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Features and Licensing

Oracle Database 23ai is available on Oracle Database Appliance, Oracle Exadata Database Machine, Autonomous Database, Exadata Database Service, Exadata Database Service on Exascale Infrastructure, Exadata Cloud@Customer, and Base Database Service. Oracle Exadata Database Service and Autonomous Database are available on OCI, Azure, Google Cloud, and AWS. Go to https://oracle.com/database/free to try Oracle Database 23ai for free!

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Features Report

Feature11.212.112.218c19c21c23ai

.NET Cloud Development and Deployment

Database Overall → Windows

With ODP.NET, Managed and Unmanaged Drivers can be deployed easily to common hosted and third-party cloud environments through Web deploy. All ODP.NET specific settings no longer require any operating system level configuration. These settings can be made in the .NET configuration files. Managed and Unmanaged ODP.NET Drivers now share a unified configuration file format.

12.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

.NET Metrics

Application Development → .NET

.NET Metrics are application numerical measurements collected at regular time intervals for the purposes of monitoring and alerting about application health. In an ODP.NET setting, metrics can monitor connection statistics, such as number of ODP.NET hard connections to the database, number of active connections, or number of free connections.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

3D Visualization Framework

Application Development → Spatial

This release includes a set of metadata tables to describe themes, scenes, textures, viewpoints, light sources, non-geographic data, and other elements used to visualize three-dimensional (3D) content. It also delivers a number of performance improvements to the 3D analysis operations.

11.2 Release
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

4K Sectors and Metadata Enhancements for Oracle ACFS

Database Overall → ACFS

Oracle ACFS supports I/O requests in multiples of 4096-byte logical sector sizes as well as providing continued support for 512-byte logical sector size I/O requests. Oracle ACFS also adds support for creating Oracle ACFS file systems with 4096-byte (4KB) sized metadata structures. A new Oracle ACFS make file system switch enables you to format an Oracle ACFS file system with 4096-byte metadata structures composed of multiple 512-byte logical sectors on Oracle Automatic Storage Management Dynamic Volume Manager (Oracle ADVM) volumes. Oracle ACFS metadata I/O is also in 4K multiples.

12.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS Auto Resize Variable Threshold

Database Overall → ACFS

ACFS auto resize now allows you to configure the threshold percentage for your file system automatic resize.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS Cross Version Replication

Database Overall → ACFS

ACFS replication now allows for primary clusters to replicate to standby cluster on a previous or older release.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS Encryption Migration from OCR to OKV

Database Overall → ACFS

ACFS Encryption now allows you to migrate from OCR to OKV.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS Replication Password-less SSH Setup Tool

Database Overall → ACFS

A new tool provides users the ability to configure SSH keys management for ACFS Replication.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS Replication Switchover

Database Overall → ACFS

A new command, acfsutil repl switchover, provides a coordinated failover. However, if ACFS cannot establish contact the replication primary site, the command will fail.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS SSH-less Replication

Database Overall → ACFS

This feature provides an alternative transport choice for ACFS Replication which eliminates the need to maintain ssh-related host and user keys.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS Snapshots RMAN Sparse Backup and Restore

Database Overall → ACFS

You can now back up and restore PDB snapshot copies on ACFS.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS Sparse Backup and Restore of Snapshots

Database Overall → ACFS

The acfsutil snap duplicate command can now generate a backup of an entire ACFS file systems and its snapshots, while preserving its sparseness.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFS, ADVM and Snapshots on Solaris and AIX

Database Overall → ACFS

Oracle ACFS, Oracle ASM Dynamic Volume Manager (Oracle ADVM) and Snapshots were delivered in Oracle Database 11g Release 2 (11.2.0.1) on Windows NT and Linux platforms.

11.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2.0.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ACFSutil plogconfig Log Files Wrapping Info

Database Overall → ACFS

ACFSutil plogconfig offers you a way to manage persistent logging configuration settings. acfsutil plogconfig -q will now offer you additional information on whether the logs have wrapped or not. You can also get this information with acfsutil plogconfig -w, which will offer only this information and not all the comprehensive information offered by acfsutil plogconfig -q.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ADMINISTER KEY MANAGEMENT Statement Now Protected by Oracle Database Vault Command Rules

Security → Encryption

You now can protect the ADMINISTER KEY MANAGEMENT statement with Oracle Database Vault command rules. 

21c ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Database Vault
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AES-XTS Encryption Mode Support for TDE Tablespace Encryption

Security → Encryption

Transparent Database Encryption (TDE) tablespace encryption now supports Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) XTS (XEX-based mode with ciphertext stealing mode) in CREATE TABLESPACE statements. Earlier versions of Oracle Database TDE used AES-CFB cipher mode.

23ai ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Advanced Security
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AI Vector Search: Arithmetic and Aggregate Operations

Artificial Intelligence → AI Vector Search

Just as you can add (+), subtract (-), or multiply (*) dates, timestamps, intervals, and numbers, you can now apply these arithmetic operators to vectors. The arithmetic operation is performed at each dimensional element of the vectors. It's also possible to calculate the SUM or AVG of a set of vectors.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23.7

AI Vector Search: New Vector Distance Metric

Artificial Intelligence → AI Vector Search

AI Vector Search was extended in 23.6 to include a new vector distance metric called Jaccard distance.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23.6

AI Vector Search: Optimizer

Artificial Intelligence → AI Vector Search

This functionality adds support to the Optimizer to use indexes built on the new Vector data type rather than doing full table scans.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AI Vector Search: PL/SQL

Artificial Intelligence → AI Vector Search

This functionality adds a new vector type to the PL/SQL type system, along with a set of vector operations useful for performing similarity searches on sets of vectors.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AI Vector Search: SQL Execution

Artificial Intelligence → AI Vector Search

AI Vector Search SQL Execution adds SQL execution support for vector indexes built on vector columns inside the database. In addition, it provides support for SQL Functions related to the vector type and allow for row level restriction capabilities in SQL queries for partitions.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AL32UTF8 As the Default Database Character Set

Application Development → Globalization

The AL32UTF8 character set is now the default for the database character set in Oracle Database installs and in the Database Configuration Assistant (DBCA). Previously, the default database character set was based on the operating system locale setting. That is now offered as a secondary choice.

12.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AQ Rules Engine Fast Evaluation of SYS_CONTEXT and Other Predicates

Application Development → AQ

AQ rules engine has been enhanced to provide faster evaluation of expressions such as BITAND, CEIL, FLOOR, LENGTH, POWER, CONCAT, LOWER, UPPER, INSTR, SYS_CONTEXT, and UID.

12.1 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASM Cluster File System (ACFS)

Database Overall → ACFS

The ASM Cluster File System (ACFS) extends Automatic Storage Management (ASM) by providing a robust, modern, general purpose file system for files beyond the Oracle database files. ACFS provides support for files such as Oracle binaries, report files, trace files, alert logs, and other application data files. With the addition of the Oracle ASM Cluster File System, ASM becomes a complete storage management solution for both Oracle database and non-database files. ACFS supports large files with 64-bit file and file system data structure sizes leading to exabyte-capable file and file system capacities. ACFS scales to hundreds of nodes and uses extent-based storage allocation for improved performance. A log-based metadata transaction engine is used for file system integrity and fast recovery. The ACFS on-disk structure supports endian neutral metadata. ACFS file systems can be exported to remote clients through industry standard protocols such as NFS and CIFS.

11.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASM Data Reliability Enhancements

Database Overall → ASM

This enhancements represents two changes. The first extends the default disk failure timeout interval (DISK_REPAIR_TIME) from 3.6 hours to 12 hours. In many environments, 12 hours is better suited for safe guarding against data loss because of multiple disk failures, and at the same time, reducing unnecessary overhead from prematurely dropping a disk during a transient failure. The second enhancement provides a new Disk Group Attribute called CONTENT_HARDCHECK.ENABLED that allows optionally enabling or disabling Hardware Assisted Redundancy Data (HARD) checking in Exatadata environments.

18c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASM Database Cloning

Database Overall → ASM

ASM database cloning provides cloning of Multitenant databases (PDBs). This feature works by leveraging ASM redundancy. Previously, as a protection against data loss during hardware failure, ASM provided up to two additional redundant copies of a file's extents. Flex Disk Groups now can provide up to five redundant copies, in which one or more of the copies can be split off to provide a near instantaneous replica.

18c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASM Dynamic Volume Manager (DVM)

Database Overall → ASM

The ASM Dynamic Volume Manager (DVM) is a kernel-loadable device driver that provides a standard device driver interface to clients (for example, ACFS). File systems or other processes can do I/O to this device driver as they would to any other disk device driver on the system. DVM is the primary I/O interface for ACFS to perform I/O and build a file system leveraging ASM as a volume manager. DVM is loaded on ASM start up. The device driver is cluster-aware and communicates with ASM for extent map information, extent rebalancing, and I/O failures.

11.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASM FS Snapshot

Database Overall → ASM

ASM FS Snapshot is a point-in-time copy of a file system and can provide up to 64 snapshot images. ASM FS Snapshot performs fast creation of persistent ASM FS images at a specific point-in-time with low overhead leveraging the Copy on Write technology. Read-only ASM FS Snapshots can be generated on an interval basis. They may reside in existing ASM FS storage or in an additional storage device and persist following a system restart.

11.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASM Intelligent Data Placement

Database Overall → ASM

Disk drives have higher transfer rates and bytes per track on the outer tracks. This makes it preferable to keep the hotter data closer to the edge of the disk; that is, the lower numbered blocks. This feature enables ASM to identify higher performance disk regions. Most frequently accessed ASM files can be marked to be moved into the hot region and take advantage of higher I/O performance (for example, hot tablespaces and indices) and able to better meet the application I/O demand. This feature is only applicable when whole physical disks are presented to ASM versus local unit numbers (LUN).

11.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASM Storage Management Configuration Assistant

Database Overall → ASM

ASM Storage Management Configuration Assistant was previously known as Enterprise Manager Integration with ASM Optimal Disk Placement. This release now allows the configuration, monitoring, and management of Optimal Disk Placement with Enterprise Manager which is the graphical user interface (GUI) for management.

11.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

ASMCMD Command Extensions

Database Overall → ACFS

The ASMCMD tool is extended to include management of ASM disks, disk groups, and ASM instance in addition to managing ASM files. This is a comprehensive command-line interface that parallels the SQL*Plus command functionality and provides an easy user interface for the system and storage administrators to manage ASM.

11.2 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AUTOTASK_MAX_ACTIVE_PDBS Initialization Parameter

Database Overall → Pluggable Databases

The AUTOTASK_MAX_ACTIVE_PDBS initialization parameter enables you to specify the maximum number of pluggable databases (PDBs) that can schedule automated maintenance tasks at the same time (during a maintenance window).

12.2 ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Multitenant
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

AWR_PDB_AUTOFLUSH_ENABLED Initialization Parameter

Database Overall → Pluggable Databases

The AWR_PDB_AUTOFLUSH_ENABLED initialization parameter enables you to specify whether to enable or disable Automatic Workload Repository (AWR) snapshots for all of the pluggable databases (PDBs) in a multitenant container database (CDB) or for individual PDBs in a CDB.

12.2 ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Multitenant
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability of OCI and Instant Client to Directly Retrieve Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) OAuth2 Tokens

Security → Authentication

Oracle Call Interface (OCI) and Oracle Database Instant Client now can retrieve a Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) OAuth2 token directly from Entra ID instead of relying on a separate script or process to retrieve the token first. This design improves the interactive flow between the database server and the client when users connect to the database (for example with SQL*Plus).

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Configure Transport Layer Security Connections Without Client Wallets

Security → Encryption

An Oracle Database client is no longer required to provide a wallet to hold well-known CA root certificates if they are available in the local system. The Oracle Database wallet search order determines the location (Windows (Microsoft Certificate Store) or Linux) of these certificates in the local system. Transport Layer Security (TLS) requires either one-way authentication or two-way authentication. In one-way TLS authentication, which is commonly used for HTTPS connections, you will no longer need to install and configure a client wallet to hold the server's CA certificate as long as it is already available in the local system. If the server's CA certificate is not installed in the local systems, client wallet is still required. Starting in this release, you no longer need to install and configure a wallet to hold a well-known root certificate if it is already available in the local system.

23ai ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Control Heartbeats in United Mode and Isolated Mode PDBs

Security → Core Security

You now can control the size of the batch of heartbeats that use Oracle Key Vault or OCI KMS (OCI Vault) for centralized key management. The HEARTBEAT_BATCH_SIZE initialization parameter, new with this release, enables you to set the heartbeat batch size. The duration of the heartbeat period defaults to 3 seconds.

21c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Create Schema Only Accounts

Security → Core Security

You now can create schema only accounts, for object ownership without allowing clients to log in to the schema.

18c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Create a Duplicate of an Oracle Database Using DBCA in Silent Mode

Database Overall → Install

You can now create a duplicate of an Oracle Database by using the createDuplicateDB command of Database Configuration Assistant (DBCA) in silent mode.

19c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Create a Keystore for Each Pluggable Database

Database Overall → Pluggable Databases

Each pluggable database (PDB) now can have its own keystore, instead of there being only one keystore for the entire container database (CDB). Each PDB keystore can have its own password in addition to having its own master encryption key. The advantage of this feature is that it enables independent key management operations to be performed by each tenant (PDB) in a multitenant environment rather than having to share a keystore at the CDB root level. This feature benefits both multitenant and non-multitenant environments because it provides parameters to facilitate the configuration of the keystore location and the keystore type, eliminating the need for editing the sqlnet.ora file. This feature continues to support existing behavior where PDBs share a single keystore with the container database (CDB). This feature further allows some PDBs to share the keystore with the container database (CDB) and some PDBs to have their own keystores.

18c Release
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Create a PDB by Cloning a Remote PDB Using DBCA in Silent Mode

Database Overall → Pluggable Databases

You can now create a pluggable database (PDB) by cloning a remote PDB using the createFromRemotePDB parameter of the createPluggableDatabase command of Database Configuration Assistant (DBCA) in silent mode.

19c ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Multitenant
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Create a User-Defined Master Encryption Key

Security → Encryption

This release introduces the ability to create a user-defined master encryption key, also known as "bring your own key." To create the user-defined key, you supply your own master key identification value when you create the master encryption key by using the ADMINISTER KEY MANAGEMENT SET [ENCRYPTION] KEY or ADMINISTER KEY MANAGEMENT CREATE [ENCRYPTION] KEY statements. This enhancement applies to master encryption keys that are used in software keystores only, not hardware keystores. It can be used in non-multitenant, standalone environments and in multitenant environments.

18c ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Advanced Security
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Encrypt Sensitive Credential Data in the Data Dictionary

Security → Encryption

Starting with this release, you can encrypt sensitive credential data that is stored in the data dictionary SYS.LINK$ and SYS.SCHEDULER$_CREDENTIAL system tables.

18c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Grant or Revoke Administrative Privileges to and from Schema-Only Accounts

Security → Core Security

You can grant administrative privileges, such as SYSOPER and SYSBACKUP, to schema-only (passwordless) accounts.

19c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Prevent Local Oracle Database Vault Policies from Blocking Common Operations

Security → Database Vault

Starting with this release, a DV_OWNER common user in the CDB root can prevent local users from creating Oracle Database Vault controls on common objects in a pluggable database (PDB).

21c ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Database Vault
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Relocate a PDB to Another CDB Using DBCA in Silent Mode

Database Overall → Pluggable Databases

You can now relocate a pluggable database (PDB) to another multitenant container database (CDB) by using the relocatePDB command of Database Configuration Assistant (DBCA) in silent mode.

19c ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Multitenant
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Set Tracing Using Oracle Database Vault APIs

Security → Database Vault

You now can use two Oracle Database Vault APIs to control system level tracing which applies to all database sessions. These new APIs are as follows: DBMS_MACADM.SET_TRACE_LEVEL and DBMS_MACUTL.GET_TRACE_LEVEL.

23ai ReleaseAvailable with Oracle Database Vault
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Set the Default Tablespace Encryption Algorithm

Security → Encryption

You now can set the TABLESPACE_ENCRYPTION_DEFAULT_ALGORITHM dynamic parameter to define the default encryption algorithm for tablespace creation operations. For example, if you set TABLESPACE_ENCRYPTION_DEFAULT_ALGORITHM to AES256, then future tablespace creation operations will use AES256 as the default encryption algorithm. TABLESPACE_ENCRYPTION_DEFAULT_ALGORITHM applies to both offline and online tablespace encryption operations. In addition, when you create a new database using Database Configuration Assistant (DBCA), you can set the default tablespace encryption algorithm by using the DBCA command line for silent installations.

21c Release
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Specify NFS Version in Direct NFS Client

Database Overall → Direct NFS

The NFS_VERSION parameter allows the user to specify the NFS protocol to be used by Direct NFS Client. Possible values are nfsv3, nfsv4, and nfsv4.1. If no version is specified, nfsv3 is used by default.

12.1 ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Specify the Location of the CMU Wallet and dsi.ora File with a Database Property

Security → Encryption

You now can specify the location of the centrally managed users (CMU) wallet and dsi.ora files for an individual PDB by using a database property on the PDB.

21c Release
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai

Ability to Use Encrypted Passwords for Database Links with Oracle Data Pump

Security → Audit

The behavior for handling database link passwords has changed in this release. Passwords in database links are now encrypted. Oracle Data Pump handles the export and import of these passwords. Import operations from older versions and export operations to older versions can still be used.

18c ReleaseAll Offerings
11.2
12.1
12.2
18c
19c
21c
23ai