Sun Cluster Data Service for Oracle RAC Guide for Solaris OS

Preinstallation Considerations

Oracle Real Application Clusters (RAC) is an application that can run on more than one machine concurrently. On Solaris^TM 1O OS, Oracle RAC can run either in the global-cluster voting nodes of the global cluster or in a zone cluster. An Oracle RAC installation is entirely contained within one cluster, either a global cluster or a specific zone cluster. Keeping the Oracle RAC installation in one cluster ensures the support of multiple independent Oracle RAC installations concurrently, where each Oracle RAC installation can be of a different version or use different options, such as storage. Sun Cluster Support for Oracle RAC enables you to run Oracle RAC on Sun Cluster nodes and to manage Oracle RAC by using Sun Cluster commands.

Note –

In earlier versions of Oracle, this application is referred to as Oracle Parallel Server. In this book, references to Oracle RAC also apply to Oracle Parallel Server unless this book explicitly states otherwise.

Configuring this data service involves configuring resources for the following components of an Oracle RAC installation with Sun Cluster software:

The RAC framework. These resources enable Oracle RAC to run with Sun Cluster software. The resources also enable reconfiguration parameters to be set by using Sun Cluster commands. You must configure resources for the RAC framework. For more information, see Registering and Configuring the RAC Framework Resource Group.
Storage for Oracle files. These resources provide fault monitoring and automatic fault recovery for volume managers and file systems that store Oracle files. Configuring storage resources for Oracle files is optional. For more information, see Registering and Configuring Storage Resources for Oracle Files.
Oracle RAC database instances. The features that these resources provide depend on the version of Oracle that you are using:
- Oracle 10g R2. These resource types enable Oracle Cluster Ready Services (CRS) and Sun Cluster to interoperate. These resource types do not provide fault monitoring and automatic fault recovery for Oracle 10g R2RAC. The Oracle CRS software provides this functionality.
- Oracle 9i. These resource types provide fault monitoring and automatic fault recovery for Oracle RAC. The automatic fault recovery that these resource types provide supplements the automatic fault recovery that the Oracle RAC software provides.
Configuring resources for Oracle RAC database instances is optional. For more information, see Configuring Resources for Oracle RAC Database Instances.

Note –

When you use Oracle RAC in a zone cluster, the zone cluster cannot use the inherit-pkg-dir directory for the /opt file system. For an Oracle RAC configuration in a zone cluster, the /opt file system should be writable and unique to each zone.

Hardware and Software Requirements

Before you begin the installation, note the hardware and software requirements in the subsections that follow.

Sun Cluster Framework Requirements

Sun Cluster Support for Oracle RAC 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.

Software License Requirements

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 the vxlicrep command.

Supported Topology Requirements

Check with a Sun Enterprise Services representative for the current supported topologies for Sun Cluster Support for Oracle RAC, cluster interconnect, storage management scheme, and hardware configurations.

Patch Installation Requirements

Ensure that you have installed all 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 RAC patches, you must apply these patches after you install the data service packages.

Storage Management Requirements for Oracle Files

Sun Cluster Support for Oracle RAC 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.

The meaning of each symbol in the table is as follows:

+ indicates that the storage management scheme can store the type of Oracle file.
- indicates that the storage management scheme cannot store the type of Oracle file.

Table 1–2 Storage Management Schemes for Oracle Files


Oracle File Type	Storage Management Scheme
Oracle File Type	Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster	VxVM	Hardware RAID	Sun StorageTek QFS	qualified NAS Devices	ASM	Cluster File System	Local Disks
RDBMS binary files	-	-	-	+	+	-	+	+
CRS binary files	-	-	-	+	+	-	+	+
Configuration files	-	-	-	+	+	-	+	+
System parameter file (`SPFILE`)	-	-	-	+	+	+	+	-
Alert files	-	-	-	+	+	-	+	+
Trace files	-	-	-	+	+	-	+	+
Data files	+	+	+	+	+	+	-	-
Control files	+	+	+	+	+	+	-	-
Online redo log files	+	+	+	+	+	+	-	-
Archived redo log files	-	-	-	+	+	+	+	-
Flashback log files	-	-	-	+	+	+	+	-
Recovery files	-	-	-	+	+	+	-	-
OCR files	+	+	+	+	+	-	+	-
CRS voting disk	+	+	+	+	+	-	+	-

Note –

Some types of files are not included in all releases of Oracle RAC. For information about which types of file are included in the release that you are using, see your Oracle documentation.

Storage Management Requirements for the Oracle Clusterware

Oracle Clusterware disks such as Oracle cluster registry (OCR) and voting disks are supported on the following storage management schemes:

Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster

Note –
Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster is supported only with Oracle RAC. Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster with Oracle Parallel Server is not supported.
Veritas Volume Manager (VxVM)

Note –
VxVM is supported only on the SPARC platform.
Hardware redundant array of independent disks (RAID) support
Sun StorageTek^TM QFS shared file system with hardware RAID support or with Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster
Qualified network-attached storage (NAS)

Storage Management Requirements for the Oracle RAC Database

You can use the following storage management schemes for the Oracle RAC database:

Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster

Note –
Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster is supported only with Oracle RAC. Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster with Oracle Parallel Server is not supported.
Veritas Volume Manager (VxVM) with the cluster feature

Note –
VxVM is supported only on the SPARC platform.
Hardware redundant array of independent disks (RAID) support
Sun StorageTek QFS shared file system with hardware RAID support or with Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster
Qualified network-attached storage (NAS) devices
Oracle Automatic Storage Management (ASM)

Storage Management Requirements for Oracle Binary Files and Oracle Configuration Files

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 StorageTek QFS shared file system
- The cluster file system
- A file system on a qualified NAS device

Using Local Disks for Oracle Binary Files and Oracle Configuration Files

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.

Note –

Some versions of Oracle require you to shut down the data service during an upgrade. To determine whether you can upgrade the Oracle application without shutting down the data service, see your Oracle documentation.

The disadvantage is that you then have several copies of the Oracle application binary files and Oracle configuration files to maintain and administer.

Using a Shared File System for Oracle Binary Files and Oracle Configuration Files

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 StorageTek 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
  
  Note –
  VxVM is supported only on the SPARC platform.
A file system on a qualified 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.

Storage Management Schemes Supported by Zone Cluster

You can use the following storage management schemes for running Oracle RAC in a zone cluster, depending on the version of Oracle RAC you are running.

If you are using Oracle RAC 10g or Oracle RAC 11g, the following storage management schemes are supported:

Sun StorageTek QFS shared file system with Solaris Volume Manager
Sun StorageTek QFS shared file system with hardware RAID support
Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster

If you are using Oracle RAC 9i, the following storage management schemes are supported:

Sun StorageTek QFS shared file system with Solaris Volume Manager
Sun StorageTek QFS shared file system with hardware RAID support
Solaris Volume Manager for Sun Cluster

SPARC: Processor Architecture Requirements for Oracle Components

Before you decide which architecture to use for the Oracle UDLM and the Oracle relational database management system (RDBMS), note the following points.

The architecture of both Oracle components must match. For example, if you have 64-bit architecture for your Oracle UDLM, you must have 64-bit architecture for your RDBMS.
If you have 32-bit architecture for your Oracle components, you can boot the node on which the components reside in either 32-bit mode or 64-bit mode. However, if you have 64-bit architecture for your Oracle components, you must boot the node on which the components reside in 64-bit mode.
You must use the same architecture when you boot all the nodes. For example, if you boot one node to use 32-bit architecture, you must boot all the nodes to use 32-bit architecture.

Using Oracle Data Guard With Sun Cluster Support for Oracle RAC

You can use Sun Cluster Support for Oracle RAC with Oracle Data Guard. To configure Sun Cluster Support for Oracle RAC with Oracle Data Guard, perform the tasks in this guide. The tasks for clusters that are to be used in an Oracle Data Guard configuration are identical to the tasks for a standalone cluster.

For information about the installation, administration, and operation of Oracle Data Guard, see your Oracle documentation.

Using the Oracle Real Application Clusters Guard Option With Sun Cluster 3.2

For information about the installation, administration, and operation of the Oracle Real Application Clusters Guard option, see your Oracle documentation. If you plan to use this product option with Sun Cluster 3.2, note the points in the subsections that follow before you install Sun Cluster 3.2.

Hostname Restrictions

If you use the Oracle Real Application Clusters Guard option with Sun Cluster 3.2, the following restrictions apply to hostnames that you use in your cluster:

Hostnames cannot contain special characters.
You cannot change the hostnames after you install Sun Cluster 3.2.

For more information about these restrictions and any other requirements, see the Oracle documentation.

Sun Cluster Command Usage Restrictions

If you use the Oracle Real Application Clusters Guard option with Sun Cluster 3.2, do not use Sun Cluster commands to perform the following operations:

Manipulating the state of resources that Oracle Real Application Clusters Guard installs. Using Sun Cluster commands for this purpose might cause failures.
Querying the state of the resources that Oracle Real Application Clusters Guard installs. This state might not reflect the actual state. To check the state of the Oracle Real Application Clusters Guard, use the commands that Oracle supplies.