Administering Oracle Homes

An Oracle Home is a directory location on the compute nodes that contains Oracle Database binaries. Oracle Database Exadata Cloud at Customer enables multiple database deployments to share a set of Oracle Database binaries in a shared Oracle Home directory location.

Topics

Viewing Information About Oracle Homes

You can view information about Oracle Home directory locations by using the Oracle Database Cloud Service console or, if desired, by using one of the ways listed in Other Ways to View Information About Oracle Homes at the end of this topic.

Viewing Information About Oracle Homes by Using the Oracle Database Cloud Service Console

Open the Instances page of the Oracle Database Cloud Service console.

For detailed instructions, see Accessing the My Services Dashboard and the Oracle Database Cloud Service Console.
Click the database deployment for which you want to view Oracle Home information.

The Oracle Database Cloud Service Overview page is displayed.
Click Show more... in the Instance Overview section to reveal the Oracle Home Name that is associated with the database deployment.

Other Ways to View Information About Oracle Homes

You can use the dbaascli utility. See Viewing Information About Oracle Homes by Using the dbaascli Utility.

Viewing Information About Oracle Homes by Using the dbaascli Utility

You can view information about Oracle Home directory locations by using the dbhome info subcommand of the dbaascli utility as follows:

Connect to a compute node as the opc user.

For detailed instructions, see Connecting to a Compute Node Through Secure Shell (SSH).
Start a root-user command shell:
```
$ sudo -s
#
```
Execute the dbaascli command with the dbhome info subcommand:
```
# dbaascli dbhome info
```
When prompted, press Enter to view information about all Oracle Homes registered in your Exadata Cloud at Customer environment, or specify an Oracle Home name to view information only about that Oracle Home.
Exit the root-user command shell:
```
# exit
$
```

Moving a Database to Another Oracle Home

Moving a database to another Oracle Home enables you to consolidate existing Oracle Homes and manage the storage that they consume. You can move a database to another Oracle Home by using the database move subcommand of the dbaascli utility as follows:

Connect to a compute node as the opc user.

For detailed instructions, see Connecting to a Compute Node Through Secure Shell (SSH).
Start a root-user command shell:
```
$ sudo -s
#
```
Ensure that all of the database instances associated with the database deployment are up and running.
```
# dbaascli database status --dbname dbname
```
In the preceding command, dbname specifies the name of the database that you want to check.

Restart any database instances that are not running and open.
Execute the dbaascli command with the database move subcommand:
```
# dbaascli database move --dbname dbname --ohome oracle_home
```
In the preceding command:
- dbname — specifies the name of the database that you want to move.
- oracle_home — specifies the path to an existing Oracle Home directory location, which you want the specified database to use.
When performing a move operation to an Oracle Home with a different patch level, if the database is part of an Oracle Data Guard configuration, then ensure that you move the standby database to the new patchset before you move the primary database.
Exit the root-user command shell:
```
# exit
$
```

Creating an Oracle Home

You can create a new Oracle Home directory location and software installation, without creating a new database deployment, by using the dbhome create subcommand of the dbaascli utility as follows:

Connect to a compute node as the opc user.

For detailed instructions, see Connecting to a Compute Node Through Secure Shell (SSH).
Start a root-user command shell:
```
$ sudo -s
#
```
Run the dbaascli command with the dbhome create subcommand:
```
# dbaascli dbhome create --version software_version
```
In the preceding command, software_version specifies an Oracle Database software version. For example, 11204, 12102, 12201, or 18000. The latest available bundle patch for the specified software version is automatically used.

To see information about Oracle Database software images that are available in your Exadata Cloud at Customer environment, including software version and bundle patch details, use the dbaascli dbimage list command.

When prompted, type yes to confirm that the installation is based on a local software image.
Exit the root-user command shell:
```
# exit
$
```

Deleting an Oracle Home

If an Oracle Home directory does not support any database deployments, you can delete it by using the dbhome purge subcommand of the dbaascli utility as follows:

Connect to a compute node as the opc user.

For detailed instructions, see Connecting to a Compute Node Through Secure Shell (SSH).
Start a root-user command shell:
```
$ sudo -s
#
```
Execute the dbaascli command with the dbhome purge subcommand:
```
# dbaascli dbhome purge
```
When prompted, enter:
- 1 — if you want to specify the Oracle Home name for the location being purged.
- 2 — if you want to specify the Oracle Home directory path for the location being purged.
When next prompted, enter the Oracle Home name or directory path for the location being purged.

If your entries are valid and the Oracle Home is not associated with a database deployment, then the Oracle binaries are removed from the Oracle Home directory location and the associated metadata is removed from the system.
Exit the root-user command shell:
```
# exit
$
```