8 Removing Oracle Real Application Clusters Software

8.3.1 About the Deinstallation Tool

The Deinstallation Tool (deinstall) stops Oracle software, and removes Oracle software and configuration files on the operating system. It is available in the installation media before installation, and is available in Oracle home directories after installation. It is located in the path $ORACLE_HOME/deinstall.

The deinstall command stops Oracle software, and removes Oracle software and configuration files on the operating system. The command uses the following syntax, where variable content is indicated by italics:

deinstall -home complete path of Oracle home [-silent] [-checkonly] [-local]
[-paramfile complete path of input parameter property file] [-params name1=value
name2=value . . .] [-o complete path of directory for saving files] [-help]
 

The default method for running the deinstall tool is from the deinstall directory in the Oracle home. For example:

$ cd $ORACLE_HOME/deinstall
$ ./deinstall

In addition, you can run the deinstall tool from other locations, or with a parameter file, or select other options to run the tool.

The options are:

• -home

  Use this flag to indicate the home path of the Oracle home that you want to check or deinstall. If you want to deinstall Oracle software using the deinstall command in the same Oracle home you plan to deinstall, then provide a parameter file in another location, and do not use the -home flag.

• -silent

  Use this flag to run the command in noninteractive mode. If you use the -silent option, then you must use the -paramFile flag, and provide a parameter file that contains the configuration values for the Oracle home that you want to deinstall or deconfigure.

  To create a properties file and provide the required parameters, refer to the template file deinstall.rsp.tmpl, located in the response folder of the Deinstallation tool home or the Oracle home.

  If you have a working system, then instead of using the template file, you can generate a properties file by running the deinstall command using the -checkonly flag. The deinstall command then discovers information from the Oracle home that you want to deinstall and deconfigure. It generates the properties file, which you can then use with the -silent option.

• -checkonly

  Use this flag to check the status of the Oracle software home configuration. Running the command with the checkonly flag does not remove the Oracle configuration. The checkonly flag generates a parameter file that you can use with the deinstall command.

  When you run checkonly to generate a parameter file, you are prompted to provide information about your system. You can accept the default value the tool has obtained from your Oracle installation, that is displayed inside brackets ([]), or you can provide different values. To accept the defaults, click Enter.

• -local

  Use this flag on a multinode environment to deconfigure Oracle software in a cluster.

  When you run deinstall with this flag, it deconfigures and deinstalls the Oracle software on the local node (the node where deinstall is run). On remote nodes, it deconfigures Oracle software, but does not deinstall the Oracle software.

• -cleanupOBase

  Use this flag to force the removal of all contents in the Oracle base directory, including the admin, oradata and flash_recovery_area directories. This flag forces an Oracle base removal only if the Oracle home that you specify with the -home flag is the only Oracle home that Oracle base directory is associated with. This flag is available with the deconfig tool available in the Oracle Grid Infrastructure and Oracle Database 11.2.0.3 patch release, and from OTN.

• -paramfile complete path of input parameter property file

  Use this flag to run deinstall with a parameter file in a location other than the default. When you use this flag, provide the complete path where the parameter file is located. If you are running the deinstall command from the Oracle home that you plan to deinstall, then you do not need to use the -paramfile option.

  The default location of the parameter file depends on the location of deinstall:

  • From the installation media or stage location: $ORACLE_HOME/inventory/response.

  • From a unzipped archive file from OTN: /ziplocation/response.

  • After installation from the installed Oracle home: $ORACLE_HOME/deinstall/response.

• -params [name1=value name 2=value name3=value . . .]

  Use this flag with a parameter file to override one or more values that you want to change in a parameter file you have already created.

• -o complete path of directory for saving response files

  Use this flag to provide a path other than the default location where the properties file (deinstall.rsp.tmpl) is saved.

  The default location of the parameter file depends on the location of deinstall:

  • From the installation media or stage location before installation: $ORACLE_HOME/

  • From a unzipped archive file from OTN: /ziplocation/response/.

  • After installation from the installed Oracle home: $ORACLE_HOME/deinstall/response.

• -help

  Use the help option (-help) to obtain additional information about the command option flags.

8.3.2 Example of Running the Deinstall Command for Oracle RAC

As the deinstall command runs, you are prompted to provide the home directory of the Oracle software that you want to remove from your system. Provide additional information as prompted.

If you enter the deinstall command outside of the $ORACLE_HOME/deinstall folder, then help is displayed, unless you enter a -home flag and provide a path. If you run the deinstall command from the $ORACLE_HOME/deinstall folder, then deinstallation starts without prompting you for a home address.

Use the optional flag -paramfile to provide a path to a parameter file.

In the following example, the deinstall command is in the path /u01/app/oracle/product/11.2.0/dbhome_1/deinstall:

$ cd /u01/app/oracle/product/11.2.0/dbhome_1/deinstall
$ ./deinstall

8.3.3 Example of a Deinstallation Parameter File for Oracle RAC

You can run the deinstall command with the -paramfile option to use the values you specify in the parameter file. The following is an example of a parameter file, in which the Oracle Database binary owner is oracle, the Oracle Database home (Oracle home) is in the path /u01/app/oracle/product/11.2.0/dbhome_1/, the Oracle base (where other Oracle software is installed) is /u01/app/oracle/, the central Oracle Inventory home (oraInventory) is /u01/app/oraInventory, the virtual IP address (VIP) is 192.0.2.1, the local node (the node where you are running the deinstallation session from) is node1, the remote node is node2, and the OSDBA group is dba:

#Copyright (c) 2005, 2006 Oracle Corporation. All rights reserved.
#Wed Feb 11 16:30:21 PST 2009
DISK_GROUPS.typi=
REMOTE_NODES=node2
ORACLE_BASE.typi=/u01/app/oracle
STORAGE_TYPE.typi=FS
ASM_HOME=
ASM_LOCAL_SID=
FLASH_RECOVERY_LOC.typi=
LOGDIR=/u01/app/oraInventory/logs/
DB_TYPE.typi=RAC_DB
ORACLE_BASE=/u01/app/oracle
INVENTORY_LOCATION=/u01/app/oraInventory
NODE_LIST.typi=node1,node2
ARCHIVE_LOG_DESTINATION_LOC.typi=
ASM_FILES.typi=
LOCAL_SID.typi=typi1
CLUSTER_NODES=node1,node2
DB_UNIQUE_NAME_LIST=typi
RAW_MAPPING_FILE.typi=
ORA_CRS_HOME=/u01/app/grid/11.2.0/
HOME_TYPE=RACDB
CRS_HOME=false
SID_LIST.typi=typi1,typi2
DATAFILE_LOC.typi=/oradbocfs/storage/database/oradata/typi
ORACLE_BINARY_OK=true
local=false
LOCAL_NODE=node1
CREATION_MODE.typi=y
CONFIGFILE_LOC.typi=/oradbocfs/storage/database/oradata/typi/control01.ctl, /oradbocfs/storage/database/oradata/typi/control02.ctl, /oradbocfs/storage/database/
oradata/typi/control03.ctl,/u01/app/oracle/product/11.2.0/dbhome
_1/dbs/dr1typi.dat,/u01/app/oracle/product/11.2.0/dbhome_1/dbs/d
r2typi.dat
DIAG_DEST.typi=/u01/app/oracle/diag/rdbms/typi
SPFILE_LOC.typi=/oradbocfs/storage/database/oradata/typi/spfiletypi.ora
silent=true
ORACLE_HOME=/u01/app/oracle/product/11.2.0/dbhome_1