Oracle Database Reviews

Oracle Database has had a multiple-concurrent-user control system from the very beginning. Most enterprise database solutions have recently become aware of this. Oracle's approach was the true approach to isolate users. Databases have some isolation levels and some anomalies. Oracle's database has solved them in a very brilliant way. From the beginning, 20 years ago, Oracle solved those problems. It is the most ACID-compliant database.

It has a multiple-concurrent-user control system, and it is the most ACID-compliant database.

We have the opportunity to easily open service requests and get answers from the professional Oracle teams. We have the advanced customer support team in Turkey. If there is a problem, it is easily and elegantly solved. It adds value; we trust Oracle.

We have not been using the new release yet, we are running on 11g. We haven’t had much opportunity to deeply examine 12c yet.

See my comments in the initial setup section.

Oracle database is stable. When Oracle slows down or if you can't use data, it means you are doing something wrong. The architecture is in the logs, the logging mechanism. If you know how to configure the database, it is impossible for you to lose data. It has the Data Guard disaster solution.

The Oracle database was first designed by people who left the Central Intelligence Agency. They knew how to implement security in the core of the database. I find it reliable and stable.

We are using a three-node RAC database; it is highly scalable. If we want to add another node, we just buy the hardware and add it to the RAC system. It is highly scalable.

When you have Oracle products, you have the right to use the Oracle support. We are able to open service requests. If it is urgent, we can open level-one service request. Somebody calls you and tries to find a solution to your problem. It is very useful.

When I was hired by my current company, they were already using the Oracle E-Business Suite, which obviously works with same database.

I myself installed the RAC database. I migrated from the old system to the new system with RMAN. We used the Oracle recovery tool to install the RAC and migrate our data to the new RAC system.

For those parts, to be honest, Oracle Database requires more effort than the other databases. It is a little complex. You have to know what you are doing. With RMAN, recovery, backup and restore - those kinds of operations - are a little bit more difficult than with other databases. You need slightly more manpower to run an Oracle database than the other databases.

The Microsoft SQL database now has an option to deal with data anomalies, for example, lost updates. Lost updates are a kind of anomaly with consistency. How do you support this with consistency? Those are all design issues. Microsoft has very recently implemented it in their database. There could be some anomalies in the database. You have to enable this option.

Years and years ago, Oracle already had this implementation designed into their database. I was working at a bank before my current company. The reason why they chose Oracle was the approach to data consistency.

Oracle is the most ACID-compliant database, and it is the most professional proficient OLTP database in the world today.

Look at the prices for additional add-ons. For example, partitioning costs in Oracle are a little high and partitioning is a very powerful tool of Oracle Database. Be aware of that partitioning option.

Look at the disaster solutions, for example, because that involves a data dump. Look at whether it is SQL compliant or not.

Determine whether you really need an OLTP database. Oracle Database is an OLTP, ACID-compliant database, and maybe you do not need that; maybe you need some type of document-based database. It depends on how you conduct your business.

When I am looking at vendors to work with, tech support is very important. We are in Turkey and sometimes it is difficult to find a lot of companies. Oracle is very active in Turkey. In Turkey, the banking and telecommunications sectors are very heavily dependent on technology. Most of them are using Oracle technologies. Sometimes. we can't find support easily.

We also look for stability, of course.

Oracle is the premier relational database platform for enterprise environments. Any organization that purchases enterprise applications will likely have Oracle in place since so many applications require or prefer it.

The most valuable features of Oracle database from my perspective are:

• Read consistency (all queries see a read consistent view of the database so that readers do not block writers and vice versa).
• Data Guard: standby database, with options for maximum performance, availability and protection. I use it in full-synchronous mode to ensure a “hot standby” is available with zero data loss.
• Ability to run non-Windows OS, particularly Linux.
• Ability to monitor and tune; lots of instrumentation built in.

Oracle Database is a big, complex technology stack with many options, features, management packs, etc. The base product (Oracle Database Enterprise Edition) is generally rock solid. Some of the oldest, most mature options are also quite reliable (example: Partitioning option). However, most of the other optional products create additional issues. Almost every time I have pursued the implementation of an optional feature I have encountered bugs, limitations or other unexpected behavior.

I would like to see Oracle follow a model like Microsoft’s SQL Server Enterprise Edition, where all products and features are included by default. There are no “options” you can purchase with SQL Server EE. It seems like one of the results of Oracle’s plethora of optional offerings is confusion and quality issues.

I've been using Database for over 20 years. There are many additional options and management packs (examples: Partitioning, Tuning Pack, Diagnostics Pack, Lifecycle Management Pack, Active Data Guard, Advanced Compression, Advanced Security, RAC, etc.).

A “simple” deployment of just Oracle Database Enterprise Edition is generally a trouble-free activity, albeit still tedious. The RDBMS kernel is perhaps the most mature on the market (Oracle and IBM’s DB2 were released about the same time).

It is one of the most stable solutions on the market.

There are no issues with scaling it.

Technical support is very good. I don’t use Oracle Support often to open a new case. Questions and issues I have are most often answered via the support portal. On the rare occasion a new service request is opened, I find the responses timely and helpful.

In the past, I have used RAC (and before that OPS, its ancestor). In general, like most shared clustering technologies, the “solution” creates more problems than it solves. RAC’s complexity level requires full-time attention in my opinion. I abandoned the option in favor of VMware and virtual servers, which cover availability from a hardware-loss perspective. In cases where more availability is needed, the Data Guard option is sufficient and MUCH simpler to configure and use.

I started with IBM’s DB2 and used SQL Server (Sybase initially, then Microsoft SQL Server after they split in the 90’s) before Oracle, so have used and evaluated all three of the major RDBMS vendors. I no longer use DB2 because the platform it was on (mainframe) was retired, but I still actively use Microsoft SQL Server.

Both products have their place. I prefer SQL Server for the smaller, departmental applications and Microsoft-related back-office applications due to its ease of deployment and management. I prefer Oracle for most enterprise-scale applications due to its overall strength in this area (performance, scalability, availability) and ability to run on a non-Windows OS (we use Linux exclusively).

Oracle is a complex product, there is no way around that. Compared to Microsoft SQL Server, which can be installed with a few mouse clicks, Oracle takes planning, preparation and significantly more time and expertise.

We have always installed, configured, and managed Oracle with in-house personnel. I would not recommend outsourcing the implementation unless all support for the product were being outsourced. Oracle database requires expertise and constant attention. If an organization intends to support it internally, the personnel responsible for that support need to be the same that install and configure it.

Oracle is very expensive. No organization that didn’t “have to” use Oracle would do so. If I were in a small business or an organization that did all of its own applications development, I would avoid Oracle simply due to its cost. Other databases on the market would suffice in those scenarios. Any medium-to-large business will probably not be able to avoid using Oracle database. I don’t think there is an ROI to calculate, but rather a sunk cost in doing business. My advice would be to limit the number of options and features and go with the bare minimum needed to support the needed applications.

The technology behind the base RDBMS is excellent, probably the best on the market, but its cost and complexity are negatives. The personnel who will support need to get formal training and need to be dedicated database administrators. A part-time DBA will not be sufficient for anything more than a trivial deployment.

It is our core for bank processes.

The scalability is very good, and it is stable.

The interface is not reliable because the GUI is old.

It needs to be more attractive.

It is very stable.

The scalability is very good.

We have about 120 users.

It was implemented by a vendor.

We have a yearly license.

For us as a bank, the price is not too high, but for a small business, it would be an expensive solution.

I would rate Oracle Database at nine on a scale from one to ten.

We use Oracle Database for running ERP systems and for managing clients.

What we like most about Oracle Database is its security, scalability, and ease of implementation. We also like the performance of the solution.

The cost of the license of Oracle Database is more expensive, so we have clients who chose to use a different solution, because of the cost. This is an area for improvement for Oracle Database. The usage and security are okay for Oracle Database, but its pricing is more expensive when compared to its competitors.

We've been dealing with Oracle Database for 15 years.

Oracle Database is a stable solution, and I never had any incidence of instability using it.

Oracle Database is scalable, e.g. if your company is growing well, you can easily reach the requirements of the company according to the number of users and performance when using the solution. 

The technical support for Oracle Database is perfect. Whenever we contact their support, it could take time to get feedback from them, or get the solution from them, but in the end, they're able to provide it.

Setting up Oracle Database was straightforward.

The license cost of Oracle Database is more expensive, and this could result in some clients moving away from it. When it comes to the licensing for the processor, it becomes more expensive, but it could become cheaper when you know how to use an ODA. When you're using other servers, the licensing becomes more expensive.

Additional charges could also come from Oracle technical support, but there is a lot of documentation on the website, and you can also get solutions from the Oracle Community as a workaround.

We are using Oracle Database and Oracle Storage, and those are the products we are mostly using. We are using the 12c version of Oracle Database, and it's on the cloud. The solution can be deployed both on cloud and on-premises.

Oracle is our partner, but not a full partner.

I would recommend Oracle Database, especially to financial institutions, e.g. entry-level or mid-level.

On a scale of one to ten, I'll give Oracle Database an eight.

My primary use case is in a university environment.

It's the autonomous database that makes this a valuable product, it's a big feature that Oracle brings to the market. Autonomous patching means that the database more or less patches itself without the need to ask DBAs to apply and test patches. It simplifies the maintenance so this is a strong and autonomous database. They're constantly bringing new features that satisfy their clients. It's a great solution.  

The main issue is that people don't want to be locked into Oracle, and once all the data is in there, it's difficult to switch to Amazon AWS or something else. 

I've used this solution for many years. 

The solution is stable, it's been around for a long time and there's not much for clients to complain about. 

The solution is scalable.

They offer a lot of support these days, including a kind of Oracle cloud management service. You can also buy some database administrators from Oracle. You just have to tell them what you need and they can patch it automatically and monitor the database for you. 

This solution is straightforward. It's good on the database side but I think SAP is taking over now. It's moving faster than Oracle. Even when it comes to the application side, people go to SAP and will sometimes move from Oracle to SAP. I've noticed that a lot in the last five years.

Costs can add up when you use Oracle because they monitor everything and there's a fee for that.

We're now moving to no-code, the BI application. When you buy Oracle Database, it comes as a free tool and you can build anything you want in-house with Apex. You can bring in some developers and develop the application in-house. The solution is PaaS, Platform as a Service, but you can connect with the database and build what you want. Even functional people who don't know how to code, how to do SQL, are able to just drag and drop, building their application to manage and solve anything.

I rate the solution nine out of 10. 

As a database, the solution has been number one from the beginning, in my experience, because of the features and the performance. The solution has a number of Features including , Maximum Availability Architecture for  zero downtime and Zero Data lost.

The only issue is the speed that Oracle is going with the technology transformation. The marketplace is not adapting. As a whole, Oracle innovation is very fast as an organization, but end users are not so much in a hurry to go.

An area that could be improved is information. Everything is going on containerization architecture now. Oracle is also coming up with data Shards with their Multitenancy Architecture to support this containerization. The gap is in marketing the features and the knowledge that the end users are having. The end users must be educated about the current features, and that is what is lacking with Oracle.

Additional features that could be added in the future need Real Time Analytics features and multi-cloud support. But I have seen Oracle is coming up with the Lakehouse and the delta Lake concepts.  Oracle is heading in the right direction, but the features should be communicated to end-users in the proper way.

I've been working with Oracle for over twenty years.

Overall, the technical support is a little bit lacking, and they should improve. Especially the team who is deployed to handle these tickets. Around 50% of the team itself is lacking some knowledge on handling texting and knowledge. They are very good superior resources, that I understand, but in the APEC region, a little bit of lacking. Especially in India and Singapore, because those are not well handled. But in the US, they handle those things.

Positive

I believe Oracle has reduced the pricing.

Every thing starts with a proper foundation , so as with Oracle Database Architecture. Any one with solid architectural foundation will have a life long journey with Oracle Database. 

This knowledge includes conceptual understanding hands-on with scenario and solutions basis which will allow the DBA  to get through with the product. This What I am doing in the trainings that I conduct - https://www.youtube.com/c/tech...

I would give the solution a nine out of ten.

The majority of the product is E-Business Suite and Oracle Utilities, while the rest is standard, customized product.

Oracle is somewhat user-friendly, and most customization or integration with Oracle-related projects is simple. Oracle will assist you if you have Oracle-related projects in your organization. It will not help you if you are different.

The dashboards are good.

They would not release new updates if products did not require improvement.

Other Oracle competitors charge less and offer very good products that are stable and scalable.

There are good dashboards and other features, but it was previously included in licensing. They are now charging for each and every feature. It was previously bundled.

Oracle Database has been used by the company for over ten years. I've been with Oracle for over 20 years.

The stability of the Oracle Database is good.

Oracle Database is a scalable solution.

Technical support is good, but it is costly.

The initial setup is straightforward. It's easy.

Because it is a bundled product, we have no choice but to purchase the Oracle Database.

Licensing, as well as support fees, are expensive and should be reduced. 

We use Oracle E-Business Suite and Oracle Utilities.

They have advertisements, and since Oracle Databases are used by 60% of the world, they don't need my recommendation; they are already publicizing it.

I would rate Oracle Database a seven out of ten.

We primarily use the solution to house our database applications and as a part of our ERP. 

The solution has been scalable.

The stability is good. We find the product to be reliable. 

The solution is very easy to use in general.

Its initial setup is quite straightforward. The deployment is fast.

I would like to see more integration with other databases and the cloud as well as Microsoft's Office 365. It should have, for example, a certificate that is then authorized in Oracle Databases so that easy division will be possible with other cloud solutions.

I've been using the solution for eight to ten years at this point. It's been about a decade, or just under. We've used it for a long time in general. 

The solution is reliable and quite stable. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. The performance is great.

The solution is quite scalable. It's not a problem if you need to expand. 

We have about 18 to 20 users on the product currently. We have managers, admins, and engineers on the product.

We do occasionally deal with technical support. For example, in the case of the wrong data entered in the ERP, support is required to purge out the wrong information.

We did not use a different solution previous to Oracle. We've always used Oracle. We started using it at version 6 around 2006 or 2007.

The initial setup is straightforward and simple. The deployment takes a maximum of one and a half to two hours. It's not difficult.

We only have and need one person for deployment and maintenance tasks. 

We are able to handle the installation ourselves. 

We have a license for Oracle Database. You need one in order to use it.

In terms of versions, we are using currently 11G and we are planning to move to 12G in a couple of months.

I'd rate the solution at a ten out of ten.

I would recommend this solution to others considering implementing it.