Sunday, 20 April 2025

Exploring Oracle 19c: New Features in Data Guard, RMAN, and Backup & Recovery

 Oracle 19c introduces several powerful features that enhance Data Guard, RMAN, and backup and recovery capabilities. These updates streamline database management, improve performance, and provide more robust disaster recovery options. Let’s take a closer look at the highlights.


Enhanced Data Guard Features in Oracle 19c

1. Automatic Flashback Synchronization In Oracle 19c, when a flashback operation is executed on the primary database, the associated standby databases are automatically synchronized. This ensures that your standby environment stays consistent with the primary database, eliminating the need for manual synchronization and reducing the risk of discrepancies.

2. Active Data Guard DML Redirection Oracle 19c introduces the ability to perform DML operations on Active Data Guard standby databases, with the changes being transparently redirected to the primary database. This feature is particularly beneficial for applications that are predominantly read-heavy but require occasional updates, enabling better load balancing between primary and standby databases.

3. Observe-Only Mode for Fast-Start Failover (FSFO) The new "Observe-Only" mode in Oracle 19c allows you to simulate fast-start failover scenarios without affecting your production environment. This test mode helps you fine-tune FSFO properties by identifying potential failover triggers in real-time, ensuring your configuration is optimized for actual failover events.

4. Dynamic Target Standby Database for FSFO With Oracle 19c, you can now dynamically change the target standby database for fast-start failover without disabling the FSFO configuration. This feature provides greater flexibility and reduces downtime, allowing for smoother transitions during failover management.

5. Unified Management of Data Guard Parameters Managing Data Guard configurations is more straightforward in Oracle 19c. All Data Guard-related parameters can now be configured through SQL*Plus or the Data Guard Broker command-line interface using the "Edit database... Set parameter" command. This consolidation eliminates inconsistencies between the database and the Data Guard Broker’s settings, ensuring a cohesive configuration.

6. Restore Point Propagation to Standby Sites Oracle 19c enhances disaster recovery by automatically propagating restore points from the primary database to standby sites. This ensures that restore points remain available even after a failover, providing additional recovery options and improving resilience.




RMAN Enhancements in Oracle 19c

1. Automatic Deletion of Flashback Logs Oracle 19c introduces automatic management of flashback logs within the Flash Recovery Area (FRA). Flashback logs older than the retention period are now automatically deleted, ensuring that your FRA remains optimized and preventing unnecessary storage consumption.

2. Support for PDB Connections to Recovery Catalog The ability to connect Pluggable Databases (PDBs) to a recovery catalog is a significant enhancement in Oracle 19c. This feature simplifies the backup and recovery process for PDBs, making it easier to manage multitenant environments.

3. Deprecation of Data Recovery Advisor (DRA) With Oracle 19c, the Data Recovery Advisor (DRA) and several associated RMAN commands have been deprecated. While DRA was useful for suggesting repair options during recovery, Oracle encourages the use of other tools and methods to manage database recovery.


Streamlined Backup & Recovery in Oracle 19c

1. PDB Integration with Recovery Catalog Oracle 19c enhances multitenant database management by allowing PDBs to connect directly to a recovery catalog. This improvement simplifies the management of backups and recovery processes in multitenant environments, offering greater flexibility and control.

2. Enhanced Flashback Log Management The automation of flashback log deletion in Oracle 19c ensures that your FRA is efficiently managed. By automatically removing flashback logs that exceed the retention period, Oracle 19c helps maintain optimal storage use and database performance.

3. Phasing Out Data Recovery Advisor As Oracle 19c deprecates the Data Recovery Advisor (DRA), administrators are encouraged to explore alternative tools for managing backup and recovery. Although DRA was valuable for reducing recovery time by identifying the best repair options, Oracle 19c’s enhancements offer new opportunities to streamline these processes.



Conclusion

Oracle 19c delivers significant advancements across Data Guard, RMAN, and backup and recovery, empowering database administrators with greater control, flexibility, and efficiency. Whether you’re enhancing your disaster recovery strategy, optimizing Data Guard configurations, or streamlining backup operations, Oracle 19c’s features are designed to support a more resilient and manageable database environment.




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