Oracle RAC Resource Usage Test

This test monitors how effectively the Oracle database server utilizes the session and process resources it is configured with. If the maximum limit to which the resource allocation can grow is violated, it is bound to deteriorate the performance of the server, as the server might not have the bandwidth to handle the additional sessions/processes.

Target of the test : An Oracle Cluster database server

Agent deploying the test : An internal agent

Outputs of the test : One set of results for the session and process resources allocated to each Oracle database instance on the target Oracle Cluster being monitored

Configurable parameters for the test
Parameter	Description
Test period	How often should the test be executed
Host	The host for which the test is to be configured.
Port	The port on which the server is listening.
Service Name	A ServiceName exists for the entire Oracle RAC system. When clients connect to an Oracle cluster using the ServiceName, then the cluster routes the request to any available database instance in the cluster. By default, the Service Name is set to none. In this case, the test connects to the cluster using the ORASID and pulls out the metrics from that database instance which corresponds to that ORASID. If a valid service name is specified instead, then, the test will connect to the cluster using that Service Name, and will be able to pull out metrics from any available database instance in the cluster. To know the Service Name of a cluster, execute the following query on any node in the target cluster: select name, value from v$parameter where name =’service_names’
ORASID	The variable name of the oracle instance.
Username	In order to monitor an Oracle database server, a special database user account has to be created in every Oracle database instance that requires monitoring. A Click here hyperlink is available in the test configuration page, using which a new oracle database user can be created. Alternatively, you can manually create the special database user. When doing so, ensure that this user is vested with the select_catalog_role and create session privileges. The sample script we recommend for user creation (in Oracle database server versions before 12c) for eG monitoring is: create user oraeg identified by oraeg create role oratest; grant create session to oratest; grant select_catalog_role to oratest; grant oratest to oraeg; The sample script we recommend for user creation (in Oracle database server 12c) for eG monitoring is: alter session set container=<Oracle_service_name>; create user <user_name>identified by <user_password> container=current default tablespace <name_of_default_tablespace> temporary tablespace <name_of_temporary_tablespace>; Grant create session to <user_name>; Grant select_catalog_role to <user_name>; The name of this user has to be specified here.
Password	Specify the password of the specified database user.
Confirm Password	Confirm the Password by retyping it here.
SSL	By default, this flag is set to No, as the target Oracle cluster is not SSL-enabled by default. If the target cluster is SSL-enabled, then set this flag to Yes.
SSL Cipher	This parameter is applicable only if the target Oracle Cluster is SSL-enabled, if not, set this parameter to none. A cipher suite is a set of cryptographic algorithms that are used before a client application and server exchange information over an SSL/TLS connection. It consist of sets of instructions on how to secure a network through SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) or TLS (Transport Layer Security). In this text box, provide a comma-seperated list of cipher suites that are allowed for SSL/TLS connection to the target cluster. By default, this parameter is set to none.
Truststore File	This parameter is applicable only if the target Oracle Cluster is SSL-enabled, if not, set this parameter to none. TrustStore is used to store certificates from Certified Authorities (CA) that verify and authenticate the certificate presented by the server in an SSL connection. Therefore, the eG agent should have access to the truststore where the certificates are stored to authenticate and connect with the target cluster and collect metrics. For this, first import the certificates into the following default location <eG_INSTALL_DIR>/lib/security/mytruststore.jks. To know how to import the certificate into the truststore, refer toPre-requisites for monitoring Oracle Cluster. Then, provide the truststore file name in this text box. For example: mytruststore.jks. By default, none is specified against this text box.
Truststore Type	This parameter is applicable only if the target Oracle Cluster is SSL-enabled, if not, set this parameter to none.Specify the type of truststore that contains the certificates for server authentication in this text box. For eg.,JKS. By default, this parameter is set to the value none.
Truststore Password	This parameter is applicable only if the target Oracle Cluster is SSL-enabled, if not, set this parameter to none. If a Truststore File name is provided, then, in this text box, provide the password that is used to obtain the associated certificate details from the Truststore File. By default, this parameter is set to none.

Measurements made by the test
Measurement	Description	Measurement Unit	Interpretation
Initial allocation	Indicates the number of sessions/processes allocated at the time of creating this Oracle database instance.	Number
Current utilization	Indicates the number of sessions/processes that are currently active on this Oracle database instance.	Number	If the value of the Current utilization measure exceeds the value of the Initial allocation measure, the additional required resources are allocated from the shared pool, where they must compete for space with other resources. During SGA reservation/initialization, a place is reserved in SGA for the INITIAL_ALLOCATION of resources. Based on usage, this allocation can later be changed using the SESSIONS and PROCESSES parameters in the init database parameter file. The Configured limit measure of this test reports this new configuration only. For most resources, the INITIAL_ALLOCATION value and the Configured limit will be the same. However, if the resource allocation is to be changed later, it is good practice to check the maximum utilization limit that Oracle prescribes for the database, and then make the change. This limit signifies the maximum number of sessions and processes the database can handle, given its current memory capacity. The Maximum utilization limit measure reports this Oracle-recommended value. If the value of the Current utilization measure, exceeds the Maximum utilization limit, then the performance of your database is bound to deteriorate. Therefore, ensure that the Config_Limit is always well within the Maximum utilization limit
Maximum utilization limit:	Indicates the maximum number of sessions/processes that can be allowed to run on this Oracle database instance.	Number	If you want to allocate more sessions/processes to your database than what is recommended by Oracle, then its best that you enhance the memory capacity of your database, before altering the resource configurations.
Configured limit	Indicates the number of sessions/processes that this Oracle database instance is currently configured to handle.	Number
Percentage utilized	Indicates the percentage of the configured number of sessions/processes (i.e., the Configured limit) that are currently utilized by this Oracle database instance.	Percent	Ideally, the value of this measure should be low. If this measure shows high value, then DBA should increase the configuration value of the SESSIONS & PROCESSES parameter in the database parameter file. Otherwise, DBA should identify idle sessions and terminate them, so as to make more space available for new sessions/processes.