Oracle Database Migration: Simplify and Accelerate

Today, more than ever, organizations use the cloud, or even multiple clouds, as part of their IT strategy. How they structure their cloud usage and the types of data stored in the cloud vary dramatically depending on the scale of the organization, types of workloads active, size of the IT department, and employees’ cloud skills. One area that has moved more slowly is the migration of mission-critical applications. Businesses that rely on their Oracle or SQL databases tend to be more hesitant about harnessing the cloud’s efficiency and scalability for those workloads. Downtime, data corruption, and delays can create major problems.

Given the nuances and time constraints that impact a database migration, it isn’t surprising that companies typically work with a partner to help them limit risk and avoid data corruption. Working around approved downtime windows, these migrations can stretch over extended periods. It isn’t uncommon for companies to wait until their current storage is well past its end of life.

Unfortunately, determining the specifics of how the storage and databases will be migrated is often not part of the discussion until after the new storage is purchased. At that point, a lot of energy has been invested in determining the new storage and workloads to be moved, not to mention, negotiating with the storage vendor on business terms. Even the most experienced IT leaders often assume that moving applications to new storage will be straightforward. It is incredibly frustrating to realize that storage migration comes with exceptions, unanticipated delays, and cost overruns.

Cirrus Data was founded on the idea that organizations should be able to access their block data while it is in use without disrupting the application. Our software solutions were purpose-built to enable the migration of live block storage workloads; block storage that is used to support applications such as Oracle database, SQL, etc. And, with over 4,000 block migrations successfully completed, our team has a unique appreciation of this type of storage. Our experience and trusted partner status with the world’s leading storage vendors are not something we take for granted. Generating positive business outcomes is why our global team continues to raise the bar on what is possible for data mobility.

We recently updated Cirrus Migrate Cloud with a revolutionary new approach to automating migration operations (MigrateOps), commonly referred to as data-migration-as-a-code. MigrateOps makes it possible to migrate mission-critical databases with just a few clicks. From a consolidated, user-friendly interface, it is now possible to monitor and control your organization’s block storage migration without a lot of manual effort.

Gartner’s Oracle Migration Checklist

In an August 2023 report[1], Gartner identified seven considerations when moving your Oracle workloads to the cloud.

1. Oracle, OCI and Cloud skills bench strength

2. SLA and business outcomes

3. Geographic coverage

4. Track record

5. Security

6. Challenges

7. Management tools

There is one other item to add to the Gartner checklist – cost. Not all data mobility approaches are equal. The cost of migrating your Oracle database often doesn’t appear in the migration solution but in the required new licenses. These hidden costs can surprise even the savviest Oracle Database Administrators.

What starts as a quick, simple, and seemingly free migration of your Oracle database to new storage can rapidly evolve into a requirement for new licenses, delayed migration timelines, and unanticipated problems. Transparency and experience matter a lot.

One of the differentiators for Cirrus Data is our exclusive focus on block storage and mission-critical applications. Oracle, SQL, MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB databases are all very common migrations for our team. A quick review of our customers demonstrates our work’s global nature and ability to handle migrations in the most secure environments. Our team continuously adds new integrations and tests our solutions against the latest storage products and cloud platforms.

We could tick through Gartner’s list of requirements with our accolades, but we decided instead to put our solution to the test instead. In 2023, Cirrus Data asked the renowned Oracle database experts at House of Brick to evaluate Cirrus Migrate Cloud’s ability to migrate Oracle databases. There are other traditional services that promote their Oracle migration capabilities, but our team decided for a true comparison, we wanted to be evaluated against Oracle Data Guard.

Oracle Migration Results

After a comprehensive test of Cirrus Migrate Cloud and Oracle Data Guard – House of Brick published a detailed report on their finding. You can download a full copy of the report, here.  For those that are interested in the bottom line, House of Brick found that Cirrus Migrate Cloud outperformed Data Guard in five critical areas:

• Cirrus Data is easier and less time-consuming to configure.

• Cirrus Data uses compression and de-zeroing for data replication.

• Cirrus Data requires much less time from your DBA team.

• Cirrus Data eliminates negotiating and managing new licenses from Oracle.

• Cirrus Data is a fraction of the cost of new Oracle licenses.

Want to learn how this is possible? After you download the House of Brick report, you can download our own whitepaper on Oracle migrations, here. Cirrus Data also has a resource page for Oracle migrations, here.

DOWNLOAD THE HOUSE OF BRICK REPORT

[1] 14 August 2023- ID G00768397 Market Guide for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Professional and Managed Services