2 Preparing to Upgrade Oracle GoldenGate Studio

The upgrade is performed while the servers are down. The pre-upgrade tasks are often time-consuming. Oracle recommends that you plan and prepare your environment for upgrade by completing these pre-upgrade tasks, so that you have a successful upgrade and a limited downtime.

Use the following checklist to make sure that you complete the pre-upgrade tasks:

Pre-Upgrade Checklist

The Pre-Upgrade Checklist identifies tasks that can be performed before you begin your upgrade to ensure that you have a successful upgrade and limited downtime.

Upgrades are performed while the servers are down. This checklist is meant to identify important — and often time-consuming — pre-upgrade tasks that you can perform before the upgrade to limit your downtime. The more preparation you can do before you begin the upgrade process, the less time you spend offline.

Note:

The pre-upgrade procedures you perform depends on the configuration of your existing system, the components you are upgrading, and the environment that you want to create at the end of the upgrade and configuration process. Complete only those tasks that apply to your configurations or use cases.

This table describes the Pre-Upgrade Checklist. It lists all the required components and describes them in detail.

Table 2-1 Tasks to Perform Before You Upgrade to Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c

Task Description

Required

Create a complete backup of your existing environment.

Back up all system-critical files and databases that contain any schemas that are to be upgraded. If the upgrade fails, you must restore your pre-upgrade environment and begin the upgrade again.

See Creating a Complete Backup.

  • Make sure that your backup includes the schema version registry table. See Backing Up the Schema Version Registry Table.

  • If you have modified any of the startup scripts in your existing domain, you need to copy them to the temporary directory location (outside of the existing domain) during the upgrade and redeploy them after the upgrade.

Optional

Clone your production environment to use as an upgrade testing platform.

In addition to creating a complete backup of your system files, Oracle strongly recommends that you clone your production environment. This environment can be used to test the upgrade.

See Cloning Your Production Environment for Testing.

Required

Verify that you install and upgrade your product on a supported hardware and software configuration.

CAUTION: Do not attempt an upgrade if you are unable to use the latest supported operating system. As with all supported configurations, failure to comply with these requirements may cause your upgrade to fail.

Verify that your hardware and software configurations (including operating systems) are supported by the latest certifications and requirements documents. Also make sure to use a supported JDK version before you install the 12c product distributions.

Oracle recommends that you verify this information right before you start the upgrade as the certification requirements are frequently updated.

Make sure that you have applied the latest patches to your components before you upgrade.

See Verifying Certification and System Requirements.

Required for 32–bit Operating Systems Only

Migrate to a 64-bit operating system before you can upgrade.

This is required only if you are currently running an unsupported 32–bit operating system.

Optional

Update the security policy files if you are using enhanced encryption (AES 256).

Some of the security algorithms used in Fusion Middleware 12c require additional policy files for the JDK.

If you plan to use enhanced encryption, such as AES 256, Oracle recommends that you apply the latest required policy files to the JDK before you upgrade.

See Updating Policy Files when Using Enhanced Encryption (AES 256).

Optional

Purge any outdated or unused data before you upgrade.

To optimize performance, Oracle strongly recommends that you purge the data and objects that are not used in the upgraded environment.

See Purging Unused Data.

Required for Oracle Database Users Only

Before you upgrade an Edition-Based Redefinition (EBR) enabled schema, you must connect to the database server and create an edition on the database server for 12c (12.2.1.3.0).
If you are using an Edition-Based Redefinition (EBR) database, you must create the edition before you start the upgrade.

See Creating an Edition on the Server for Edition-Based Redefinition.

Optional

Create a Non-SYSDBA user to run the Upgrade Assistant.

Oracle recommends that you create the FMW user to run the Upgrade Assistant. The FMW user can run the Upgrade Assistant without any system administration privileges.

See Creating a Non-SYSDBA User to Run the Upgrade Assistant.

Optional

Identify the schemas that are currently in your domain before you begin.

It is important that you know the schemas that are in your pre-upgrade domain before you start the upgrade. You should know the schema owner names and passwords, as well as the versions of each schema.

See Identifying Existing Schemas Available for Upgrade.

Creating a Complete Backup

Before you start an upgrade, back up all system-critical files, including the databases that host your Oracle Fusion Middleware schemas.

The backup must include the SYSTEM.SCHEMA_VERSION_REGISTRY$ table so that you can restore the contents back to its pre-upgrade state if the upgrade fails.

The Upgrade Assistant Prerequisites screen prompts you to acknowledge that backups have been performed before you proceed with the actual upgrade. However, note that the Upgrade Assistant does not verify that a backup has been created.

See:

Backing Up the Schema Version Registry Table

Your system backup must include the SYSTEM.SCHEMA_VERSION_REGISTRY$ table or the FMWREGISTRY.SCHEMA_VERSION_REGISTRY$ table.

Each Fusion Middleware schema has a row in the SYSTEM.SCHEMA_VERSION_REGISTRY$ table. If you run the Upgrade Assistant to update an existing schema and it does not succeed, you must restore the original schema before you can try again. Before you run the Upgrade Assistant, make sure you back up your existing database schemas and the schema version registry.

Note:

Before you upgrade a schema using the Upgrade Assistant, you must perform a complete database backup. During the upgrade, you are required to acknowledge that backups have been performed.

Cloning Your Production Environment for Testing

Create a copy of your actual production environment, upgrade the cloned environment, verify that the upgraded components work as expected, and then (and only then) upgrade your production environment.

Cloning your production environment for testing is recommended, but not required.

Upgrades cannot be reversed. In most cases, if an error occurs, you must stop the upgrade and restore the entire environment from backup and begin the upgrade process from the beginning. Identifying potential upgrade issues in a development environment can eliminate unnecessary downtime.

Note:

It is beyond the scope of this document to describe the cloning procedures for all components and operating systems. Cloning procedures are component and operating system-specific. At a high level, you install the pre-upgrade version of your component domain on a test machine, create the required schemas using the Repository Creation Utility (RCU), and perform the upgrade.
Additional benefits of running an upgrade in a cloned production environment include the following:
  • Uncover and correct any upgrade issues.

  • Practice completing an end-to-end upgrade.

  • Understand the upgrade performance and how purge scripts can help.

  • Understand the time required to complete the upgrade.

  • Understand the database resource usage (such as temporary tablespace; PGA, and so on).

Note:

You can run the pre-upgrade Readiness Check on the cloned production environment to help identify potential upgrade issues with your data, but you must perform a complete test upgrade on a cloned environment to ensure a successful upgrade.

Verifying Certification and System Requirements

Review the certification matrix and system requirements documents to verify that your environment meets the necessary requirements for installation.

Note:

When checking the certification, system requirements, and interoperability information, be sure to check specifically for any 32-bit or 64-bit system requirements. It is important for you to download software specifically designed for the 32-bit or 64-bit environment, explicitly.

WARNING:

Make sure that your current environment has been patched to the latest patch set before you begin the upgrade. Certifications are based on fully patched environments, unless stated otherwise.

Verify Your Environment Meets Certification Requirements

Oracle has tested and verified the performance of your product on all certified systems and environments. Make sure that you are installing your product on a supported hardware or software configuration.

Whenever new certifications occur, they are added to the appropriate certification document right away. New certifications can occur at any time, and for this reason the certification documents are kept outside of the documentation libraries and are available on Oracle Technology Network. See the Certification Matrix for 12c (12.2.1.3.0).

Verify System Requirements and Specifications

It is important to verify that the system requirements such as disk space, available memory, specific platform packages and patches, and other operating system-specific items are met.

Use the Oracle Fusion Middleware System Requirements and Specifications document to verify that the requirements of the certification are met. For example, if the Certification Matrix for 12c (12.2.1.3.0) indicates that your product is certified for installation on 64-Bit Oracle Linux 7, the System Requirements and Specifications document should be used to verify that your Oracle Linux 7 system has met the required minimum specifications such as disk space, available memory, specific platform packages and patches, and other operating system-specific items. This document is updated as needed and resides outside of the documentation libraries on the Oracle Technology Network (OTN).

Note:

When you install the Oracle Fusion Middleware Release 12c software in preparation for upgrade, you should use the same user account that you used to install and configure the existing, pre-upgrade Oracle Fusion Middleware software. On UNIX operating systems, this ensures that the proper owner and group is applied to new Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c files and directories.

If you are running a 32–bit environment, you will need to perform an additional set of steps:

Verify That the Database Hosting Oracle Fusion Middleware is Supported

You must have a supported Oracle database configured with the required schemas before you run Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c.

Review the Fusion Middleware database requirements before starting the upgrade to ensure that the database hosting Oracle Fusion Middleware is supported and has sufficient space to perform an upgrade. See the Certification Matrix for 12c (12.2.1.3.0).

Note:

If your database version is no longer supported, you must upgrade to a supported version before starting an upgrade. See Upgrading and Preparing Your Oracle Databases for 12c in Oracle Fusion Middleware Planning an Upgrade of Oracle Fusion Middleware.

Verify That the JDK Is Certified for This Release of Oracle Fusion Middleware

At the time this document was published, the certified JDK for 12c (12.2.1.3.0) was 1.8.0_131.

Refer to the Oracle Fusion Middleware Supported System Configurations information on the Oracle Technology Network (OTN) to verify that the JDK you are using is supported.

If your JDK is not supported, or you do not have a JDK installed, you must download the required Java SE JDK, from the following website:
http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html

Make sure that the JDK is installed outside of the Oracle home. The Oracle Universal Installer validates that the designated Oracle home directory is empty, and the install does not progress until an empty directory is specified. If you install JDK under Oracle home, you may experience issues in future operations. Therefore, Oracle recommends that you use install the JDK in the following directory: /home/oracle/products/jdk.

For more information on the difference between generic and platform-specific installers, see Understanding the Difference Between Generic and Platform-Specific Distributions in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Download, Installation, and Configuration Readme Files.

Updating Policy Files when Using Enhanced Encryption (AES 256)

If you plan to use enhanced encryption, such as Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) 256, in your upgraded environment, Oracle recommends that you apply the latest required policy files to the JDK before you upgrade.

The Java platform defines a set of APIs spanning major security areas, including cryptography, public key infrastructure, authentication, secure communication, and access control. These APIs allow developers to easily integrate security mechanisms into their application code.

Some of the security algorithms used in Fusion Middleware 12c require additional policy files for the JDK. See Java Cryptography Architecture Oracle Providers Documentation.

Note:

If you attempt to use enhanced encryption without applying these policy files to the JDK before you begin the upgrade, the upgrade can fail and you must restore the entire pre-upgrade environment and start the upgrade from the beginning.

Purging Unused Data

Purging unused data and maintaining a purging methodology before an upgrade can optimize the upgrade process.

Some components have automated purge scripts. If you are using purge scripts, wait until the purge is complete before starting the upgrade process. The upgrade may fail if the purge scripts are running while using the Upgrade Assistant to upgrade your schemas.

Creating an Edition on the Server for Edition-Based Redefinition

Before upgrading an Edition-Based Redefinition (EBR) enabled schema, you must connect to the database server and create an edition on the database server for 12c.

Edition-based redefinition enables you to upgrade an application's database objects while the application is in use, thus minimizing or eliminating downtime. This is accomplished by changing (redefining) database objects in a private environment known as an edition. Only when all changes have been made and tested do you make the new version of the application available to users.

Note:

This task must be completed by an Oracle Database user with DBA privileges.

Before upgrading an Edition-Based Redefinition (EBR) enabled schema, you must connect to the database server and create an edition on the database server for 12c. The new edition for 12c must be a child of your existing 11g or 12c edition.

To create an edition on the database server, log in as an SYS user (or another Oracle user that has DBA privileges) and enter the following command:

create edition Oracle_FMW_12_2_1 as child of Oracle_FMW_11_1_1_7_0;

Where, Oracle_FMW_11_1_1_7_0 is an example of the edition name you specified in RCU 11.1.1.7 when the 11.1.1.7 schemas were created. Be sure to provide the actual name used when creating the edition.

If the edition is created successfully, you get the following message:

Edition created.

During the upgrade, you are prompted to launch the Reconfiguration Wizard to reconfigure your existing domain. Before running the Reconfiguration Wizard, you must specify the database default edition. Use the following SQL to manually setup the default edition name for the database, for example:

ALTER DATABASE DEFAULT EDITION = Oracle_FMW_12_2_1;

Creating a Non-SYSDBA User to Run the Upgrade Assistant

Oracle recommends that you create a non-SYSDBA user called FMW to run the Upgrade Assistant. This user has the privileges required to modify schemas, but does not have full administrator privileges.

SYSDBA is an administrative privilege that is required to perform high-level administrative operations such as creating, starting up, shutting down, backing up, or recovering the database. The SYSDBA system privilege is for a fully empowered database administrator. When you connect with the SYSDBA privilege, you connect with a default schema and not with the schema that is generally associated with your user name. For SYSDBA, this schema is SYS. Access to a default schema can be a very powerful privilege. For example, when you connect as user SYS, you have unlimited privileges on data dictionary tables. Therefore, Oracle recommends that you create a non-SYSDBA user to upgrade the schemas. The privileges listed below must be granted to user FMW before starting the Upgrade Assistant.

Notes:

The non-SYSDBA user FMW is created solely for the purpose of running the Upgrade Assistant. After this step is complete, drop the FMW user. Note that privileges required for running the Upgrade Assistant may change from release to release. 
By default, the v$xatrans$ table does not exist. You must run the XAVIEW.SQL script to create this table before creating the user. Moreover, the grant select privilege on thev$xatrans$ table is required only by Oracle Identity Manager . If you do not require Oracle Identity Manager for configuration, or if you do not have the v$xatrans$ table, then remove the following line from the script:
   grant select on v$xatrans$ to FMW with grant option;
In the example below, password is the password that you set for the FMW user. When granting privileges, make sure that you specify your actual password.
create user FMW identified by password;
grant dba to FMW;
grant execute on DBMS_LOB to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_OUTPUT to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_STATS to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on sys.dbms_aqadm to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on sys.dbms_aqin to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on sys.dbms_aqjms to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on sys.dbms_aq to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on utl_file to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on dbms_lock to FMW with grant option;
grant select on sys.V_$INSTANCE to FMW with grant option;
grant select on sys.GV_$INSTANCE to FMW with grant option;
grant select on sys.V_$SESSION to FMW with grant option;
grant select on sys.GV_$SESSION to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_scheduler_jobs to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_scheduler_job_run_details to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_scheduler_running_jobs to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_aq_agents to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on sys.DBMS_SHARED_POOL to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_2pc_pending to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_pending_transactions to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_FLASHBACK to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on dbms_crypto to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_REPUTIL to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on dbms_job to FMW with grant option;
grant select on pending_trans$ to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_scheduler_job_classes to fmw with grant option;
grant select on SYS.DBA_DATA_FILES to FMW with grant option;
grant select on SYS.V_$ASM_DISKGROUP to FMW with grant option;
grant select on v$xatrans$ to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on sys.dbms_system to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_SCHEDULER to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_data_files to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on UTL_RAW to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_XMLDOM to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_APPLICATION_INFO to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_UTILITY to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_SESSION to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_METADATA to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_XMLGEN to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_DATAPUMP to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on DBMS_MVIEW to FMW with grant option;
grant select on ALL_ENCRYPTED_COLUMNS to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_queue_subscribers to FMW with grant option; 
grant execute on SYS.DBMS_ASSERT to FMW with grant option;
grant select on dba_subscr_registrations to FMW with grant option;
grant manage scheduler to FMW;

If you are upgrading Oracle Identity Manager (OIM) schema, ensure that the FMW user has the following additional privileges:

grant execute on SYS.DBMS_FLASHBACK to fmw with grant option;
grant execute on sys.DBMS_SHARED_POOL to fmw with grant option;
grant execute on SYS.DBMS_XMLGEN to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on SYS.DBMS_DB_VERSION to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on SYS.DBMS_SCHEDULER to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on SYS.DBMS_SQL to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on SYS.DBMS_UTILITY to FMW with grant option;
grant ctxapp to FMW with admin option;
grant execute on SYS.DBMS_FLASHBACK TO FMW with grant option;
grant create MATERIALIZED VIEW to FMW with admin option;
grant all on SCHEMA_VERSION_REGISTRY TO FMW with grant option;
grant create SYNONYM to FMW with admin option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_ADM to FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_CLS TO FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_DDL TO FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_DOC TO FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_OUTPUT TO FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_QUERY TO FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_REPORT TO FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_THES TO FMW with grant option;
grant execute on CTXSYS.CTX_ULEXER TO FMW with grant option;
grant create JOB to FMW with admin option;

Identifying Existing Schemas Available for Upgrade

This optional task enables you to review the list of available schemas before you begin the upgrade by querying the schema version registry. The registry contains schema information such as version number, component name and ID, date of creation and modification, and custom prefix.

You can let the Upgrade Assistant upgrade all of the schemas in the domain, or you can select individual schemas to upgrade. To help decide, follow these steps to view a list of all the schemas that are available for an upgrade:

  1. If you are using an Oracle database, connect to the database by using an acount that has Oracle DBA privileges, and run the following from SQL*Plus:

    SET LINE 120
    COLUMN MRC_NAME FORMAT A14
    COLUMN COMP_ID FORMAT A20
    COLUMN VERSION FORMAT A12
    COLUMN STATUS FORMAT A9
    COLUMN UPGRADED FORMAT A8
    SELECT MRC_NAME, COMP_ID, OWNER, VERSION, STATUS, UPGRADED FROM SCHEMA_VERSION_REGISTRY ORDER BY MRC_NAME, COMP_ID;
    
  2. Examine the report that is generated.

    If an upgrade is not needed for a schema, the schema_version_registry table retains the schema at its pre-upgrade version.

  3. Note the schema prefix name that was used for your existing schemas. You will use the same prefix when you create new 12c schemas.

Notes:

  • If your existing schemas are not from a supported version, then you must upgrade them to a supported version before using the 12c (12.2.1.3.0) upgrade procedures. Refer to your pre-upgrade version documentation for more information.

  • Some components, such as Oracle Enterprise Data Quality, Oracle GoldenGate Monitor, and Oracle GoldenGate Veridata, support an upgrade from versions other than the standard Oracle Fusion Middleware supported versions.

  • If you used an OID-based policy store in 11g, make sure to create a new OPSS schema before you perform the upgrade. After the upgrade, the OPSS schema remains an LDAP-based store.

  • You can only upgrade schemas for products that are available for upgrade in Oracle Fusion Middleware release 12c (12.2.1.3.0). Do not attempt to upgrade a domain that includes components that are not yet available for upgrade to 12c (12.2.1.3.0).