With Oracle 11.2.0.4 going off of free extended support on December 31st, 2018, and Oracle 12.1.0.2 on July 31st, 2019, a lot of database upgrades to Oracle 12.2 have been completed, planned, or are in progress. One of the things often overlooked is installing the newer Oracle client software on application servers to replace the existing older version of Oracle client software. This whitepaper is meant to guide you through the 12.2 client installation along with the installation options, that usually satisfies most application needs.
Before you begin, you’ll need an Oracle account to download the software. If you don’t have one, be sure to create one. Your server or workstation will also need about 2.5GB available to download the software and unzip it, and you’ll need around 1.5GB of space on the location where the software is going to be installed.
When installing a new client, you do not have to uninstall the existing software first. It’s fine to have multiple versions installed on a server at the same time. You can control which version will be used by modifying the Windows environment variables, “Path” and “TNS_ADMIN”.
You’ll need to read and accept the OTN License Agreement, then click “Accept License Agreement” before you can download any software.
After accepting the OTN License Agreement, scroll down and select the client software you need, either (x64) or (32-bit). Even though your server might be (x64), some software still requires the (32-bit) client software. In this case, you’d want to install the (32-bit). You’re looking for one of these.
When you click one of the Client software links, you’ll then be prompted to log into Oracle with your account. Once you sign in, the download should begin.
For this whitepaper, I’ll be installing the (x64) version on my server. This server currently has two other Oracle home versions installed on it. Note: If you are installing the (32-bit) version, the screens and options are the same.
When the download has completed, go to the directory where the file is and unzip the software. You can unzip the software where it’s at, or to another temporary location if needed.
After the software has been unzipped, double-click the “setup.exe” file which will be in the “client” directory. Then following the below screenshots.
I prefer to always choose “Custom”. This way I know everything needed will be installed.
Set the path that’s appropriate for your environment.
If you’re unsure of exactly what components you need to install, I like to always install all these at a minimum. These will usually meet most database connection needs as well as potential future needs.
Once the installation successfully completes, you’re ready to go. You’ll want to copy your tnsnames.ora file from your existing Oracle client software, which will be located in networkadmin, and copy it to the new software that you just installed, which in this example would be d:apporacleproduct12.2.0client_1networkadmin.
You’ll also want to make sure that your server or workstation’s environment variables are configured to use the new software. The two variables are “Path” and “TNS_ADMIN”. If you didn’t have any Oracle software installed previously, then these will be automatically setup when you installed the software. If you have other Oracle versions installed, you’ll just want to make sure your new software locations for each variable is listed first.
After you have everything setup and configured, you can run a “tnsping” test to ensure your new software is being used and your tnsnames.ora file is correct. To do this, open up a Command Prompt window, and type: tnsping . Verify the path listed under “used parameter files” is your new software location.
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