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The SYSTEM.ROLLING$STATUS table in Oracle E-Business Suite (EBS) 12.1.1 and 12.2.2 is a critical data dictionary table that stores metadata related to the status of rolling patches, upgrades, and maintenance operations within the Oracle Applications environment. This table is part of Oracle's patching infrastructure and is primarily used by the AutoPatch (AD) utility and other patching tools to track the progress and state of applied patches, ensuring data consistency during maintenance activities.

Purpose and Functionality

The ROLLING$STATUS table serves as a centralized repository for tracking the execution status of rolling patches—a feature introduced to minimize downtime during patching in Oracle EBS. Rolling patches allow administrators to apply patches in a phased manner across multiple nodes in a multi-node environment, ensuring high availability. This table logs key details such as patch session IDs, node-specific status, timestamps, and error messages (if any), enabling the patching system to resume or roll back operations if failures occur.

Key Columns and Their Significance

  • SESSION_ID: Unique identifier for each patching session, linking entries to a specific patch application.
  • NODE_NAME: Identifies the node in a multi-node environment where the patch is being applied.
  • STATUS: Indicates the current state (e.g., 'IN PROGRESS', 'COMPLETED', 'FAILED') of the patch operation.
  • START_TIME and END_TIME: Timestamps marking the initiation and completion of the patching phase.
  • ERROR_MESSAGE: Captures diagnostic information if the patch encounters issues.

Integration with Oracle EBS Patching Tools

The table is tightly integrated with Oracle's AD utilities (AutoPatch, AutoConfig) and the adctrl command-line tool. During patching, the utilities query and update ROLLING$STATUS to synchronize operations across nodes. For example, if a patch fails on one node, the system references this table to determine whether to proceed, retry, or abort the patching cycle.

Operational Scenarios

  1. Multi-Node Patching: In a shared APPL_TOP environment, ROLLING$STATUS ensures patches are applied sequentially or in parallel based on dependencies, reducing downtime.
  2. Failure Recovery: If a patch fails mid-execution, administrators use adctrl to check ROLLING$STATUS and restart or roll back the process.
  3. Audit and Reporting: The table provides a historical record of patch applications, useful for compliance and troubleshooting.

Best Practices

  • Monitoring: Regularly query ROLLING$STATUS during patching to detect issues early.
  • Backup: Ensure backups of SYSTEM tablespace are taken before major patching to recover metadata if corruption occurs.
  • Cleanup: Archive or purge obsolete entries to maintain performance, as the table can grow significantly over time.

Example Query

SELECT session_id, node_name, status, start_time, end_time 
FROM system.rolling$status 
WHERE status = 'FAILED';

Conclusion

The SYSTEM.ROLLING$STATUS table is a cornerstone of Oracle EBS's patching framework, enabling efficient, fault-tolerant maintenance operations. Its role in tracking multi-node patch statuses ensures minimal disruption during upgrades, making it indispensable for administrators managing large-scale EBS deployments. Understanding its structure and usage is critical for effective system maintenance and troubleshooting in Oracle EBS 12.1.1 and 12.2.2 environments.