An automated process that refreshes a Development database from Production by doing a RMAN duplicate failed with ‘RMAN-06403: could not obtain a fully authorized session’:

Starting Duplicate Db at 25-JUL-2017 17:44
RMAN-00571: ===========================================================
RMAN-00569: =============== ERROR MESSAGE STACK FOLLOWS ===============
RMAN-00571: ===========================================================
RMAN-03002: failure of Duplicate Db command at 07/25/2017 17:44:46
RMAN-05501: aborting duplication of target database
RMAN-06403: could not obtain a fully authorized session
RMAN-04006: error from auxiliary database: ORA-01034: ORACLE not available
ORA-27101: shared memory realm does not exist
Linux-x86_64 Error: 2: No such file or directory
Additional information: 3651
Additional information: 1054940735

 

This was initially puzzling as nothing appeared to have changed.  A ‘My Oracle Support’ (MOS) search, revealed the following MOS note:

Duplicating database using RMAN fails with errors RMAN-06403, RMAN-04006, ORA-01034, ORA-27101 (Doc ID 274233.1)

“CAUSE

The errors are occurring because the auxiliary database is not started in nomount state.

SOLUTION

The auxiliary instance must be in a nomount state during duplication of database using RMAN.

Startup the auxiliary instance in nomount state.  Then try to duplicate the database again.

SQL> connect / as sysdba
startup nomount;

Also you have to verify the following:

1. Ensure that the ORACLE_SID and ORACLE_HOME were set correctly when starting the auxiliary instance.  Especially any additional backslash at the end of the ORACLE_HOME can cause mismatches

2. Verify that the ORACLE_HOME directory is not a linked directory.
Make a hard copy of the init.ora in the ORACLE_HOME/dbs directory.

3. Double check the ‘listener.ora’ and ‘tnsnames.ora’ for correctness.”

 

The database was in nomount state started with a basic pfile:

*.db_name=V1DEV
*.db_unique_name=V1DEV

 

But upon checking point 3, I noticed the static listener registration that is required as the database is in nomount and thus doesn’t register with the listener had the wrong home:

SID_LIST_LISTENER =
 (SID_LIST =
 (SID_DESC =
 (SID_NAME = V1DEV1)
 (GLOBAL_DBNAME = V1DEV)
 (ORACLE_HOME = /u01/app/oracle/product/12.1.0.2/dbhome_1)
 )
 )

 

I recently changed the Oracle Home to use the dbhome_2 Oracle Home, so that the Development databases were not locked in with the DR databases using the dbhome_1 Oracle Home.  This allows for independent patching between the Oracle Homes, which allows soak testing of patches in Development before applying to Production:

Cloning an Oracle Home

 

Once this was changed:

SID_LIST_LISTENER =
 (SID_LIST =
 (SID_DESC =
 (SID_NAME = V1DEV1)
 (GLOBAL_DBNAME = V1DEV)
 (ORACLE_HOME = /u01/app/oracle/product/12.1.0.2/dbhome_2)
 )
 )

 

It started working again 🙂 :

Starting Duplicate Db at 26-JUL-2017 11:38
allocated channel: ORA_AUX_DISK_1
channel ORA_AUX_DISK_1: SID=515 device type=DISK
allocated channel: ORA_AUX_DISK_2
channel ORA_AUX_DISK_2: SID=1475 device type=DISK
allocated channel: ORA_AUX_DISK_3
channel ORA_AUX_DISK_3: SID=643 device type=DISK
allocated channel: ORA_AUX_DISK_4
channel ORA_AUX_DISK_4: SID=835 device type=DISK
current log archived

 

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Thanks

Zed DBA (Zahid Anwar)