Migrating Database Oracle to Microsoft SQL Server – Advantages and Challenges

In the modern data-driven business environment, there is always a rise in the costs of maintaining databases. An optimized way to keep costs in check is to take up Oracle to SQL Server migration.

Benefits of Oracle to SQL Server migration

There are several benefits of migrating databases from Oracle to Microsoft SQL Server.

First is the cost of a License where that of the Oracle database system is higher than Microsoft SQL Server. Apart from license fees, costs are kept in control in SQL Server through database consolidation, virtualization of servers, and compression of data to the extent of 10x. Further, the SQL Server database does not require command-line configuration and can be installed directly with a Setup wizard. Updates to SQL Server are downloaded automatically doing away with the need for DBAs.

A critical reason for Oracle to SQL Server migration is the high level of data safety and security offered by SQL Server. It has encrypted algorithms and all sensitive data is firewalled behind stringent permission management norms, restricting and monitoring user access.

The cost reduction factor is further enhanced by the several editions provided by SQL Server and users can choose one as per their need for features and budget. The expensive Enterprise edition has advanced features that are perfect for large organizations while the lower-priced Standard edition has lesser features and is ideal for small businesses. The free Express edition with still lesser features is good for individuals and start-ups. This tiring of features in direct proportion to fees is very helpful for businesses and saves costs of maintaining IT infrastructure substantially.

One of the cutting-edge benefits for which organizations prefer to opt for Oracle to SQL Server migration is the capability of SQL Server to recover lost data and entire databases. This is because the SQL Server main module database engine facilitates data storage as well as running queries including indexes, transactions, and files. Thus, the log records of the SQL Server are entered on the disk before a transaction is committed. In case of a database failure, transaction logs are used by the instance, and once the issue is resolved the logs are used to roll back incomplete and cut-off transactions to the same point where the outage occurred.

Finally, the operating costs of SQL Server are significantly less than the Oracle database due to the affordable partitioning and data mining features.

Despite these advantages, users often face challenges during Oracle to SQL Server migration and DBAs have to be cautious to make the process successful.

For example, before starting the migration, the database volume, the frequency of peak workloads, and other critical metrics have to be verified and the SQL Server Distributed Replay feature that replicates the workload on the load harness has to be activated.