Series: Duplicating an Oracle Database – Part 2: Performing the Database Duplication

In the previous part of this series, we set up a new instance on the destination server. Now, we move on to duplicating the source database using RMAN (Recovery Manager). This process can be performed using either a Push-based or Pull-based method, both of which will be explained below.

Step 1: Verify RMAN Connectivity to Both Servers

Before starting the duplication, confirm that RMAN can connect to both the source and destination servers.

On the source server, use RMAN to connect to both databases:

rman target sys/password@192.168.1.78 auxiliary sys/password@192.168.1.64

Step 2: Duplicate the Database

There are two methods to duplicate a database: Push-based (Active Database Duplication) and Pull-based (Backupset Duplication). The method you choose depends on your system requirements.

Push-based Method (Active Database Duplication)

This method copies the data directly from the source to the destination without creating a backup on disk.

RMAN> duplicate target database to orcl from active database;

Pull-based Method (Backupset Duplication)

In this method, RMAN creates a backup on the source server and transfers it to the destination server.

RMAN> duplicate target database to orcl from active database using compressed backupset;

Both methods ensure that the new database on the destination server is an exact copy of the source database.

Step 3: Verify the Duplication on the Destination Server

After the duplication process completes, verify that the new database instance is running correctly:

SQL> select instance_name, status from v$instance;
SQL> select open_mode, name, created from v$database;

At this point, the duplication is complete, but the new database still shares the same name as the original. In the next and final part of the series, we will rename the duplicated database to avoid conflicts.

Conclusion

This part of the series covered the actual duplication of the Oracle database. The next step is to rename the duplicated database to give it a unique identity, which will be discussed in Part 3.

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