Chris Warticki's Blog - Oracle Support

I've written about RDA before and I've presented it to customers hundreds of times.  We're just not getting it.  Therefore, it deserves a shove.

Just about all DBA's have used RDA.  Why?  Because Support has asked them to upload it.  Customers don't realize that RDA was created for them.  RDA is not a stall tactic to put the action plan into CUS status.  RDA was created so that you may not even need to log the SR in the first place.  The proactive use of RDA is untapped.  The features are unknown and not used.

Top 10 non-used RDA features/functions:

1. Open it, Read it, Review it.
   
• You can view the
  RDA report files using almost any web browser by opening the <rda_directory><output_directory>/<report_group>__start.htm
2. Security Filtering
• Everyone's so quick to throw the security flag these days, but they are uploading RDA's by the truckload without enabling this feature.
3. Software Configuration Manager and RDA bundle
• For your benefit, we created an RDA SCM bundle to simplify your ability to automate
  your configuration and diagnostics uploads to Oracle.
4. Tools - Run the following modules with the -T mode option
• diff       Compares Systems 
• em       Runs the Enterprise Manager Tool  
• hcve     Executes HCVE Tests   
• merge  Merges Alert Log and Trace Files
• na         Runs the Network Advisor
• ora600 Diagnoses ORA-600 Oracle Internal Errors
5. Tests - Run the following modules with the -T mode option
1. alert     Analyzes alert.log
2. core    Tests Stack Trace Extraction
3. db       Tests Local Database Access
4. dst      Daylight Saving Time Tool Box
5. env     Tests the Environment
6. event   Extracts Event Log Information
7. inv      Tests Oracle Home Inventory Content
   
8. ocm    Tests Configuration Manager Discovery Information  
   
9. odi      Displays the Current Oracle Data Integrator Module Setup
   
10. sql      Tests SQL Settings  
    
11. ssd     Analyzes System State Dumps 
    
12. ssh     Tests Remote Connectivity and Operations
    
13. vms    Verifies Current User Environment on VMS
6. Seeded RDA Profiles instead of answering Yes/No so many times.
7. Custom RDA Profiles
   
   
• List the modules you want it to collect instead of answering Yes/No so many times
  
  
• rda -v (OS STC SSO WKSP)=example of collecting 4 modules
  
  
8. User Defined Collection, will collect custom files
• rda -v XTRA
9. RAC Cluster Guide
10. 11 new features and dozens of improvements in version 4.10
    

Find it, the First time - FAST! - Not using the MetaLink Knowledge Browser can result in wasting valuable time. Reduce the number of queries executed and notes read up to 65%! Spend less time on a support portal and more time on your projects and tasks.

I'm often told that searching MetaLink is cumbersome even for a seasoned veteran.  I don't know why there are so many options to choose from.  I'll keep my comments to myself.  For the record there's the QuickFind (with 8 pulldown choices), Advanced Search (with 13 options), Secure Enterprise Search (Oracle Product), and Bug Search (not covering that one yet).

The best way to know exactly what Support knows with 100% assurance if you need to open a Service Request or not, is to use the Knowledge Browser.  The Knowledge Browser is not new functionality.  It has existed in this interface for over 5 years.

Oracle Support datamines SRs and creates content in the philosophy of Find it once and fix it for many.  The Knowledge Browser has a structure that helps the user browse by major Product Category > Product Family > Function and Feature. Instead of searching hundreds of thousands of documents using the QuickFind, the Knowledge Browser allows you to search specific content folders.

Once you're inside the Knowledge Browser folder of your choice, follow these 1-2-3 best practices.

1. Click on the usage column - sort the subset of documents from the #1 most popular document to the least, in any folder.
2. Filter the list of documents using the Filter button
3. Search within the Category - If you put your keywords here and nothing comes back, guess what?  You will know with 100% assurance, that you can log a Service Request, write the support engineer, I just searched X  folder of content and nothing came back.  Most likely, it's a 1st-time discovery or it's a complex issue and Support will have to engage Development.
   There are many other tips and tricks for searching MetaLink.  The Customer Support Management team is here to help train you and your company this best practice and others. 
   
   Finally, if you are interested in contributing to the knowledgebase, did you know about the Customer Knowledge Exchange? (another thing to search)
   
   
   ROI:  Return the investment of your time from hunting and pecking for information and put it back to the projects and tasks to achieve your objectives.
   

Today's topic: the recently revised Database, FMW, and OCS Software Error Correction Support Policy Version 2.0 MetaLink Note:209768.1

I'll admit, this recent revision almost got by me.  It's been 4 years since it's been updated and it needed to be.  It's a
must read.  This clarifies why Support
often requests customers to apply the latest patchset, or why a certain fix
cannot be backported.

The HOT sections of this document
Which Patch Sets Will Oracle Create New Fixes On?

For our EBusiness Applications customers:
Oracle Applications Patching FAQ for Release 11i  Doc ID:  Note:457566.1
Oracle Applications Patching FAQ for Release 12 Doc ID:  Note:459156.1

For your convenience, Oracle offers a number of resources to help you plan and drive a successful upgrade or new installation project. These resources are now presented in a convenient Infocast covering advantages, short descriptions, screen captures and directions to access relevant information. These resources include, but are not limited to the following:
The Upgrade Guide is a consolidated list of information that helps you evaluate and plan your upgrade project. This guide follows the Evaluate, Plan, Execute and Optimize structured phases you are familiar with to help you achieve an efficient upgrade with minimal risk.
The E-Business Suite R12 Information Center offers the latest published information, conveniently presented by category and in chronological order for easier use.
The Maintenance Wizard and E-Business Suite Diagnostics Support Pack, are valuable tools that, when used together, can often result in fewer mistakes and fewer Service Requests.

This one's for Support, for our clarification.  There should be no misunderstanding to what the term 'Escalation' means.   For clarification,  Escalation is defined as "Bringing Management attention to your Service Request/Case".  Oracle Support's management team is both accessible and accountable to our customers 24x7, regardless of severity.

Do customers confuse the term escalation with severity increases?  Yes, they do.  They will.  See my previous post on the topic Escalations vs. Severity Increases - 7/18/07. It's our obligation to clarify what customers are requesting.

Customers come to know the escalation process, first through the RFP process.  The Request For Proposal happens in the sales cycle.  A common question is asked, "Does the vendor have an escalation process for service delivery, and if so describe".  This is a standard question and believe me if one didn't exist, that RFP would be thrown in the trash.

The second way that customers learn about the Escalation process is through customer training efforts, like monthly scheduled webcasts.  By the way, the escalation process is clearly defined within all accessible support portals.  There's no confusion to what Escalation means to a customer.

The unfortunate way that customers learn about what an escalation is and how to initiate it, is reactively.  This is the most common way.  See my previous post on the topic Escalations vs. Severity Increases - 7/18/07.

One of the many reasons Oracle Support was a JD Powers award recipient for Service and Support was because of our execution to the Escalation process.  Our customers were asked, "Does Oracle have an Escalation process, and if you followed their instructions, did it work as prescribed?"  They replied, "YES".

Let's not allow any customer, anywhere, under any circumstances to change that answer.

I'm in the Support Business. It's always important to remember who is responsible for your company's survival.

I am your customer. Satisfy my wants with personal attention and a friendly touch and I will become a walking advertisement of your products and services. Ignore my wants, show carelessness, inattention and poor manners, and I will simply cease to exist, as far as you are concerned.

I am sophisticated, much more so than I was a few years ago. I have grown accustomed to better things. I have money to spend. I am an egoist. I am sensitive. I am proud. My ego needs the nourishment of a friendly, personal greeting from you. It is important to me that you appreciate my business. After all, when I buy your products and services, my money is feeding you.

I am a perfectionist. I want the best I can get for the money I spend. When I criticize your products or services, and I will to anyone who will listen when I am dissatisfied, take heed. The source of my discontent lies in something you or the products you sell have failed to do. Find the source and eliminate it or you will lose my business and that of my friends as well.

I am fickle. Other businesses continually beckon me with offers of more for my money. To keep my business, you must offer something better than they. I am your customer now, but you must prove to me again and again that I have made a wise choice in selecting you, your products and services above all others.

In the spirit of customer service, print this out and hang it on your wall (in your workspace or home office) I didn't author this, just passing it along.
-Chris

Submitted by Charles Freeman, Customer Support Manager
Search for Knowledge articles using the new Software Configuration Manager user interface. Get the answers you need from the Knowledge home page with enhanced search capability, along with easy-to-use regions and hierarchical menus that greatly simplify finding pertinent Metalink information quickly.

MetaLink is moving to a new user interface this year. You can test drive the new interface today and search the Knowledge Content by clicking on the Software Configuration Manager tab on MetaLink (https://csm.oracle.com/CSP/ui/index.html), Then, select the Knowledge tab. You are not required to provide configurations in order to take advantage of the interface, so today is a great time to experience the personalization and ease of use found in the new interface.

· The Knowledge tab within searches for news, notes, and articles relevant to the context specified by the user.
· You can find specific knowledge articles by using the search function or by using PowerViews.
· Search scans the entire Knowledge base and not just the content of the Knowledge region.
· You can use Recently Added topics as a way to find a category of documents and not have to search for it again.
· PowerViews allow the user to do global searches based up system or custom defined attributes. Providing focused results to find exactly what you are looking for.
· Once you have run a search, the intuitive display and drill-down functionality allows you to quickly view and assess the relevance of large numbers of articles.
· Once you choose an article to view, the list of articles is preserved helping you browse the other articles.
· From the Recent Activity region, you can rate articles and send your feedback to Oracle, improving the quality of Oracle articles and providing you with better recommendations in the future.

Try the Software Configuration Manager for a more comprehensive look at the wealth of Metalink information included in the Oracle Knowledge Base. It allows seamless access to all Metalink information by fully integrating the Knowledge tab.

The new user interface uses Adobe Flash 9. If you don't already have the Flash browser plug-in, you will be prompted to install it when you first visit the Software Configuration Manager tab.
For a quick peak, you can view the Recorded Demo of KM within Software Configuration Manager

No matter where I go, in front of any audience or on the phone, I ask one primary question, "Other than MetaLink, where else do you go for support of your products?"  9 out of 10 times the answer is, Google.  Unfortunately, Google has turned the world into a bunch of antisocial, dummies.  If the answer isn't on the first page of the first ten hits, then it must not exist anywhere on the internet,  Right?  Wrong.  Web 2.0 technologies are about connecting people with people instead of people to a portal.

Therefore, today's post is an enhanced version of a previous posting of resources I consolidated that will connect you with like-minded technical resources, using the same products that you do, accomplishing the same objectives that you are trying to accomplish.  Leverage your investment in Oracle by leveraging your resources.  The Best Support is NO Service Request!

There's much more to your investment in Support than the ability to log a Service Request.  Here is a consolidated list of resources that is part of that very investment.  Make sure that you read the accompanying notes and user guides and feel free to engage the Customer Support Management team for a webcast overview.

Next Generation MetaLink requires MetaLink login

• Software Configuration Manager - (Server, EBus, FMW)
• Software Configuration Manager - (Siebel)

Diagnostics available for Server Technologies

• Remote Diagnostic Agent (RDA)  - Note:314422.1- Required for all Server Technologies Service Requests
• 19 Tests and Tools inside RDA
• Ora-600/7445 and Call Stack Trace  Lookup Utility -  Note: 153788.1
• 300+ DBA Scripts - Note 131704.1
• Database Performance Tuning Scripts and Diagnostics
• OSWatcher user guide - Note 301137.1
• HANGFG user guide - Note 362094.1
• LTOM user Guide - Note 352363.1
• Stackx - Note 362791.1
• PL/SQL Profiler - 243755.1
• SQLTXPLAIN- 215187.1
• TRCANLZR- 224270.1
• Performance Tools Quick Reference Guide - Note:438452.1
• Oracle Performance Diagnostic Guide (OPDG) - Note:390374.1

• RDA for EBus - Note:183274.1  - Required for all EBusiness Service Requests
  • Include any diagnostic under the category of Data Collection for the Product you are using at the time you log the Service Request.
• Diagnostic Support Pack Installation Guide - Note:167000.1
• List of all available EBusiness Suite Diagnostics - Note:179661.1
• Maintenance Wizard - Note:215527.1

Toolbars, Widgets and Xtras

• Oracle DBA ToolBar
• Oracle News Aggregator for Firefox
• Oracle News Aggregator Google Toolbar
• MetaLink Search Plugin Available for IE7 and Firefox 2.0 Doc ID:  Note:443723.1
• MetaLink Support - Use MetaLink Search Plus
• The MetaLink Firefox search plugin

Tools available for Peoplesoft/JDE Applications 

• PSFT Setup Manager
• PSFT Change Assistant
• PSFT Change Impact Analyzer
• PSFT Performance Monitor
• JDE Change Assistant
• JDE Support Assistant
• JDE Performance Monitor

Tools available for Siebel Applications 

• Upgrade Wizard
• Application Deployment Manager
• Script Checker Utility

As I mentioned in my previous post, 2/3 of the Oracle maintenance investment is in the product.  Leveraging the functions and features of the product will create efficiencies.  Efficiencies drive savings.  Savings equals greater ROI.  Greater ROI increases profitability.  Enough said.

Oracle did a great job on compiling this. Our customers did a great job using these features and services.  They serve as examples for the rest to follow.

16 Ways to Cut Costs & Save

I’ve read all the industry reports out there.  Everyone has a top-10 list out there on how to save money.  (Can we just leave those to Letterman?)  I digress.  Reductions in support fees don’t even crack the top five.  That’s like canceling your insurance policies on your home and car.  Ironically, what IS in the top five, is leveraging, using and implementing what has already been purchased.

Oracle knows that customers use less than 10% of the included product features and functions.

Investments in products have been made.  That investment has become unrealized and untapped, not unworthy.