The Exadata Database Machine is the most cost-efficient and highest performance platform for running Oracle Databases. Exadata is easy to deploy even for the most mission-critical systems, as the database servers, storage servers and network are pre-configured, pre-tuned and pre-tested by Oracle experts. Extensive end-to-end testing and validation ensures all components including database software, operating system, hypervisor, drivers, firmware, work seamlessly together and that there are no performance bottlenecks or single points of failure.

All Exadata Database Machines are identically configured, therefore customers benefit from the experience of thousands of other customers’ Exadata Database Machine deployments. Customer machines are also identical to the machines Oracle Support uses for problem identification and resolution, the machines Oracle Development uses for development and testing of the Oracle Database, and the machines that run Oracle’s own public cloud services. Exadata is the most thoroughly tested and tuned platform for running Oracle Database.

Any application that uses the Oracle Database today can be seamlessly migrated to the Exadata Database Machine, with no changes to the application. Likewise, any Oracle Database can also be easily migrated off Exadata, eliminating “lock-in” concerns.

Exadata Database Machine is the most versatile database platform. The Exadata Database Machine uses powerful two socket database servers and a scale-out, intelligent storage layer that cooperates in the processing of database requests beyond just storing and shipping data. Available in three configurations, High Capacity (HC), Extreme Flash (EF), and Extended Storage (XT) to cover every storage requirement for Oracle Database. A high-bandwidth, low-latency RDMA over Converged Ethernet (RoCE) Network Fabric connects all the components inside an Exadata Database Machine. Specialized database networking protocols deliver much lower latency and higher bandwidth than is possible with generic communication protocols for faster response time for OLTP operations and higher throughput for analytic workloads.

As data volumes continue their fast growth, conventional storage arrays struggle to quickly transfer data from disk and flash to database servers at a rate that keeps the CPUs busy. Modern servers with dozens of CPU cores can consume data at many tens to hundreds of gigabytes a second. This is far faster than conventional storage arrays can deliver data through their storage controllers and the storage network. Exadata System Software enables Exadata's unparalleled performance without any of the bottlenecks of traditional storage, by implementing a unique highly efficient database-optimized storage infrastructure on the Exadata Storage Server. Each Storage Server contains CPU processors that are used to offload database processing. The CPUs in the storage servers do not replace database CPUs. Instead they accelerate database intensive workloads similar to how graphics cards accelerate image intensive workloads.

The Exadata Database Machine is engineered to provide the highest levels of availability. All types of failures are protected against from simple failures such as disk, server, or network, to complex site failures and human errors. When deployed using Oracle's Maximum Availability Architecture (MAA), Exadata has been identified by the analyst firm IDC as a system that delivers at least 5-nines availability and has been categorized in the IDC AL4 fault-tolerant market segment.¹ As a result of its industry leading availability, the Exadata Database Machine has been deployed by leading companies for their most critical applications including interbank fund transfers, online securities trading, real-time call tracking, and web-based retailing, and many more. Exadata's Mission Critical availability capabilities are not restricted to OLTP workloads; they also apply to warehousing and analytics.
¹Worldwide AL4 Server Market Shares, 2019: Fault-Tolerant Systems Become Digital Transformation Platforms, IDC, Paul Maguranis Peter Rutten, July 2020