Installing Oracle Database 10g on Linux x86

Contents
Overview
Part I: Installing Linux
    RHEL 2.1
    RHEL 3
    SLES 8
Part II: Configuring Linux for Oracle
    Verify System Requirements
    Create Directories
    Create the Oracle Groups and User Account
    Configure Linux Kernel Parameters
    Set Shell Limits for the oracle User
    Avoid the Bug! (SLES 8 Only)
    Environment Variables for the oracle User
Part III: Installing Oracle
    Install the Software
Part IV: Configuring Storage
    Filesystems
    Automatic Storage Management
Conclusion
Appendix

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Overview

This is the first in a series of guides that provide all the steps for installing the major components of Oracle 10g software on Linux. All three of the certified English-language distributions of Linux are covered in detail (Asianux is not covered), and the articles assume that inexpensive Intel x86 hardware is being used. The articles walk through the process of installation and configuration on commodity hardware for the purpose of evaluating the major Oracle 10g products.

The ultimate goal of this series is to walk through installing and configuring all of the components of a 10g Grid. Along the way, you will see how to install and configure a single instance Oracle 10g database (this article), a two-node Oracle RAC 10g database, all the major components of Oracle Application Server 10g and Oracle Enterprise Manager 10g Grid Control.

This series will take the approach of offering the easiest paths, with the fewest number of steps, for accomplishing a task. This approach often means making configuration choices that would be inappropriate for anything other than an evaluation. For that reason, this series is not appropriate for building production-quality environments, nor does it reflect best practices.

The three Linux distributions certified for Oracle 10g covered in these articles are:

Red Hat Enterprise Linux  2.1
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3
Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 8
If you are new to Linux and/or Oracle, this first article is for you. It starts with the basics and walks you through an installation of Oracle Database 10g from the bare metal up.
This article is divided into four parts: Part I covers the installation of the Linux operating system, Part II covers configuring Linux for Oracle, Part III discusses the essentials of installing the Oracle Database, and Part IV covers creating additional filesystems and introduces Automatic Storage Management (ASM)—a terrific new feature in Oracle Database 10g that greatly simplifies storage administration and management.  The Appendix provides information to help you get started using your new database including how to access the database interactively and how to stop and start the database and related services.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Part I: Installing Linux

This guide assumes a server with the following hardware:

Two 800MHz Pentium III CPUs
512MB of RAM
Two SCSI host adapters (Ultra SCSI 160)
Eight SCSI disk drives (2 x 9GB + 6 x 36GB)
One 100Base-T Ethernet adapter
One 1000Base-T Ethernet adapter
The disks are configured so that each SCSI host adapter is connected to one 9GB disk and three 36GB disks.

Note that although this is far from a "beefy" setup, much of what this guide covers can be accomplished with even less horsepower. All that is necessary for a basic database install is a single CPU, 512MB of RAM, and one disk drive (IDE, SCSI, or FireWire) with at least 6.5GB of free space.

Now, let's walk through the process of installing the Linux operating system on a server. The instructions assume a fresh install of Linux (as opposed to an upgrade), that the server will be dedicated to Oracle, and that no other operating systems or data are on the server.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux  2.1

Oracle 10g is certified to run on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 2.1 (Advanced Server and Enterprise Server) with Update 3 or higher. Updates are available from the Red Hat Network (RHN) and can be downloaded as ISO files for creating CDs or as individual package updates.

The easiest and fastest way to apply the updates for a fresh install of Linux is to perform the install by using the update CDs. If Linux is already installed or you don't have the updates on CDs, they can be applied through RHN. Because this guide is designed for a fresh Linux install, you'll use the update CDs.

Boot the server using the first CD in the set of update CDs.
You may need to change your BIOS settings to allow booting from the CD.
The boot screen appears with the boot: prompt at the bottom of the screen.
Select Enter to continue with a graphical install on the console. (For other installation methods and options, refer to the Red Hat Installation Guide.)
The installer scans your hardware, briefly displays the Red Hat splash screen, and then begins a series of screen prompts.
Language Selection
Accept the default.
Keyboard Configuration
Accept the default.
Mouse Configuration
Accept the default.
Installation Type
Accept the default.
Disk Partitioning Setup
A thorough treatment of disk partitioning is beyond the scope of this article, which assumes that you are familiar with disk partitioning methods.
(WARNING: Improperly partitioning a disk is one of the surest and fastest ways to wipe out everything on your hard disk. If you are unsure how to proceed, stop and get help, or you will risk losing data!)

This article uses the following partitioning scheme, with ext3 for each filesystem:

The 9GB disk on the first controller (/dev/sda) will hold all Linux and Oracle software and contains the following partitions:
- 100MB /boot partition (50MB is the minimum for RHEL 2.1)
-1,500MB swap partition—Set this to at least twice the amount of RAM in the system but to no more than 2GB (32-bit systems do not support swap files larger than 2GB). If you need more than 2GB of swap space, create multiple swap partitions.
-7,150MB root partition—This partition will be used for everything, including /usr, /tmp, /var, /opt, /home, and more. This was done purely to simplify installation for the purposes of this guide. A more robust partitioning scheme would separate these directories onto separate filesystems.

Boot Loader Configuration
Accept the default.
Boot Loader Password Configuration
If you would like to use a password for GRUB, enter it here. For an evaluation system, just leave this unset.
Network Configuration
It is usually best to configure database servers with a static IP address. To do so, uncheck Configure using DHCP and enter the network configuration for the server. Be sure you've entered a host name and that Activate on boot is checked.
Firewall Configuration
For the purposes of this walk-through, no firewall is configured. Select No firewall (security administrators, flame away).
Additional Language Support
Accept the default.
Time Zone Selection
Choose the time settings that are appropriate for your area. Setting the system clock to UTC is usually a good practice for servers. To do so, click on System clock uses UTC.
Account Configuration
Choose a password for root, and enter it in the fields provided. Create an account for yourself. (Do not create the oracle account at this time; that happens later.)
Package Group Selection
Choose either Gnome of KDE (or both) of the graphical user interfaces (Gnome being the default). Note: Both GUIs are very popular, with Gnome being more prevalent in the U.S. I personally prefer KDE, because the terminal emulator provides for easy cut and paste and offers the ability to duplicate input to multiple connections (this saves typing when you are configuring RAC on multiple nodes, for example).
Select Software Development
Unresolved Dependencies
If you see this screen, simply select Install packages to satisfy dependencies (the default) and proceed.
Graphical Interface (X) Configuration
Accept the defaults unless the installer does not recognize your video card. If your video card is not recognized, you will not be able to continue.
Preparing to install
Click on Next
Installing packages
Software will be copied to the hard disk and installed. Change disks as prompted, and click on Next when the installation is complete.
Boot disk creation
Create a boot disk if you like, or select Skip boot disk creation.
Monitor Configuration
Accept the default if the installer correctly identifies your monitor. Otherwise, select a compatible monitor from the list.
Congratulations
Remove the installation media from the system, and click on Next.
The system automatically reboots and presents a graphical login screen. If you have performed the installation with the base product CDs rather than the update CDs, you will have to apply the updates through RHN before proceeding.
Verifying Your Installation

If you've completed the steps above, you should have all the packages and updates required for Oracle 10g. However, you can take the steps below to verify your installation.

Required kernel version: 2.4.9-e.25 (or later)

Check your kernel version by running the following command:

uname -r

Ex:
# uname -r
2.4.9-e.27smp

Other required package versions (or later):
gcc-2.96-124
make-3.79
binutils-2.11
openmotif-2.1.30-11
glibc-2.2.4-31
To see which versions of these packages are installed on your system, run the following command:
rpm -q gcc make binutils openmotif glibc

Ex:  
# rpm -q gcc make binutils openmotif glibc
gcc-2.96-118.7.2
make-3.79.1-8
binutils-2.11.90.0.8-12
openmotif-2.1.30-11
glibc-2.2.4-32.8

If any of the package versions on your system are missing or the versions are earlier than those specified above, you can download and install the updates from the Red Hat Network.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3

Oracle 10g is certified to run the base release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 (Advanced Server and Enterprise Server) without updates. If you have update CDs, you can use the boot CD from the update instead of the boot CD from the base release to automatically apply all updates during the installation. All updates from Red Hat are supported by Oracle.

Boot the server using the first CD.
You may need to change your BIOS settings to allow booting from the CD.
The boot screen appears with the boot: prompt at the bottom of the screen.
Select Enter to continue with a graphical install on the console. (For other installation methods and options, refer to the Red Hat Installation Guide.)
The installer scans your hardware, briefly displays the Red Hat splash screen, and then begins a series of screen prompts.
Language Selection
Accept the default.
Keyboard Configuration
Accept the default.
Welcome Screen
Click on Next.
Mouse Configuration
Accept the default.
Installation Type
Select Custom.
Disk Partitioning Setup
A thorough treatment of disk partitioning is beyond the scope of this article, which assumes that you are familiar with disk partitioning methods.
(WARNING: Improperly partitioning a disk is one of the surest and fastest ways to wipe out everything on your hard disk. If you are unsure how to proceed, stop and get help, or you will risk losing data!)

This article uses the following partitioning scheme, with ext3 for each filesystem:

The 9GB disk on the first controller (/dev/sda) will hold all Linux and Oracle software and contains the following partitions:
- 100MB /boot partition
-1,500MB swap partition—Set this to at least twice the amount of RAM in the system but to no more than 2GB (32-bit systems do not support swap files larger than 2GB). If you need more than 2GB of swap space, create multiple swap partitions.
-7,150MB root partition— This partition will be used for everything, including /usr, /tmp, /var, /opt, /home, and more. This was done purely to simplify installation for the purposes of this guide. A more robust partitioning scheme would separate these directories onto separate filesystems.

Boot Loader Configuration
Accept the default.
Network Configuration
It is usually best to configure database servers with a static IP address. To do so, click on Edit.
A pop-up window appears. Uncheck the Configure using DHCP box, and enter the IP Address and Netmas