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most
frequently asked questions
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Q:
How can we be sure of your credentials?
A: We have been offering database services to
our clients since 1996, and company references are available
on request.
Q: Will we be legally
protected against mistakes?
A: Yes, we carry indemnity insurance which pays out a maximum
of £1,000,000 per incident, and this can be increased
for individual clients. Our consultants are highly experienced,
careful professionals, and we have never had call to claim on
this insurance.
Q: How can we be
sure that the quality of your work meets
our standards?
A: All work performed carries a warranty, and we document all technical
tasks performed. We follow an ISO 9001 compliant quality management
model. You are entitled to have final sign-off on all consultancy
undertaken. |
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| oracle
support frequently asked questions |
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Q:
How can you maximise our database uptime?
A: We believe in prevention rather than cure. Our proactive
and continual monitoring regime ensures that outages are extremely
rare.
Q: How do you access our database servers?
A: We will use whatever remote access technology suits you best.
We currently use a combination of VPN (Virtual Private Networks),
SSH (Secure Shell) and Password Token technologies to ensure
that we can access your servers securely, reliably and quickly.
Q: What service levels can we expect?
A: Our helpdesk consultants are ready to take your call. Your
support call will be immediately passed to an appropriate database
support consultant. We guarantee a technical response within
30 minutes on all contracts (and we can guarantee quicker responses
where this is required), but in practice you will receive a
response well within this period.
Q: Due to the nature of our systems,
it is inappropriate to perform maintenance tasks during office
hours. Can you perform these tasks outside office hours?
A: All maintenance tasks are performed at times that suit you.
We perform out-of-hours work at no extra cost.
Q: Which Oracle database versions do
you support?
A: We support all Oracle versions, but most of our clients are
currently using either Oracle 11g or 10g. We understand that
some clients wish to remain on older versions due to application
vendor support constraints, and we are happy to support these
older versions. We perform upgrades and patches on agreement
with the client, and at no extra cost.
Q: Does your support price include
database recoveries when required?
A: Yes. All our database support consultants are trained in
a range of database recovery scenarios, and our fast recovery
service is included in the price.
Q: Where are your support consultants
physically based?
A: All our consultants are based in the UK, and most are in
Greenwich, London. When issues with UK-based clients' databases
cannot be resolved remotely, we will travel to the client datacentre
free-of-charge to fix the problem.
Q: We have special requirements. Can
you cater for these?
A: Yes. All our packages are flexible to meet clients' individual
needs.
Q: What documentation can we expect?
A: All maintenance tasks performed are fully documented, and
this documentation is available on request. Details of all maintenance
tasks performed is also included in our periodic reports.
Q: We require support for our clients.
Do you offer resales/subcontracts?
A: Yes. We can rebadge our services, or can pay a one-off commission/referral
bounty to you.
Q: What are your payment terms?
A: We invoice after each month of the support term has expired.
Payment is due within 30 days of the invoice date. Alternative
payment terms are available on request. |
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| oracle
installation frequently asked questions |
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Q:
Will you set up our application schema(s) for us?
A: Yes, provided you have this in a format we can use (e.g. scripts or an export).
We can also review your set-up DDL scripts and provide recommendations free-of-charge,
if
you'd
like
to send
them
to us
prior
to the
installation.
Q: Can you perform a Real Application Clusters or Oracle
Fail Safe Installation?
A: Yes, we can negotiate a price for RAC or OFS installations. Depending on your
exact requirements, this will typically be between £1200 and £1600.
Q: We have special requirements. Can you cater for these?
A: Yes. All our packages are flexible to meet clients' individual needs.
Q: Which Oracle database versions can you install for
us?
A: We can install whichever version is best for you (this is
sometimes dictated by application vendor certifications). Currently
most clients are choosing Oracle 11g Release 1 or Oracle10g
Release 2, as these ares now stable releases.
Q: Do you provide warranties for the installation work?
A: We will ask you to assess and sign-off the work performed before our consultant
leaves your site. We also provide free remote support for two weeks.
Q: When can we expect documentation for the tasks performed?
A: We typically write up the tasks performed within one week of the Oracle installation.
We guarantee that you will receive documentation within two weeks.
Q: We require an installation to be performed for our
clients. Do you offer resales/subcontracts?
A: Yes. We can rebadge our services, or can pay a one-off commission/referral
bounty to you.
Q: How can we be sure of your credentials?
A: We have been offering Oracle installations to our clients since 1996, and
company references are available on request.
Q: What are your payment terms?
A: We invoice after the Oracle installation has been completed and you are in
possession of our documentation. Payment is due within 30 days of the invoice
date. |
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| oracle
tuning frequently asked questions |
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Q:
What is your usual strategy for tuning a database and
its environment?
A: Our strategy will depend on your circumstances. However, we typically gather
a number of key performance measurements, both at system and database level.
These are used in conjunction with user and support staff testimony (where available
and appropriate) to identify the main high-level bottlenecks. We then drill down
using custom scripts and standard tools to identify the sources of these bottlenecks,
before devising solutions to eliminate them.
Q: A specific part of my application
is performing particularly badly. Can you fix it?
A: We will always concentrate first on tuning any functionality identified by
the client as causing most problems. In the vast majority of cases you will see
a marked performance improvement in those areas when we have finished.
Q: If you find inefficient code
in our applications, can you rewrite it?
A: If the code is stored within the database as PL/SQL, we can amend the code
on request (but you should check the support implications for 3rd party products).
We will not normally amend other code, but will document the inefficiencies
(and can provide details of how these pieces of code could be better rewritten)
so that you can report these to the vendor for amendment.
Q: Do you provide warranties for
any amendments done?
A: We provide two weeks of free remote support for any changes made.
Q: Which Oracle database versions can you tune?
A: We can tune all versions of Oracle.
Q: When can we expect documentation
for the tasks performed?
A: We typically write up the tasks performed within one week of the tuning
exercise. You are guaranteed to have a copy of the documentation within two
weeks
of work completion.
Q: We require an installation
to be tuned for our client. Do you offer resales/subcontracts?
A: Yes. We can rebadge our services, or can pay a one-off commission.
Q: Can you independently
verify a client's installation as fit for production?
A: Yes, this is one of our more commonly-requested services. Please
contact us for further details.
Q: How can we be sure of your credentials?
A: We have been tuning Oracle databases and environments for our clients since
1996, and company references are available on request.
Q: What are your payment terms?
A: We invoice after work has been completed and you are in possession
of our documentation. Payment is due within 30 days of the invoice date.
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| oracle
backups frequently asked questions |
|
Q:
What types of backups can you set up for us?
A: We can implement whichever backup strategy best suits your needs and wishes.
This may incorporate Oracle RMAN (Recovery Manager), third party backup products
with or without Oracle plug-ins, or
bespoke
backups
via
custom
scripts, We can also advise you on Disaster Recovery considerations.
Q: Will your documentation describe
how to recover from all possible failure scenarios?
A: No. The vast number of possible Oracle recovery scenarios makes this
a huge task. The example scenarios documented for you will cover the most commonly
performed recoveries. You should refer to Oracle's Backup and Recovery guide
for all others.
Q: Do you provide warranties for
the work performed?
A: Yes. We provide two weeks of free remote support for backups deployed.
Q: When can we expect documentation
for the tasks performed?
A: We typically write up the tasks performed within one week of our site visit.
You are guaranteed to have a copy of the documentation within two weeks
of work completion.
Q: We require a backup and recovery
strategy to be devised and implemented for our client.
Do you offer resales/subcontracts?
A: Yes. We can rebadge our services, or can pay a one-off commission.
Q: How can we be sure of your
credentials?
A: We have been advising our clients on best backup and recovery strategies since
1996, and have successfully performed countless recoveries in that time. Company
references
are
available
on
request.
Q: What are your payment terms?
A: We invoice after work has been completed and you are in possession
of our documentation. Payment is due within 30 days of the invoice date. |
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| oracle
data warehousing frequently
asked questions |
|
Q:
Our data warehouse is already set up. Can you tune/enhance
it?
A: Yes, we are database tuning specialists. Some data warehouse performance
issues stem from non-optimal design, however. Correcting such design errors can
involve
significant effort.
Q: Are you affiliated with any
ETL (Extract, Transform and Load) or Business Intelligence
product vendors?
A: No, Pro-DBA.com is a completely independent company, and receives no commission
from any third party. We therefore give entirely impartial advice on
ETL, Business Intelligence and Data Visualisation products.
Q: Which database technologies
do you deal with?
A: We are Oracle database experts, and are also highly experienced in Microsoft
SQL Server data warehousing technology. Although we can work with other database
technologies our main body of database expertise lies with these two database
vendors.
Q: Do you provide warranties for
the work performed?
A: We will ask you to assess and sign-off the work performed before our consultants
leave your site. However, we also provide free remote support for four weeks.
Q: When can we expect documentation
for the tasks performed?
A: We typically write up project tasks performed within one week of completion.
You are guaranteed to receive our documentation within two weeks.
Q: We require assistance with
a client's installation/project. Do you offer resales/subcontracts?
A: Yes. We can rebadge our services, or can pay a one-off commission/referral
bounty to you.
Q: How can we be sure of your
credentials?
A: We have been providing database consultancy to household name clients since
1996, and have carried out large-scale warehousing projects for international
companies during that time. Company
references
are
available
on
request. |
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| business
intelligence frequently
asked questions |
|
Q: We have a reporting requirement
but are not sure which tool would best fulfil our needs.
Can you help?
A: Yes we'd be happy to analyse your requirement and recommend
appropriate solutions. If you want to outsource some or
all of the development work, we will scope the work free-of-charge
and with no obligation.
Q: Are you affiliated with any
ETL or Business Intelligence product vendors?
A: Pro-DBA.com is a completely independent company, and receives no commission from any third party. We therefore give entirely impartial advice on 3rd party ETL, Business Intelligence and Data Visualisation products.
Q: Which data technologies do
you deal with?
A: We are Oracle database experts, and are also highly
experienced in Microsoft SQL Server data warehousing technology.
Although we can work with other database technologies,
our main body of database expertise lies with these two
database vendors.
Q: Do you provide warranties for
work performed?
A: All work carries warranties. You will also receive technical documentation and initial support for implemented solutions.
Q: We require assistance with
a client's reporting project. Do you offer resales/subcontracts?
A: Yes. We can rebadge our services, or can pay a one-off
commission/referral bounty to you.
Q: How can we be sure of your credentials?
A: We have been providing database consultancy to our
clients since 1996, and company references are available
on request. We have recent history of providing fully featured reporting solutions to high profile international clients and niche players alike. |
|
| oracle
license frequently
asked questions |
|
Q: What is the difference between
Oracle Standard Edition and Oracle Standard Edition One?
A: There are two differences. Firstly, Oracle Standard Edition One can only
be licensed on servers that have a maximum capacity of 2 processors (CPUs). If
your server has a maximum capacity of 3 processors or more then you will have to purchase
Oracle Standard Edition (or if it has a maximum capacity of more than 4 processors, you will have to purchase Oracle Enterprise Edition). Secondly, Oracle Standard Edition One does not support
clustering whereas Oracle Standard Edition includes Oracle Real Application Clusters.
Q: I only use 2 processors on my server, but it can
support 4 processors. Do I still need to purchase Oracle Standard Edition rather
than Oracle Standard Edition One?
A: Yes. Your eligibility to use Oracle Standard Edition One
is not determined by how many processors are in place or in
use, but by how many processors the server has capacity for.
Q: I would like to cluster my servers. Which license
level should I choose?
A: This depends on how many processors there are in your cluster. If you have 4 or
less then you can purchase either Oracle Standard Edition or Oracle Enterprise
Edition licenses. If you have 4 or more processors in total across the cluster then you must choose Oracle Enterprise Edition. Oracle RAC (Real Application Clusters)
is a licensing
option for Oracle Enterprise Edition.
Q: Are there any minimum order requirements
when purchasing Named User database licenses?
A: Yes. The minimum order requirements vary depending on which database product
you select. These are:
Standard Edition One - 5 Named User Plus licenses per server
or the total number of actual users, whichever is greater.
Standard Edition - 5 Named User
Plus licenses per server or the total number of actual users, whichever
is greater.
Enterprise Edition - 25 Named
User Plus licenses per processor or the total number of actual
users, whichever is greater.
Personal and Lite Editions - 1
Named User Plus license or the total number of actual users,
whichever is greater.
Q: Do I need to buy Named User Plus
or per Processor licenses?
A: If you select the Named User Plus licensing option then you must license all
the users who are using the Oracle Database, as well as all non-human operated
devices accessing the Oracle Database. An example of a non-human device would
be a sensor that connects to a database. If a human-operated device such as a
bar code scanner connects to the database then all humans operating these devices
need to be licensed. If the Named User Plus population is likely to be very high,
it would
be more cost effective to license per processor. Where it is impossible to quantify the user population (such as in an Internet environment), then you must license per processor.
Q: My server contains multi-core processors. How do
I price this?
A: For Standard Edition and Standard Edition One, the number
of cores can be ignored (an occupied socket is equivalent
to one processor for these editions). For Enterprise Edition,
each core of a multi-core chip is priced using a "licensing
factor". These licensing factors are as follows:
Sun UltraSPARC T1 - 0.25
AMD/Intel - 0.5
All other multi-core processors - 0.75
Single core processors - 1
Therefore if you have two dual-core AMD Opteron processors,
the cost will be 0.5*4*list price. Two four-core UltraSPARC
T1 processors will cost 0.25*8*list price.
Q: Do multi-core processors affect the processor limits on Oracle Standard Edition and Oracle Standard Edition One?
A: No. Oracle Standard Edition can only be used on
servers that have a maximum capacity of 4 processors (CPUs),
regardless of the number of cores. In a RAC environment, this
limitation applies to the whole cluster (i.e. the total number
of processors in the cluster must be less than or equal to
4).
Oracle Standard Edition One can only be used on servers that
have a maximum capacity of 2 processors.
Q: Can you offer me a discount on Oracle list prices?
A: Yes. Please contact us with your requirements and we will advise you on the
level of discount we can offer.
Q: Once I have placed my order how long will I have
to wait for my license details?
A: Your order is logged with Oracle who
then issue us with a license number for you. This process
can take up to 10 business days.
Q: What are your payment terms?
A: Payment is due within 30 days of the invoice date (subject to approval). For larger orders or maximum discounts, payment-on-order is required.
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