Data Preserving Reprovisioning: Prechecks

Why should I run odacli update-dcsadmin, odacli update-dcscomponents, and odacli update-dcsagent commands before starting the Data Preserving Reprovisioning process?

New commands and pre-upgrade checks required for Data Preserving Reprovisioning are available only in the DCS software 19.23. Only after the DCS software stack is updated successfully on the bare metal system and on each DB system using the odacli update-dcsadmin, odacli update-dcscomponents, and odacli update-dcsagent commands, will the system be ready to to run the required mandatory prechecks and initiate the detach-node process.

I ran the odacli update-dcsadmin, odacli update-dcscomponents, and odacli update-dcsagent commands successfully, but Zookeeper and MySQL versions have not changed. Is this expected?

Yes, this is expected. Zookeeper is no longer a part of the Oracle Database Appliance Server Patch and hence, it will not be updated. MySQL is also not updated since the reimage step erases MySQL and reinstalls it as part of the reimage.

Should I run the odacli update-server and odacli update-storage commands also before starting Data Preserving Reprovisioning process by running the odacli detach-node command?

No. Updating Oracle Grid Infrastructure or the storage firmware is not required, if the system meets the minimum software requirements. The Oracle Grid Infrastructure software released with 19.21 or later is supported on Oracle Linux 8. However, you must run these commands after the reimage step in the Data Preserving Reprovisioning process.

What is the best practice for running Data Preserving Reprovisioning pre-upgrade checks? Can they be run outside the maintenance window?

It it recommended to have the pre-upgrade checks run as early as possible (before the start of the maintenance window). It is necessary to update the DCS software to 19.21 or later, to run the prechecks. Running the prechecks will not cause any outages to Oracle Grid Infrastructure and Oracle databases. The DCS infrastructure can be on a later version in the interim period, that is, until the start of the maintenance window.

Will the odaadmin password change after the reprovision step?

Yes, the server archive files do not store passwords. Hence, a new password will be requested during the Oracle Grid Infrastructure reprovisioning if the odaadmin user does not exist. You can specify the password that was set for the odaadmin user before the reimage step.

Is running the odacli create-preupgradereport command mandatory for upgrading Oracle Database Appliance to Oracle Linux 8?

Yes, the odacli create-preupgradereport command runs all the necessary prechecks to evaluate the system readiness for Oracle Linux 8 upgrade. If any errors are found, then address these errors before you begin the detach-node process to ensure that the upgrade is smooth.

What are the different types of status results for prechecks that run as part of the odacli create-preupgradereport command?

Prechecks can have one of four statuses: SUCCESS, FAILED, ALERT, and ABORTED.

SUCCESS: Indicates that the check ran without issues, requiring no user intervention.
FAILED: Implies that users must inspect the system and address reported errors.
ALERT: Indicates that users must take specific manual actions, as these cannot be handled by the Data Preserving Reprovisioning process.
ABORTED: Indicates that the check was not run due to an internal error, and the user should retry the command to rerun all aborted prechecks.

Can I run the odacli detach-node command even if the preupgrade report indicates failure?

You must review all the errors reported by the report before proceeding to run the odacli detach-node command. The errors pointed out can result in failure later if they are not resolved. To ensure smooth upgrade process, you must attend to all the errors reported.

There are alert messages in the report. They indicate actions that you must run to avoid loss of some files. Pay attention to these alerts and complete the suggested action.

Is running odacli create-preupgradereport mandatory for upgrading DB systems to Oracle Linux 8?

No. However, it is recommended that you run the odacli create-preupgradereport -dbs dbsystem_name command prior to upgrading a DB system. The errors displayed in the report can result in failure later if they are not resolved.

Can I run odacli create-preupgradereport for DB systems when the operating system is still Oracle Linux 7?

Yes. However, the DCS agent version of the DB system and the bare metal system must be release 19.21 or later.