OCM 11g Preparation

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Today (22nd October 2014) I will start my Oracle OCM 11g study project. I will list here the topics and some study guides for each of them, so I can exchange with you who is also applying, interested or have any skills. Please comment in the post related to each topic if you find out any more valuable information to add.

My target is to take the exam by October/2015.

UPDATE 1: I did it on 14th AND 15th October IN Bucharest, Romania. Now I'm waiting for the results! (More information in sections 4 and 5).

UPDATE 2: After 35 long days, the result finally came on November 20th and now I'm officially and OCM! (More information in section 6).

Every topic will have a link to a post where I will cover some test cases, what is needed to study and the link to the official Oracle Doc related. Remember, the Oracle Official Doc is all you will have on the day of the exam, so being fast and getting to the item in the DOC is a necessity.

Let's start:

1 - Before you begin

- Recommended Hardware for Study
- Download the Exam Environment
- Prepare your Environment
- Course Requirements
- Where to take the exam

2 - Topics

Those topics were get from the official Oracle OCM website on Oct/2014. I will update if I notice any modification.

I recommend you to print this list in a front/back page (you can get the pdf here and print it) and "check" each completed item with a pen! It's a good way to control your progression. Thanks to Kamran for this tip.

Server Configuration
• Create the database
• Determine and set sizing parameters for database structures
• Create and manage temporary, permanent, and undo tablespaces
• Stripe data files across multiple physical devices and locations
• Configure the database environment to support optimal data access performance
• Create and manage database configuration files
• Create and manage bigfile tablespaces
• Create and Manage a tablespace that uses NFS mounted file system file
• Create and manage multiple network configuration files
• Create and configure a listener
• Configure the database instance to support shared server connections
• Set up network tracing
• Manage Oracle network processes
• Configure the network environment to allow connections to multiple databases
• Use configurationless connections
• Use OPatch to install a patch
• Use Grid Infrastructure to manage oracle databases and other resources
• Use Enterprise Manager Configuration Assistant(EMCA) utility

Enterprise Manager Grid Control
• Install and Patch Enterprise Manager Grid Control software
• Configure the Enterprise Manager repository
• Create Enterprise Manager Grid Control users
• Use Enterprise Manager to modify a database configuration
• Configure Enterprise Manager to modify database availability
• Create and manage jobs
• Create and monitor alerts
• Create notifications
• Implement Grid Control and Database Control
• Choose the appropriate tablespace type for the intended use
• Create Scheduler jobs
• Create schedules
• Assign jobs to windows
• Create programs
• Create job classes
• Install the Enterprise Manager Grid Control infrastructure
• Deploy Enterprise Manager Grid Control agents
• Configure Grid Control for business requirements

Managing Database Availability
• Mantain recovery catalogs
• Configure Recovery Manager
• Use Recovery Manager to perform database backups
• Use Recover Manager to perform complete database restore and recovery operations
• Configure RMAN
• Create different types of RMAN backups to cater for different performance and retention requirements
• Set Flashback Database parameters
• Configure a Fast Recovery Area
• Perform various recovery operations using Flashback technology

Data Management
• Manage Materialized Views to improve rewrite and refresh performance
• Configure and manage distributed materialized views
• Create and Manage encrypted tablespaces
• Manage Transport of tablespaces across platforms
• Configure a schema to support a star transformation query
• Administer external tables
• Implement Data Pump export and import jobs for data transfer
• Implement Data Pump to and from remote databases
• Configure and use parallel execution for queries
• Use SQL*Loader
• Administer, manage and tune parallel execution

Data Warehouse Management
• Administer partitioned tables and indexes using appropriate methods and keys
• Perform partition maintenance operations
• Maintain indexes on a partitioned table
• Implement securefile LOB
• Create and manage LOB segments
• Implement fine-grained access control
• Create and manage contexts
• Administer flashback data archive and schema evolution

Performance Management
• Administer Resource Manager
• Use Result Cache
• Use multi column statistics
• Gather statistics on a specific table without invalidating cursors
• Use partitioned indexes
• Administer and tune schema object to support various access methods
• Interpret execution plan
• Use SQL tuning tools and features
• Use SQL Tuning Advisor
• Use SQL Access Advisor
• Use SQL Performance Analyzer
• Configure baseline templates
• Use SQL Plan Management feature
• Implement instance caging

Grid Infrastructure and ASM
• Install Oracle Grid Infrastructure
• Create ASM Disk Groups
• Create and manage an ASM instance
• Implement ASM failure groups
• Creating ACFS File System
• Start, stop, configure and administer Oracle Grid Infrastructure

Real Application Clusters
• Install the Oracle Database 11gR2 software
• Configure ASM for the shared disks and create a clustered database
• Configure archiving
• Configure services using both Manual and Policy Managed methods

Data Guard
• Create Physical Standby Database with real-time apply.
• Configure the data guard environment to reduce overheads of fast incremental backups on the primary database
• Configure the Observer
• Switchover and switch back
• Configure connect time failover
• Convert the standby to a snapshot standby
• Configure archivelog deletion policy for the Dataguard configuration

3 - Others Certifications as study strategy

One very good path to study for the OCM is taking other Oracle Certifications as a way to cover a topic. This is the way I'm doing and I recommend it. The work & study required to prepare for certification exams broadens your knowledge by exposing you to a wide variety of essential functions, features & tasks.

Getting certified also adds a lot of benefits for you and your career, as Oracle listed here.

So, what extra certifications do I recommend you to take as you study and for what topics do they prepare you?

• Oracle Database 11g Data Warehousing Certified Implementation Specialist
  • Data Management
  • Data Warehouse Management
• Oracle Database 11g Performance Tuning Certified Expert
  • Performance Management
• Oracle Certified Expert, Oracle Real Application Clusters 11g and Grid Infrastructure Administrator
  • Grid Infrastructure and ASM
  • Real Application Clusters
• Oracle Enterprise Manager 11g Certified Implementation Specialist
  • Enterprise Manager Grid Control

I hope you don't ever think in using Brain Dumps for them. Why?

1. It's illegal.
2. It will not help you and will not give you any base for any OCM skillset.
3. Every Oracle Professional knows that Brain Dumps exists. If some candidate during an interview show me some certification budget, the first thing to do is make some questions that this credential should allow him to answer. Imagine how shameful would be to him not to know basic things.

4 - Tips for the exam trip

Here are some tips that I recommend:

• Arrive some days before the exam to the city to align your biological clock, specially if your time shift is bigger than 3 hours.
• One day before the event, go to the exam place to check if the address is right, where is the room, the best way to arrive, etc.
• Don't drink any alcoholically things from 3 days before the event. Do it after the second exam day to celebrate (and do it well).
• Don't eat heavy food or any kind of food that put you stomach at risk during the exam (like fat or sea food).
• Take a good breakfast in the morning. Avoid drinking too much liquid before the exam or during the breaks. Do it after.
• Sleep for at least 8 hours before each exam day. Relax your body and your mind!
• Keep in your pocket some pills for headache that could come.
• Don't forget to take with you 2 (TWO), I said 2 (TWO) ID's. Maybe the passport and the other your driver license or your country main ID. If you don't, you will need to leave. Rules are rules, they will not be flexible with you in this point.

5 - After the event!

After you do the exam, don't talk any information about anything in the exam to the others (even if it is your best friend or your wife/husband). Why?

1. Before starting the exam you must sign a NDA (non disclosure agreement), available here, saying that you won't say or talk anything about the exam. If you don't want to sign it, you cannot do the exam and that's it, good bye. But if you do sign and if you talk to anyone about the exam, you will lose your OCM credential.
2. It's not fair to the ones who studied and worked hard to get it.
3. The value of the something is inversely proportional to how easy is to get it. If we have 100K people that are OCM and got it cheating, the ones who didn't will also be harmed. That's the case of the OCP certification today, where many people got it using Brain Dumps.

Also, that's why you usually don't see much information about the exam in the internet.

And what about the results?

• "Participants will be notified of their final score 4 - 5 weeks following the exam". So relax during that time also.
• If you pass, celebrate it, you deserve. If you didn't, don't give up. Try again! Imagine if the babies give up trying to walk after the first wrong attempt. We would have a world of people crawling around.

I'm still waiting for mine, that will be probably available by November/2015. =]

6 - The Results

After 35 long days waiting, one year of dedication and 10 years working with Oracle DB, I could not be happier with the result. Now, I'm officially an OCM 11g.

The OCP team sent the result at 5h27 UTC-2.

Soon I will receive the OCM kit by mail.

7 - External Pages that helped a lot!

• http://searchdba.blogspot.com.br/2012/11/how-to-prepare-for-oracle-certified.html
• http://gavinsoorma.com/2011/02/passing-the-11g-ocm-exam-some-thoughts/
• http://www.itcertificationmaster.com/secrets-of-database-experts/
• http://kamranagayev.com/2013/08/16/how-to-become-an-oracle-certified-master-my-ocm-journey/
• http://laurent-leturgez.com/2012/10/23/how-i-prepared-my-11g-ocm-exam/
• http://vishalorcl.blogspot.com.br/2013/08/ocm-11g-preparation.html
• http://jko-licorne.com/oracle/?page_id=526
• https://www.youtube.com/user/masterschema
• https://oraganism.wordpress.com/2013/07/06/how-eter-pani-became-oracle-certified-master/
• https://odenysenko.wordpress.com/2010/12/30/i-have-passed-ocm-10g-exam/
• http://www.pythian.com/blog/how-to-prepare-to-oracle-database-11g-certified-master-exam/
• http://www.dbajunior.com/2013/10/preparacion-para-el-examen-ocm-11g/
• http://laurentschneider.com/wordpress/2012/09/ocm-11g-upgrade.html

8 - Special Thanks

Alex Zaballa is a Brazilian Oracle OCM and ACE who gave a presentation about "How to became an Oracle Certified Master" in the GUOB Tech Day 2014. This is an OTN event that happens once a year in Brazil.

I'm very thankful to him as this was the kick off for my studies. He also gave a lot of tips that I use in many pages of this article.

He is also known as the 100+ Oracle Certifications man. Here is his webpage link where you can find much more information about him: http://alexzaballa.blogspot.com/

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