Yes. Since 2017, AWS customers have been running Oracle RAC on Amazon EC2 instances using FlashGrid Cluster. AWS recommends FlashGrid Cluster for running Oracle RAC. The Multi-AZ capability of FlashGrid Cluster enables database uptime of 99.999% and fault-tolerance exceeding typical on-premises Oracle RAC deployments. The latest generations of EC2 instances provide sufficient performance even for the largest Oracle RAC databases with capacities over 500 TB. If you would like more information, you can watch this 1-minute explanation video.

Maximum uptime with zero RTO and RPO. FlashGrid Cluster for Oracle RAC on AWS enables active-active high availability with zero downtime patching. Spreading the RAC database nodes across availability zones (Multi-AZ) also protects against data center failures.

Use FlashGrid Cluster to deploy and run Oracle RAC in AWS, perform a lift-and-shift from on-prem, and migrate your existing data. In most cases, zero coding or refactoring is required. FlashGrid Launcher simplifies the process of configuring database clusters and enables repeatable, fully automated deployments in AWS within two hours or less.

Contact the FlashGrid team to access pre-sales technical consultations, customer system assessments, proof-of-concept support, and round-the-clock production support. In addition, we collaborate with a comprehensive network of partners that can support you further with technical implementation, data migration, and digital transformation initiatives.

FlashGrid offers HA database architecture that allows full control and the flexibility to meet future database and infrastructure requirements:

• Active-active or Fail-over database clustering based on proven FlashGrid and Oracle clustering technologies.
• Full control of sizing, patching/updates, and database features. You have the root@ access.
• Portability between cloud providers.
• Ease of deployment similar to DBaaS.

FlashGrid enables running Oracle RAC in AWS. Even if you have been using only single-instance databases, consider using FlashGrid with Oracle RAC to increase database availability and mitigate the lack of control over the compute and storage resources. Additionally, FlashGrid Launcher fully automates the process of configuring Oracle RAC clusters and allows the creation of a cluster in AWS or Azure cloud in less than two hours.

The migration process is similar to migrating a database between two data centers. Depending on the size of the database and tolerable downtime, you can use one of the regular migration tools, such as RMAN backup/restore, export/import, or Data Guard replication. If required, FlashGrid can recommend a suitable partner with experience in complex migrations.

For those Oracle Database customers who have per-CPU Oracle Database licenses, AWS EC2 offers several ways to manage and minimize the number of Oracle licenses.

1. Dedicated Hosts allow managing Oracle Database licenses at the physical host level instead of per-vCPU.
2. Bare-Metal instances allow managing Oracle Database licenses per physical CPU core instead of per-vCPU by eliminating the virtualization layer.
3. By configuring the EC2 instance CPU options, the number of CPU cores (and vCPUs) exposed to the EC2 instance can be reduced while keeping the full capacity of other resources (memory, storage throughput, network bandwidth).

Yes. FlashGrid Cluster enables Oracle RAC on AWS Outposts, similar to AWS regions. See the Knowledge Base or contact FlashGrid Support for help deploying on AWS Outposts.

Yes. FlashGrid Cluster enables Oracle RAC in AWS Local Zones. Contact FlashGrid Support for help deploying in AWS Local Zones.

Oracle RAC and single-instance databases can be migrated from Oracle Exadata to AWS. FlashGrid Cluster enables the infrastructure capabilities required for running Oracle RAC and Failover HA databases on EC2 instances. The AWS EC2 infrastructure provides up to 448 cores, up to 30 GBPS of storage throughput, and up to 200 Gbit/s of network bandwidth for each database node. This allows matching or even exceeding the performance capabilities of Oracle Exadata.

The main alternative to Oracle RAC on AWS is failover HA for Oracle databases. FlashGrid Cluster enables both Oracle RAC and Failover HA clustering on AWS. However, FlashGrid recommends Oracle RAC (with multi-AZ) for the most critical databases requiring uptimes of 99.99% or 99.999%.

Testing performed at FlashGrid and by our customers demonstrated performance levels matching or exceeding performance of high-end on-premises systems. See the Performance Considerations section in the architecture documentation for AWS and Azure. Our engineers can help you analyze your application performance needs and size the database cluster accordingly – request a demo.

Yes. For cloud deployments, FlashGrid Technical Support Services cover the entire infrastructure stack and are included in the Marketplace fees.

We are happy to guide you through the process. Email us to schedule a screen sharing session with one of our engineers.

FlashGrid is deployed through AWS Marketplace. The marketplace software fees include FlashGrid software license and technical support.

Numerous enterprise organizations run Oracle databases, including RAC, successfully in AWS. For expert advice on this matter, consult with an Oracle licensing advisor or begin by reading this insightful article from Palisade Compliance.

Please see a feature-by-feature comparison of the two solutions.

Compared to a single-instance database, a RAC database has overhead for communication and data mirroring between the nodes. However, clustering adds CPU, memory, and disk resources that speed up parallel operations. The FlashGrid software itself consumes negligible amount of system resources.

Yes. FlashGrid Cluster for Oracle RAC was available on AWS before Oracle introduced a DBaaS offering for their own cloud, OCI. Multiple availability zones in each AWS region coupled with FlashGrid Cluster and Oracle RAC enable high availability and fault tolerance exceeding a typical on-premises Oracle Database deployment.

No, FlashGrid does not replace or emulate any part of the RAC software stack. FlashGrid provides storage, network, and automation capabilities for running Oracle RAC in public clouds.

Asynchronous replication to another AWS region using Oracle Data Guard is typically the best solution for Oracle Database DR on AWS. For maximum availability, run identical Oracle RAC clusters, each with multi-AZ configuration, in both primary and secondary regions.

For lower budgets and requirements, it may be sufficient to have a single Oracle RAC cluster spanning multiple AZs in the primary region and either replication to a single-instance database in the secondary region or regular database backups to the secondary region. FlashGrid Cluster with Oracle RAC in a multi-AZ configuration provides protection against outages localized to a single data center, such as loss of power, cooling, or storage access.

The FlashGrid architecture does not impose any strict limits on the database size. With 2 or 3 hyper-converged nodes up to 100 TB is practical. 100’s TB are possible with separate storage nodes.

No, FlashGrid Cluster is compatible with these, as well as most backup and disaster recovery tools.

The FlashGrid architecture does not impose strict limits on the number of RAC nodes. In most cases we recommend two or three nodes. To reduce network overhead we recommend increasing the size of the nodes (up to 224 cores) before adding more nodes. 2+2 redundancy across two availability zones may be used for extra HA. Clusters with 4+ nodes are possible for extra-large capacities.

Oracle Database versions 19c, 18c, 12.2, 12.1, and 11.2 are supported. We test with the latest PSUs / RUs as they are released.

For database nodes, Oracle Linux 7/8/9 or Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7/8/9. Application servers and other database clients can run on any operating systems, including Linux and Windows.

Oracle licenses and support must be purchased directly from Oracle.

Oracle Database can technically run in almost any cloud, but because it often underpins the backend of mission-critical applications, a mature CSP (Cloud Service Provider) is the preferred choice for reliability. AWS, Azure, and GCP are the top three most mature and enterprise-ready clouds for running Oracle Database. FlashGrid Cluster with Oracle RAC leverages the Multi-AZ capabilities of AWS, Azure, and GCP to achieve maximum fault-tolerance and 99.999% database uptime SLA.

Oracle Database is the #1 database management technology (DB-Engines rank), and it powers many of the world’s most critical operations. AWS customers can harness the combined power of AWS EC2, FlashGrid Cluster, and Oracle RAC or Oracle Failover HA to achieve uptimes as high as 99.999%.