The Oracle DBA s World in Font

Drawer Code 3/9 in Font The Oracle DBA s World

here are many types of Oracle databases, and there are many types of Oracle database administrators (DBAs) this chapter discusses the role of the Oracle DBA as well as the training that Oracle DBAs typically need to be successful. You ll look at the daily routine of a typical DBA, which will give you an idea of what to expect if you re new to the field. This chapter also covers ways you can improve your skill level as an Oracle DBA and prepare to keep the databases under your stewardship performing optimally. Toward the end of the chapter, you ll find a list of resources and organizations that will help you in your quest to become a top-notch DBA.

The main responsibility of a DBA is to make corporate data available to the end users and the decision makers of an organization. All other DBA tasks are subordinate to that single goal, and almost everything DBAs do on a day-to-day basis is aimed at meeting that single target. Without access to data, many companies and organizations would simply cease to function.

Note Imagine the chaos that would ensue if a company such as Amazon.com no longer had access to its customer database, even for a short time. The entire company could cease to function. At a minimum, it would lose perhaps thousands of online orders. As a DBA, your job is to ensure access to your organization s data. You are also responsible for protecting that data from unauthorized access just think of the commotion caused by well-publicized security lapses at well-known consumer data based organizations.

That s not to say that availability of data is the only thing DBAs have to worry about. DBAs are also responsible for other areas, including the following, all of which further the key goal of making data available to users: Security: Ensuring that the data and access to the data are secure Backup: Ensuring that the database can be restored in the event of either human or systems failure Performance: Ensuring that the database and its subsystems are optimized for performance Design: Ensuring that the design of the database meets the needs of the organization Implementation: Ensuring proper implementation of new database systems and applications

In a small organization, a DBA could be managing the entire information technology (IT) infrastructure, including the databases, whereas in a large organization there could be a number of DBAs, each charged with managing a particular area of the system. You can put the tasks you ll perform as an Oracle DBA in the following three categories: Security System management Database design I discuss each of these broad roles in more detail in the following sections, outlining what you could consider the bare minimum level of performance expected of a DBA. Although the lists in each section may seem long and daunting, the tasks are really not that difficult in practice if you follow certain guidelines. Proper planning and testing, as well as automating most of the routine tasks, keep the drudgery to a minimum. All you re left with to do on a daily basis are the really enjoyable things, such as performance tuning or whatever else may appeal to you.

As a DBA, you ll be involved in many different areas of system security, mainly focusing on the database and its data. Several potential security holes are possible when you implement a new Oracle system out of the box, and you need to know how to plug these security holes thoroughly before the databases go live in a production environment. In 12, which deals with user management, you ll find a fuller discussion of standard Oracle security guidelines and other Oracle security-related issues.