluster file system
If you use the cluster file system, decide which volume manager to use:
Solaris Volume Manager
VxVM without the cluster feature
VxVM is supported only on the SPARC platform.
A file system on a Network Appliance NAS device
If you put the Oracle binary files and Oracle configuration files on a shared file system, you have only one copy to maintain and manage. However, you must shut down the data service in the entire cluster to upgrade the Oracle application. If a short period of downtime for upgrades is acceptable, place a single copy of the Oracle binary files and Oracle configuration files on a shared file system.
You can store all of the files that are associated with Oracle Real Application Clusters on the Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system.
For information about how to create a Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system, see the following documentation for Sun StorEdge QFS:
Sun StorEdge QFS and Sun StorEdge SAM-FS Software Installation and Configuration Guide
Sun StorEdge QFS and Sun StorEdge SAM-FS File System Administration Guide
Distribute these files among several file systems as explained in the subsections that follow.
For RDBMS binary files and related files, create one file system in the cluster to store the files.
The RDBMS binary files and related files are as follows:
Oracle relational database management system (RDBMS) binary files
Oracle configuration files (for example, init.ora, tnsnames.ora, listener.ora, and sqlnet.ora)
System parameter file (SPFILE)
Alert files (for example, alert_sid.log)
Trace files (*.trc)
Oracle Cluster Ready Services (CRS) binary files
For database files and related files, determine whether you require one file system for each database or multiple file systems for each database.
For simplicity of configuration and maintenance, create one file system to store these files for all Oracle Real Application Clusters instances of the database.
To facilitate future expansion, create multiple file systems to store these files for all Oracle Real Application Clusters instances of the database.
If you are adding storage for an existing database, you must create additional file systems for the storage that you are adding. In this situation, distribute the database files and related files among the file systems that you will use for the database.
Each file system that you create for database files and related files must have its own metadata server. For information about the resources that are required for the metadata servers, see SPARC: Resources for the Sun StorEdge QFS Shared File System.
The database files and related files are as follows:
Data files
Control files
Online redo log files
Archived redo log files
Flashback log files
Recovery files
Oracle cluster registry (OCR) files
Oracle CRS voting disk
You can store only these files that are associated with Oracle Real Application Clusters on the cluster file system:
Oracle RDBMS binary files
Oracle CRS binary files
Oracle configuration files (for example, init.ora, tnsnames.ora, listener.ora, and sqlnet.ora)
System parameter file (SPFILE)
Alert files (for example, alert_sid.log)
Trace files (*.trc)
Archived redo log files
Flashback log files
Oracle cluster registry (OCR) files
Oracle CRS voting disk
You must not store data files, control files, online redo log files, or Oracle recovery files on the cluster file system.
The input/output (I/O) performance during the writing of archived redo log files is affected by the location of the device group for archived redo log files. For optimum performance, ensure that the primary of the device group for archived redo log files is located on the same node as the Oracle Real Application Clusters database instance. This device group contains the file system that holds archived redo log files of the database instance.
If you are using the cluster file system with Sun Cluster 3.1, consider increasing the desired number of secondary nodes for device groups. By increasing the desired number of secondary nodes for device groups, you can improve the availability of your cluster. To increase the desired number of secondary nodes for device groups, change the numsecondaries property. For more information, see Multiported Disk Device Groups in Sun Cluster Concepts Guide for Solaris OS.
For information about how to create cluster file systems, see the following documentation:
Use the questions in the subsections that follow to plan the installation and configuration of Sun Cluster Support for Oracle Real Application Clusters. Write the answers to these questions in the space that is provided on the data service worksheets in Configuration Worksheets in Sun Cluster Data Services Planning and Administration Guide for Solaris OS.
If you are using Oracle 10g, no Oracle RAC server resources are required. These resources are not required with Oracle 10g because Oracle CRS starts and shuts down Oracle Real Application Clusters database instances. In versions of Oracle earlier than 10g, these resources are required to enable Sun Cluster to start and shut down database instances.
Which resource groups will you use for the Oracle Real Application Clusters (RAC) server resources?
You require one resource group for each Oracle Real Application Clusters database instance. Each resource group contains the Oracle RAC server resource for the database instance.
Use the answer to this question when you perform the procedure in Registering and Configuring Oracle RAC Server Resources.
If you are using Oracle 10g, no Oracle listener resources are required. These resources are not required with Oracle 10g because Oracle CRS starts and shuts down Oracle Real Application Clusters database instances. In versions of Oracle earlier than 10g, these resources are required to enable Sun Cluster to start and shut down database instances.
Which resource groups will you use for the Oracle listener resources?
Use the answer to this question when you perform the procedure in Registering and Configuring Oracle Listener Resources.
The resource groups depend on your configuration of Oracle listeners with Real Application Clusters database instances. For general information about possible configurations of listeners for Real Application Clusters instances, see your Oracle documentation. Example configurations are described in the subsections that follow.
One listener serves only one Real Application Clusters instance. The listener listens on the fixed Internet Protocol (IP) address of the node. The listener cannot fail over.
In this situation, configure the listener resource as follows:
Configure the listener resource and the RAC server resource in the same resource group.
Ensure that this resource group is mastered on only one node.
One listener serves several Real Application Clusters instances on the same node. The listener uses Oracle's transparent application failover (TAF) and load balancing to distribute client connections across all Real Application Clusters instances. The listener cannot fail over.
In this situation, configure the listener resource as follows:
Configure the listener resource in its own resource group.
Ensure that the listener's resource group is mastered on only one node.
Create a dependency between the listener's resource group and RAC servers' resource groups.
One listener that can fail over serves several Real Application Clusters instances on the same node. When the listener fails over to another node, the listener serves several Real Application Clusters instances on the other node.
The listener uses Oracle's TAF and load balancing to distribute client connections across all Real Application Clusters instances. To ensure fast error detection and short failover times, the listener listens on an address that is represented by a LogicalHostname resource.
In this situation, configure the listener resource as follows:
Configure the listener resource and the LogicalHostname resource in the same resource group.
Ensure that this resource group is mastered on the nodes on which Oracle Real Application Clusters is running.
For more information, see LogicalHostname Resources for Oracle Listener Resources.
One listener serves all Real Application Clusters instances on all nodes. The listener listens on an address that is represented by a LogicalHostname resource. This configuration ensures that the address is plumbed very quickly on another node after a node fails.
You can use this configuration if you configure Real Application Clusters instances to use a multithreaded server (MTS). In such a configuration, the REMOTE_LISTENERS parameter in the init.ora file specifies that each dispatcher registers with the listener on a logical IP address.
All clients connect through the one listener. The listener redirects each client connection to the least busy dispatcher. The least busy dispatcher might be on a different node from the listener.
If the listener fails, the listener's fault monitor restarts the listener. If the node where the listener is running fails, the listener is restarted on a different node. In both situations the dispatchers reregister after the listener is restarted.
If you are using one listener for the entire cluster, configure the following resources in the same resource group:
The listener resource
The LogicalHostname resource
For more information, see LogicalHostname Resources for Oracle Listener Resources.
If you are using Oracle 10g, no LogicalHostname resources are required.
Which LogicalHostname resources will Oracle listener resources use?
Use the answer to this question when you perform the procedure in Registering and Configuring Oracle Listener Resources.
If a cluster node that is running an instance of Oracle Real Application Clusters fails, an operation that a client application attempted might be required to time out before the operation is attempted again on another instance. If the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) network timeout is high, the client application might require a significant length of time to detect the failure. Typically, client applications require between three and nine minutes to detect such failures.
In such situations, client applications can connect to listener resources that are listening on an address that is represented by the Sun Cluster LogicalHostname resource. Configure the LogicalHostname resource and the listener resource in a separate resource group. Ensure that this resource group is mastered on the nodes on which Oracle Real Application Clusters is running. If a node fails, the resource group that contains the LogicalHostname resource and the listener resource fails over to another surviving node on which Oracle Real Application Clusters is running. The failover of the LogicalHostname resource enables new connections to be directed to the other instance of Oracle Real Application Clusters.
If you are using the Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system, answer the following questions:
Which resources will you create to represent the metadata server for the Sun StorEdge QFS shared file system?
One resource is required for each Sun StorEdge QFS metadata server.
Which resource groups will you use for these resources?
You might use multiple file systems for database files and related files. For more information, see SPARC: Requirements for Using the Sun StorEdge QFS Shared File System.
If you are using Oracle 10g, Oracle CRS manage Real Application Clusters database instances. These database instances must be started only after all shared file systems are mounted. To meet this requirement, ensure that the file system that contains the Oracle CRS voting disk is mounted only after the file systems for other database files have been mounted. This behavior ensures that, when a node is booted, Oracle CRS are started only after all Sun StorEdge QFS file systems are mounted.
To enable Sun Cluster to mount the file systems in the required order, configure resource groups for the metadata servers of the file systems as follows:
Create the resources for the metadata servers in separate resource groups.
Set the resource group for the file system that contains the Oracle CRS voting disk to depend on the other resource groups.
For more information, see the following documentation for Sun StorEdge QFS:
Sun StorEdge QFS and Sun StorEdge SAM-FS Software Installation and Configuration Guide
Sun StorEdge QFS and Sun StorEdge SAM-FS File System Administration Guide
Use the answers to these questions when you perform the procedure in Registering and Configuring Oracle RAC Server Resources.
If you plan you use the scrgadm utility to create the RAC framework resource group, what name will you assign to this resource group?
If you use the scsetup utility to create the RAC framework resource group, omit this question. The scsetup utility automatically assigns a name when you create the resource group.
For more information, see Registering and Configuring the RAC Framework Resource Group.
Where will the Oracle configuration files reside?
For the advantages and disadvantages of using the local file system instead of the cluster file system, see Storage Management Requirements for Oracle Binary Files and Oracle Configuration Files.