Exadata Jan PSU and Exalogic Echo - Also, where did the Infiniband Patches go?

If you are running Exadata and Exalogic together in the same environment, over IB, then you will want to exercise some caution when applying the January Exadata QFSDP, if your on the ECHO release of Exalogic. There is a bug on Exalogic with respect to the IB drivers (and specifically the SDP protocol) that will cause connectivity issues with Exadata. My group has run into a few problems with this already so I thought I'd post a warning here.

See MOS document 1588546.1 for more information on this.

A patch is due out for the Exalogic environment soon to correct this problem. So, until then, if you are running Exadata and Exalogic ECHO, I'd either:

1. Install the patches in the January QFSDP but do NOT install the new IB patch until the fix for Exalogic is released.

2. Wait to apply the January QFSDP until the patch is available and installed on Exalogic.

My preference is probably #2, and I've not yet fully tested option #1 so make sure you do before you implement it. 

Also, if you looked at the January QFSDP for Exadata you might have wondered what happened to the Infiniband patch? It used to be contained in the QFSDP payload by itself, but it's missing in the January release. Fear not, true believer! The Infiniband patch (which is new in January - hence the problems above) has now been moved into the Exadata Storage Cell Patch. So, you will want to review the instructions carefully and be aware of this change.

So - go out there and have a great day!