Veritas InfoScale™ 8.0.2 Storage and Availability Management for Oracle Databases - AIX, Linux, Solaris

To create database clones using space-optimized snapshots from a FlashSnap golden image

1. Create an online FlashSnap snapshot (golden image) to be used as the source snapshot.

   $ vxsfadm -s flashsnap -a oracle --name friday -o snapshot \
   --oracle_sid sfaedb --oracle_home /ora_base/db_home \
   --extra_objects datadg:cacheobj --extra_objects datadg2:cacheobj2
   Validating database configuration for third-mirror-break-off snapshot:
   ORACLE_SID                  = sfaedb
   ORACLE_HOME                 = /ora_base/db_home
   APP_MODE                    = online
   ARCHIVELOG_DEST             = /arch/sfaedb
   SNAPSHOT_ARCHIVE_LOG        = yes
   Database validation successful.
   snapshot started at Mon Jan 30 15:05:15 2012.
   Putting database in backup mode ...                          Done
   Validating database volume layout for third-mirror-break-off snapshot:
   Data volumes ready for snapshot:
   Volume/volume-set datavol2 of diskgroup datadg2 mounted on /data2.
   Storage units to be used for snapshot from diskgroup datadg2:
   disk_6  Volume/volume-set datavol of diskgroup datadg mounted on /data.
   Storage units to be used for snapshot from diskgroup datadg:
   disk_3 
   Archivelog volume ready for snapshot:
   Volume/volume-set archvol of diskgroup datadg mounted on /arch.
   Storage units to be used for snapshot from diskgroup datadg:
   disk_4 
   SNAPSHOT_VOL_PREFIX         = SNAP_
   SNAPSHOT_DG_PREFIX          = SNAP_
   Database volume layout validated successfully.
   Creating snapshot volumes for data volumes ...               Done
   Taking database out of backup mode ...                       Done
   Flushing online redo logs ...                                Done
   Creating snapshot volume for archivelog volume ...           Done
   Copying snapshot information to snapshot volume ...          Done
   Creating snapshot diskgroups ...                             Done
   Deporting snapshot diskgroups ...                            Done
   SNAP_datadg2 SNAP_datadg 
   snaphot ended at Mon Jan 30 15:05:28 2012.

   You can use the --extra_objects option to include cache objects from the original disk group in the snapshot disk groups. In the example procedure, cache objects cacheobj and cacheobj2 from datadg and datadg2 disk groups are included in the snapshot disk groups SNAP_datadg and SNAP_datadg2. If you do not use this option, you must manually create cache objects in the snapshot disk groups.

   See FlashSnap configuration parameters.

2. Create clones using space-optimized snapshots.

   $ vxsfadm -s sos -a oracle --name reporting --source-snapshot \
   friday --prefix RPT -o clone -r primary-host
   Validating database configuration for space-optimized snapshot:
   ORACLE_SID                  = sfaedb
   ORACLE_HOME                 = /ora_base/db_home
   APP_MODE                    = online
   ARCHIVELOG_DEST             = /arch/sfaedb
   SNAPSHOT_ARCHIVE_LOG        = yes
   Database validation successful.
   Validating source snapshot friday ...                        Done
   Validating database volume layout for space-optimized snapshot:
   CACHE_OBJECT                = SNAP_datadg2:cacheobj2,SNAP_datadg:cacheobj
   SNAPSHOT_VOL_PREFIX         = RPT
   Database volume layout validated successfully.
   Creating snapshot volumes for data volumes ...               Done
   Generated mount path: /var/tmp/IKrlBXRcZ_
   Mounting snapshot volumes ...                                Done
   Cloning using autogenerated SID ( sfaxwYXY )
   Preparing parameter file for clone database ...              Done
   Mounting clone database ...                                  Done
   Starting database recovery ...
   Clone database sfaxwYXY is open.

   This command creates a clone database using the FlashSnap snapshot friday as the golden image. You can create multiple space-optimized snapshots using the same golden image.

   The golden image snapshot, like any other FlashSnap snapshot, can be imported on a host sharing storage with the host running production database. You can create database clones using space-optimized snapshots from a FlashSnap golden image in such off-host scenarios as well. Note that you must use vxsfadm -r option in such cases.

   You can create the clones on a host different from the host on which the production database is running. In this scenario, you must specify the primary host using the -r option of vxsfadm. When the clone is no longer required, you can delete it by using the -o delete option of vxsfadm.

   Note:

   You cannot resynchronize the FlashSnap snapshot while there exist space-optimized snapshots created by using that FlashSnap snapshot as a golden image.