VARIETY OF RESPONSIBILITIES

In the era of the large, corporate data center, the job descriptions were based on
recommended structures from the various vendors. This usually included large
staffs full of managers, directors, shift supervisors, and other wonderful titles. Many
organizations moved toward departmental computer organizations and the like.
This created a number of jack-of-all-trades positions where someone may have been
the operator, the database administrator, the system administrator, the manager,
and the janitor. Now compound this with the trend toward inexpensive UNIX-based
computers, where individuals may act as their own computer staffs for their
workstation or a small server. This leads to a world where people ranging from fulltime,
highly-trained database professionals to mechanical engineers, who are too
junior to get out of the assignment, serve as database administrators. This book
deals with this wide range of needs and provides help for all those brave souls who
call themselves a DBA.
Perhaps it would be useful at this point to discuss how some organizations derive
the responsibilities for the database administrator. This could be useful to understand
if you are given the opportunity to have input into the discussions of a realistic
set of responsibilities for your given circumstances. Recall that the IBM and DEC
literature guided the establishment of job descriptions in many data centers in the
past. The following list of factors that help determine the DBA job description
results from observations during consulting:
u No one else will learn new technologies, so if it is new, that person gets it.
u We can afford only one person to work on the UNIX pilot project that we
are conducting, so that person will be DBA, system administrator, and
operator.
u It is your research project and we cannot afford to hire a dedicated computer
staff for you.
T HE W ORLD OF ORACLE AND THE DATABASE A DMINISTRATOR 9
THE WORLD OF ORACLE
1
u We went to the Oracle management seminars and this is what they told us.
u We brought in some consultants who said they knew everything and this is
what they told us.
u We can’t let the data center get their hooks in us again, so one of us has to
do it all.
u Tech support owns the box and they will let us do only certain things.
u Our director got the data center director mad, so they will not help us.
u Long backups are a pain; no one else wants to do them, so we assign it to
the DBA.
Although I said that there is no one set of duties for a database administrator, I’m
going to take a shot at a list of such duties anyway. Consider this list as food for
thought:
u Perform data backups and recoveries (a favorite of mine, so I get to list it
first). Depending on your local computer culture, the actual backups may be
performed by computer operations or other support staff (especially in large
data centers). However, regardless of who is issuing the backup commands,
the DBA had better be certain that the backups being performed will
support recovery in the event of a loss of data.
u Install and upgrade the Oracle application software.
u Start and stop the Oracle instance.
u Control user access to resources and information.
u Monitor and allocate storage space for data.
u Audit database usage.
u Tune the database.
u Perform the physical database design (that is, determine which data items
are stored in which file and on which disk drive).
u Be the focal point when problems arise with the database or applications
that access the database.
u Answer user questions.
u Assist in the development of sound database queries and applications that
work with (not against) the database management system.
u Keep current with database, operating system, and application development
technologies.
10 PART I u T HE JOB OF THE ORACLE DBA
Where do you fit within the realm of possibilities? Consider some of these types:
u Large UNIX System Database Administrator
u Not allowed to touch the operating system, network, or anything other
than the database itself (yes, this is a mainframe shop)
u Responsible for backing up the data files only
u Answers any and all questions about the database
u Upgrades the Oracle software, as needed
u Develops scripts to help automate many of the database administrative
processes
u Assists developers in designing tables and queries for high efficiency
u Monitors usage, security, and tuning closely
u Small UNIX System Database Administrator
u Serves as backup UNIX system administrator (and he is the backup
database administrator)
u Develops scripts that back up the entire computer system
u Serves as a contact with Oracle when problems arise (he is not expected
to have the background to be able to answer difficult questions)
u Installs the Oracle software and several off-the-shelf applications
packages
u Assists developers interfacing to this database with client-server tools
u Development Group Database Administrator
u Serves as UNIX system administrator, database administrator, guru
in the C programming language, and software developer
u Backs up the computer system
u Answers any and all questions other developers may think up
u Engineering Work Group Database Administrator
u Leaves VAX system administration to another contractor
u Answers all questions from management and technical staff regarding
the Oracle database and all development tools
u Backs up the database data files
u Develops new engineering applications using Oracle as the data
repository
With all that said, remember that the exact tasks you are asked to perform may vary,
but it is important to have agreement by all parties what those tasks are and the
level of service that you will be providing. If you have other responsibilities that take
priority, make sure everyone knows that before problems come up.