Automatically Configuring Oracle Linux with Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM

About the Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM

The Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM simplifies Oracle Database and Grid Infrastructure preparation on Oracle Linux or supported Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems by installing required packages, resolving dependencies, creating the standard oracle user and groups, configuring kernel, driver, startup, NUMA, and resource-limit settings, and installing X11 client libraries. Install it only once during the initial Oracle software installation, do not use it on Oracle Engineered Systems, and manually configure settings for any additional software owners because its limits and kernel parameters apply only to oracle.

Overview of Oracle Linux Configuration with Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM

The Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM automates required package and operating-system configuration for Oracle installations. The recommended process is to install Oracle Linux, register it with ULN or configure the appropriate yum repository, install the release-specific preinstallation RPM and update the system, create role-separated users and groups with consistent IDs, configure cluster networking, and prepare shared storage; after these steps, the environment is ready for Grid Infrastructure and Database installation. The RPM should be installed only for the first installation on a system and not on Oracle Engineered Systems.

Installing the Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM Using ULN

To install the preinstallation RPM through ULN, obtain the latest Oracle Linux update media, register each server with ULN, sign in to ULN, and install the release-specific package as root using yum on Oracle Linux 7 or dnf on Oracle Linux 8 and later. The RPM creates the standard Oracle installation owner and groups and applies required kernel settings; review changes in the generated orakernel.log file and repeat the procedure on every cluster server. Eligible support customers may also enable Ksplice for zero-downtime patching.

Installing Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM During an Oracle Linux Installation

During a new Oracle Linux installation, select customized software packages, navigate to the server system administration tools, and choose the Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM matching the operating system release and architecture. Complete the installation to allow Oracle Linux to create the standard Oracle owner and groups and configure required kernel settings; if a suitable package is unavailable on the installation media, install the correct release-specific RPM afterward. Repeat the process for all cluster nodes.

Installing Oracle Oracle Database Preinstallation RPM Using the Oracle Linux yum Server

After installing Oracle Linux according to its official documentation, apply current security and bug-fix updates with yum update and reboot the system. As root, install oracle-database-preinstall-19c with yum on Oracle Linux 7 or dnf on Oracle Linux 8 and later, optionally using the confirmation bypass option. The RPM creates the standard Oracle owner and groups and configures required kernel settings; additional users and groups must be created manually when job-role separation is required.

Configure Additional Operating System Features

Before beginning installation, configure any supplementary operating-system features required by the deployment, such as IPMI support or additional programming environments. Review the relevant preinstallation guidance to verify that all feature-specific configuration tasks are complete.
Read More: Configure Additional Operating System Features