we have a very old Oracle 8.0.5.0.0 database here that – unfortunately – is still used heavily as every day production system.
I want to start making plans on how to get this DB upgrade to a recent Oracle 12c.
Unfortunately, both DB versions don't seem to be able to talk to each other anymore (*). So to my current knowledge, the only solution is to import daily backups from 8.0.5.0.0 into 12c, which – from the technical point of view – works, but is not feasible because the 8.0.5.0.0 is used in daily business. Beside: The data on the 8.0.5.0.0 server is that large that an import of the backup in the 12c server (on a recent Dell server) takes about 6-8 hours.
So, the question is:
What might be a good approach for a upgrade strategy from 8.0.5.0.0 to 12c?
Thanks for any input.
(*) Of course old Oracle 8.0.5.0.0 clients can talk to the Oracle 8.0.5.0.0 server and recent 12c clients can talk to the 12c server. But there does not seem to be a client solution that can talk to both 8.0.5.0.0 and 12c.
Best Answer
There are multiple solutions to this problem but the driving issues are cost, allowable downtime and complexity.
One method that could be easily tested:
This method needs downtime. A weekend should be more than adequate and only costs you a new server, Oracle 12 licence and some VMWare software licenses. Keep in mind that testing and verification can take more time than importing the data.