Oracle Exadata Senior Administrator

Company: DXC Technology

Location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Business Unit: CES – ETP / Oracle Practice

Experience: 7–8 years

Role Summary

DXC Technology is seeking a Senior Oracle Exadata Administrator with deep expertise across on-premises Oracle Exadata platforms (X8M, X9M, and X10M) and Exadata Cloud Service (ExaCS/ExaCC) on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).

You will be responsible for the full lifecycle of Exadata environments, from deployment and patching to performance engineering, high availability, disaster recovery, and capacity management. The role is critical to keeping Oracle database workloads performant, secure, and resilient.

Key Responsibilities

Exadata On-Premises Administration

• Deploy, configure, and manage Exadata Database Machine racks (X8M, X9M, and X10M), including compute nodes, storage servers, InfiniBand/RoCE networking, and ILOM.
• Perform quarterly and ad hoc patching using dbaascli, exadcli, PatchMgr, and opatchauto across Grid Infrastructure, database homes, and storage cells.
• Manage Exadata storage, including cell disks, grid disks, flash cache, and persistent memory (PMEM), using CellCLI and ExaCLI.
• Configure and tune Smart Scan, Storage Indexes, Hybrid Columnar Compression (HCC), and Smart Flash Cache.
• Manage ASM disk groups, rebalancing, and storage allocation across database workloads.
• Perform firmware and component upgrades for ILOM, switches, PDUs, and InfiniBand/RoCE components.

Exadata Cloud Service and Exadata Cloud@Customer

• Provision and manage Exadata Cloud Infrastructure, VM clusters, and database homes using the OCI Console, CLI, Terraform, and REST APIs.
• Administer Exadata Cloud@Customer deployments, including infrastructure maintenance scheduling and VM cluster lifecycle activities.
• Manage OCI IAM policies, compartments, and network configurations, including VCNs, subnets, and network security groups.
• Perform scaling operations for OCPUs, storage, and nodes, and manage elastic configurations.
• Automate provisioning and lifecycle operations using the Terraform OCI provider and OCI Resource Manager.

High Availability and Disaster Recovery

• Configure and manage Oracle RAC and RAC One Node across Exadata environments.
• Implement and maintain Oracle Data Guard and Active Data Guard across on-premises and cloud environments.
• Design and test switchover and failover procedures, including disaster recovery between on-premises Exadata and ExaCS.
• Manage RMAN backup strategies, including backups to OCI Object Storage, Zero Data Loss Recovery Appliance (ZDLRA), and local Fast Recovery Areas.
• Apply Oracle Maximum Availability Architecture (MAA) practices and monitor environment readiness.

Performance Engineering and Tuning

• Monitor and optimize Exadata performance using AWR, ASH, ADDM, cell metrics, and Exadata Storage Server utilities.
• Tune Smart Scan offload ratios, I/O Resource Management (IORM), and database resource plans.
• Analyse cell server statistics, flash cache hit rates, and Storage Index efficiency using ExaWatcher and OSWatcher.
• Conduct capacity planning and workload assessments to support scaling and consolidation decisions.
• Use OCI Operations Insights and Database Management to monitor cloud-hosted Exadata environments.

Security and Compliance

• Apply Exadata security hardening in line with Oracle Maximum Security Architecture guidelines.
• Configure Transparent Data Encryption (TDE), Oracle Key Vault integration, and network encryption.
• Support Oracle Database Vault, Audit Vault, and Data Masking requirements.
• Apply security patches and relevant benchmarks in line with change management processes.

Operational Leadership

• Develop and maintain runbooks, architecture documentation, and disaster recovery test plans.
• Work with solution architects, DBA teams, and stakeholders on capacity planning and platform roadmaps.
• Provide technical guidance and mentoring to junior administrators.
• Participate in on-call support, incident management, root cause analysis, and problem management.

Required Skills and Experience

• 7–8 years of progressive experience in Oracle database and infrastructure administration, including at least 4 years focused on Exadata.
• Strong hands-on experience with on-premises Exadata X-series platforms, including CellCLI, ExaCLI, dbaascli, ILOM, and InfiniBand/RoCE networking.
• Experience with Exadata Cloud Service (ExaCS) or Exadata Cloud@Customer (ExaCC) on OCI.
• Deep knowledge of Oracle RAC, ASM, Data Guard, and RMAN in Exadata environments.
• Strong understanding of Smart Scan, Storage Indexes, HCC, Smart Flash Cache, and PMEM.
• Experience with the Exadata patching lifecycle and tools such as opatchauto, PatchMgr, and dbaascli.
• Experience with Oracle Database 19c and 23ai on Exadata.
• Working knowledge of Oracle Linux or RHEL, shell scripting, and Python for automation.
• Strong understanding of Exadata networking, including InfiniBand, RoCE, client and backup networks, and VLANs.
• Ability to produce clear operational documentation and communicate effectively with technical and business stakeholders.

Preferred Skills

• Oracle Exadata Database Machine Administrator, Oracle Database Administration, or OCI Architect certification.
• Experience with Oracle Enterprise Manager (OEM) 13c Cloud Control for Exadata monitoring and management.
• Experience using Terraform with the OCI provider to automate ExaCS or ExaCC provisioning.
• Experience with Oracle GoldenGate for real-time replication.
• Knowledge of Oracle Autonomous Database on Dedicated Exadata Infrastructure.
• Experience with Oracle Zero Data Loss Recovery Appliance (ZDLRA).
• Familiarity with OCI Operations Insights, Database Management, and Performance Hub.
• Experience with database consolidation and multitenant CDB/PDB architectures on Exadata.
• ITIL Foundation certification or equivalent service management knowledge.
• Experience in managed services or consulting delivery environments.

What We Are Looking For

We are looking for a hands-on Exadata specialist who can take ownership of complex environments, diagnose performance and availability issues, and work confidently across on-premises and OCI platforms. You should be comfortable leading technical activities, documenting your work, and collaborating with teams responsible for critical database services.