ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF AN ORACLE DBA

One of the main reasons for using DBMS is to have central control of the both the data and the programs that access those data. The person who has such central control over the system is called that database administrator (DBA).

If you want to become an Oracle DBA, you should first understand what an Oracle DBA's job is. The basic roles of the DBA are fairly consistent among different companies, but these duties might be expanded based on the size of the company and the experience of the DBA. Let's look at these roles and responsibilities and determine what skills are necessary to fulfill these duties. Here the roles and responsibilities are divided into two categories: basic duties and additional duties.

Basic Duties of the DBA

Here are some of the basic roles of the Oracle DBA. This is not an all-inclusive list. Depending on your installation and staff, your duties might not include all of these, or might include many more items. This section is simply intended as a general guide.

• Installation of new software: It is primarily the job of the DBA to install new versions of Oracle software, application software, and other software related to DBMS administration. It is important that the DBA or other is staff members test this new software before it is moved into a production environment.
• Configuration of hardware and software with the system administrator: in many cases the system administrator can only access the system software. In this case, the DBA must work closely with the system administrator to perform software installations, and to configure hardware and software so that it functions optimally with the DBMS.
• Security administration: One of the main duties of the DBA is to monitor and administer DBMS security. This involves adding and removing users, administering quotas, auditing, and checking for security problems.
• Performance tuning and monitoring: The DBA must continually monitor system performance and be prepared to retune the system as necessary. Even a well-tuned system must be constantly monitored and adjusted. Sometimes this involves changing tuning parameters, other times this involves rebuilding an index or restructuring a table.
• Backup and recovery: Perhaps the most important responsibility of the DBA is protecting the data in the system. To effectively do this, you must develop an effective backup and recovery strategy and make sure it is carried out. A DBA's chief responsibility is to maintain the integrity of the database. It is important that the backup and recovery process be periodically tested.
• Routine scheduled maintenance: It is the job of the DBA to schedule routine DBMS maintenance and carry out this maintenance. This maintenance is regularly carried out in the early hours of the morning or on weekends when this maintenance causes the least inconvenience to the user community.
• Troubleshooting: In the event of a system or DBMS failure, it is the job of the DBA to troubleshoot or assist in the Troubleshooting: of the problem. The DBA might also participate in or lead the effort to find and eliminate problems or potential problems.

Failure recovery: Because a system failure can mean that the users do not have access to their data, it can be the job of the DBA to lead efforts to recover from system failures. The well-prepared DBA has contingency plans for system outages and can soon have the DBMS running again.