Oracle to SQL Server Migration of Very Large Database (VLDB) with Minimal Downtime

Client Stories

Blue Crystal Solutions achieved a seamless Oracle to SQL Server VLDB migration with minimal downtime, cost optimisation, and data integrity, using top cloud migration best practices.

Navigating the VLDB from Oracle to SQL Server complexity

The client engaged Blue Crystal Solutions (Blue Crystal) to undertake a complex migration of their Very Large Database (VLDB) from Oracle to SQL Server, emphasising minimising downtime and ensuring uninterrupted business operations. This project required a strategic approach to comparing IT vendors and carefully selecting enterprise IT cost optimisation strategies to ensure efficiency and effective resource management throughout the migration.

The Blue Crystal Solution

Blue Crystal developed a tailored solution using Microsoft Visual Studio and SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT), which included creating SSIS packages to manage data transfer from Oracle to SQL Server. To ensure cloud migration best practices for enterprises, these packages were executed ahead of the final cutover, allowing a large portion of the data to be transferred in advance. Meanwhile, the application processed backlogs of CSV source files, keeping both databases synchronised up to the cutover.

Data Consistency and Integrity

Due to regulatory requirements around data protection regulations compliance in IT, the migration process included strict data cleansing protocols. This was essential to maintaining data integrity between Oracle and SQL Server, as each system handles character case sensitivity uniquely. Blue Crystal’s SSIS packages detected and flagged “dirty data” that required adjustments within the Oracle database, ensuring accurate data processing on SQL Server.

Handling Data Volume Limitations

Given the extensive data volume, including tables with over a billion rows, Blue Crystal implemented dynamic partitioning within SSIS packages. This selective import strategy handled IT infrastructure management tools comparison challenges and optimised the overall migration time by allowing parallel execution of multiple SSIS packages. This approach effectively bypassed limitations in the SSIS project while ensuring a smooth and efficient process.

Results and Benefits

The project was completed with minimal downtime, allowing the client to seamlessly transition to SQL Server. The strategic use of cost optimisation and vendor comparison enabled Blue Crystal to deliver a migration solution that balanced performance and compliance, making it a success story in database migration with very limited business impact.

Learn more about the services that enabled this success story.

Oracle, Sql server

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Blue Crystal Solutions: your trusted & innovative IT partner.

Australian owned and operated since 2004, we provide information technology services locally, nationally and beyond.

We are a specialised supplier of Cloud, Application, Database & Infrastructure, Operating System Management, Modernisation and Transformation services. With security at the forefront of everything we do, all your services are fortified by our integrated outage protection and monitoring tool, BlueDiamond.