Historically the senior Oracle DBA had total responsibility for the Oracle database and had the

following job duties:

Oracle DBA job duty: Oracle DBA job duty: Oracle DBA job duty: Oracle DBA job duty: Oracle DBA job duty: Oracle DBA job duty: Oracle DBA job duty:

Install, patch and maintain all Oracle software Tune all Oracle instance components including SQL and PL/SQL Approve all production schema changes Approve changes to database design Control all migrations of Oracle schema objects Design and implement a backup & recovery system Implement Oracle failover technology

Remember, in many shops the Oracle DBA is a senior manager with high responsibilities and specialized job duties.
An evolution of the DBA role and responsibilities

The Database Administrator is one of the most difficult positions to fill and retain. DBAs must be able to react, communicate, and plan across many different business functions. They are not easy to find and are often shockingly costly as a percentage of IT payroll. Prior to the evolution of todays comprehensive systems and greater reliance on data by 247 consumers, most DBAs functioned as basement DBAs, meaning that they generally were out of sight and out of mind, working on mainframe tasks associated with loading tapes and running backup job That was 20 years ago. In the current IT landscape, DBAs must understand an ever-expanding scope of hardware and applications, which includes web servers, middleware, and relational data models. They must deal effectively with new data/indexing schemes, application loads, clustering software, and replication techniques. Proficiency in networking, operating systems, storage area networks, and Sarbanes-Oxley regulations drives their value as DBAs. They also face constant change in encryption, multiple scripting languages,data retention, spatial data types, and thirdparty applications. Finally, they must know data warehousing, business intelligence, advanced performance tuning, high availability, code propagation, auditing, heuristics, and I/O layouts, among others. The likelihood of finding one individual with expertise in even a few of these key areas, much less all of them, is very low. Since the DBA is often the first point of contact for system performance issues, they must be adept at problem solving, communication, collaboration, project management, process adherence, and even financial analysis. With the broadening and deepening of the job description of the average Database Administrator, they must demonstrate vertical platform expertise and horizontal functional expertise

New Oracle DBA job duties

Consequently, many computer professionals and Oracle DBAs were faced with a new requirement to have degrees in both computer science and business administration. The business

administration allowed them to understand the working of internal systems and helped them to design the corporate database. By 2005, the automation of many of the Oracle DBA functions led to the Oracle professional accepting responsibility for a whole new set of duties:

Data modeling and Oracle database design Data interface protocols Managing data security Managing development projects Predicting future Oracle trends for hardware usage and user load

DBA Responsibilities
The job of the DBA seems to be everything that everyone else either doesn't want to do, or doesn't have the ability to do. DBAs get the enviable task of figuring out all of the things no one else can figure out. More seriously though, here is a list of typical DBA responsibilities:

Installation, configuration and upgrading of Oracle server software and related products Evaluate Oracle features and Oracle related products Establish and maintain sound backup and recovery policies and procedures Take care of the Database design and implementation Implement and maintain database security (create and maintain users and roles, assign privileges) Perform database tuning and performance monitoring Perform application tuning and performance monitoring Setup and maintain documentation and standards Plan growth and changes (capacity planning) Work as part of a team and provide 7x24 support when required Perform general technical trouble shooting and give consultation to development teams Interface with Oracle Corporation for technical support. Patch Management and Version Control

DBA Skills Required

Good understanding of the Oracle database, related utilities and tools A good understanding of the underlying operating system A good knowledge of the physical database design Ability to perform both Oracle and operating system performance tuning and monitoring Knowledge of ALL Oracle backup and recovery scenarios A good knowledge of Oracle security management A good knowledge of how Oracle acquires and manages resources A good knowledge Oracle data integrity Sound knowledge of the implemented application systems Experience in code migration, database change management and data management through the various stages of the development life cycle A sound knowledge of both database and system performance tuning A DBA should have sound communication skills with management, development teams, vendors and systems administrators Provide a strategic database direction for the organisation A DBA should have the ability to handle multiple projects and deadlines A DBA should possess a sound understanding of the business

DBA Qualifications

May be certified as an Oracle DBA. See Oracle Certification Program. Preferably a BS in computer science or related engineering field Lots and lots of EXPERIENCE

Application Database Administrator (ADBA)

Application DBA's or ADBA's are responsible for looking after the application tasks pertaining to a specific application. This includes the creation of database objects, snapshots, SQL tuning, etc. Typical ADBA responsibilities:

Implement and maintain the database design

Create database objects (tables, indexes, etc.) Write database procedures, functions and triggers Assist developers with database activities Tune database queries Monitor application related jobs and data replication activities

Applications Database Administrator (Apps DBA)

Administration of the Oracle E-Business Suite environment, including the normal DBA and ADBA functions for such an environment.