Oracle on
Windows has been fighting a bad reputation for poor reliability. Just
about everyone who worked with Windows in the 1990's remembers the "blue screen
of death" from Windows, and many remember the disaster that happened to anyone
who dared to deploy a Windows database in the 1990's.
The blue screen of death, captured on airport video
However, many IT professional don't
remember the late 1980's when UNIX also had a bad reputation.
Frequent kernel panics and OS errors made it foolhardy for any IT shop
to deploy a mission critical system on UNIX.
Oracle Windows is not suitable for production databases
In our experience supporting Oracle databases, it is our professional opinion that Oracle database on Windows systems are not suitable for production usage. In our professional experience, Windows is unsuitable for any Oracle database that requires data integrity and availability.
Originally designed as a single-user OS for a personal computer, Microsoft Windows has become a joke, with the Microsoft Windows Vista debacle serving as direct evidence that Microsoft does not have the technical skills required to deliver a reliable operating system environment for Oracle databases.
- Oracle Windows is unstable - In our experience as America's leading remote DBA support service we have witnessed uncountable incidents of unplanned outages that relate directly to the poor design of Windows software.
- Oracle Windows is difficult to manage - Compared to an industrial strength OS, Microsoft Windows is extremely difficult to manage and monitor.
- Oracle on Windows is prone to attacks - More than 90% of all server-side attacks are related to Microsoft Windows vulnerabilities, and a quick review of the Microsoft patches should be enough to convince anyone that Windows is not a safe platform for any Oracle database.
In sum, Microsoft Windows for Oracle databases imposes unnecessary risks of data corruption, unplanned outages, security breaches and a host of other wholly-preventable problems.
Don't take chances with Windows for Oracle
| If you have an Oracle Windows database, BC experts can assist you in migrating to a reliable platform, at very little cost. As a public service, BC offers a low-cost option to migrate from Oracle Windows to Linux or any of the dozens of other OS platforms where Oracle will run reliably. |  |
Steve Callan has these notes on using Oracle on Windows:
"Oracle on Windows is easy to use, and even easier to use if you have a
good understanding of how the Windows operating system works.
Using Oracle on Windows is, in many ways, much simpler than using a UNIX
variant as the underlying operating system. That point alone provides enough
justification to learn more about Oracle on Windows if you are:
- New to Oracle and want to learn more about it in an
easy-to-configure-and-use type of environment.
- Experienced with Oracle and want to experiment with more advanced
features, commands, and scenarios without putting live or actual data
(and your job) at risk.
- Anywhere in between new and experienced, and wanting to get more
familiar with concepts tested on certification exams, or
- Using SQL Server and want to see what a real, grown-up database
looks like.
With Oracle's new pricing scheme aimed at enticing small businesses to
make the switch from the almost-good-enough-most-of-the-time "what do you
want to be when you grow up" SQL Server arena, you almost cannot afford not
to know more about the Oracle on Windows combination.
Oracle provides several snap-ins which you can use to monitor database
activity on Windows--around ten categories in all--covering metrics such as
physical reads per gets%, redo log space requests, and the frequency of
recursive calls (for dynamic space management).
Look in C:\Program Files\Oracle\MMC Snap-Ins. The first is to learn how
the basic Windows performance snap-ins work in terms of setup, display,
reporting and alerts. The second step is to install the Oracle snap-ins and
start using them. Oracle's Performance Monitor snap-ins gives you the
ability to monitor performance, generate reports and receive alerts on
common Oracle database-related performance and tuning metrics.
Yet another feature in the Oracle on Windows world is the ability for you to
configure response files so you can perform silent (non-interactive)
installations of Oracle products. Response files for silent installations of
Oracle are not new to either operating system. However, your understanding
of administering Windows, or at least appreciating what your Windows
administrator does, is increased by learning about the response files that
Windows can use for silent/unattended installations of the Windows operating
system.
As an Oracle DBA on Windows, and knowing something about Windows
administration, it would not surprise you to learn that the template
response files for Oracle are also found on the installation CDs (in the
Response directory of Disk1 for 9.2.0.1, to be more precise).
Here are my other notes for Oracle on Windows:
and include the URL for the page.