Oracle Linux and Oracle Virtualization
Hardware Certification
Program
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Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ)
Section 1: General
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What is the purpose of the Oracle Linux and Oracle Virtualization
Server Hardware Certification Program?
The Oracle Linux and Oracle Virtualization
Server Hardware Certification Program enables established
partners to qualify their systems for Oracle Linux and
Oracle Virtualization using an Oracle supplied
certification test kit.
The output of this program is the
Hardware Compatibility List (HCL). This list documents
server environments certified for Oracle Linux
featuring the Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK). Bare
metal servers certified for Oracle Linux are also
certified for Virtualization enabled by the Linux Kernel-based
Virtual Machine (KVM) feature of Oracle Linux. More
details can be found on the Oracle Virtualization tab
of the HCL site.
Through this certification, Oracle and our partners
help ensure that both parties are equipped to provide
collaborative support to customers running Oracle Linux
and Oracle Virtualization environments.
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What is the difference between a "Certified for Joint Support"
HCL status and a "Certified for Oracle Support" HCL status?
Certified for Joint Support: Oracle Linux
was tested on the server environment with the participation
and/or approval of the server environment partner, and
both Oracle and the partner fully support the environment.
Customers deploying Oracle Linux on these server environments
benefit from streamlined joint support. If a customer
with an Oracle Linux Support subscription encounters
any problem with Oracle Linux that involves the underlying
server environment, the customer can open a service
request with Oracle Support.
Certified for Oracle Support: Oracle Linux
was tested with the same standards as Certified for
Joint Support and Oracle fully supports Oracle Linux
on these server environments; however, a collaborative
support program is not in place with the partner for
this server environment, and the partner may not consider
this a supported environment. Oracle Linux support subscriptions
are available to customers and Oracle will provide support
for the server environment, but a resolution to issues
related to underlying drivers or other platform-specific
issues cannot be guaranteed.
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What is the version number convention for the Unbreakable
Enterprise Kernel (UEK)?
The version number convention can change with each
major release of UEK. The convention for the most recent
UEK 8 release is explained here. This convention applies
to the UEK 7 release as well.
Using the following UEK 8 kernel version as an example,
6.12.0-6.35.5.el9uek:
6.12.0 |
Indicates the upstream Linux
kernel version, 6.12, on which UEK 8 is based
upon, and where kABI compatibility is maintained.
This string remains unchanged throughout the
UEK 8 life cycle. |
-6 |
The range 0-99 indicate this
is the initial release of UEK R8. A value in
the range 100-199 indicates the first update,
UEK 8.1, a value in the range 200-299 indicates
the second update, UEK 8.2, on so on. This value
will increment with each monthly errata where,
for instance, 6 indicates the sixth monthly
errata after the initial release of UEK 8. A
value of 305 would indicate the fifth monthly
errata to UEK 8.3.
Monthly errata are released between updates.
Monthly errata include fixes, security errata,
driver updates, and synchronization with the
upstream Long Term Support (LTS) branch. Updates
can include minor new features, new drivers,
and general stability improvements. Every effort
is made to maintain kABI compatibility in updates
and errata with earlier UEK 8 releases. |
.35 |
Indicates the LTS branch with
which this build is synchronized. For example,
upstream stable tree 6.12.35 content is delivered
in UEK 6.12.0-x.35.z. |
.5 |
Indicates interim builds since
the last monthly errata or update. |
.el9uek |
This UEK kernel is configured
for Oracle Linux 9. |
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Where are the qualified servers published?
Certified servers environments are published on the
Oracle Linux and Oracle Virtualization
Hardware Certification List (HCL), and on the corresponding
partner websites.
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What are the requirements for getting published on the Oracle
Linux HCL web site?
Participants must meet the following criteria to
be eligible to publish certified server environments
on the Oracle Linux and Oracle Virtualization
HCL website.
To receive a qualification status of Certified
for Joint Support,
- The certification effort must be performed
by the partner with Oracle's approval, and
- Partner must have an established partnership
with Oracle that provides for joint support,
and
- Test results must be audited by Oracle,
and
- Partner must publish results in the support
matrix on their website within two weeks of
Oracle approving the results.
To receive a qualification status of Certified
for Oracle Support,
- Partner must have an established business
relationship with Oracle, and
- The certification effort must be performed
by the partner with Oracle's approval, and
- Results must be submitted to and audited
by Oracle.
Section 2: Server Environment Certification
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Can customers get support for a system that is not on the
server certification list?
The
HCL is always expanding. If the desired server meets
the minimum requirements for the Oracle Linux release
you want to deploy but the server is not listed on the
HCL, Oracle will accept severity 2 or lower service
requests (SR). However, a resolution to issues with
hardware drivers, firmware, or other hardware-specific
issues cannot be guaranteed.
Work on the SR will continue normally unless or until
it is determined that a resolution requires Oracle to
engage with the partner vendor.
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If the partner participates in the HCL program
Oracle will ask for their assistance to deliver
a resolution; the SR will be closed and a severity
2 enhancement request will be opened to track progress
with the vendor. Partners that participate in the
HCL program are represented on the HCL site.
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If the partner vendor declines
our request for assistance, or the partner does
not participate in the HCL program, the SR will
be closed.
A resolution can take weeks or longer and is not
guaranteed when the issue involves systems that are
not certified or partners that don't participate in
the HCL program.
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For servers on the HCL, does certification apply to all
hardware components available for that server?
For servers already on the certified list, requests
to support a specific component or peripheral (such
as a specific NIC or CNA) that was not included with
the initial certification will be evaluated by Oracle
and the hardware vendor as an enhancement request. Resolution
is dependent upon the server hardware vendor and, therefore,
cannot be guaranteed.
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I understand that Oracle Linux comes packaged with
two kernels— the Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel, and the
Red Hat compatible kernel. Are both kernels certified with
a system that is on the HCL ?
The Oracle Linux and Oracle Virtualization
Server Hardware Certification Program certifies servers
for Oracle Linux featuring UEK. All certification
testing is performed with UEK by partners using a certification
test kit provided by Oracle.
Certification of Oracle Linux with the RHEL-compatible
kernel (RHCK) is not necessary because Oracle Linux
is 100% application binary compatible with Red Hat Enterprise
Linux. For example, a system certified with Red Hat
Enterprise Linux 9 is inherently certified for Oracle Linux
9 with RHCK. For a list of systems certified with Oracle Linux
running RHCK, please see the
Red Hat hardware catalog.
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What is Oracle Virtualization?
Oracle Virtualization is a unique enterprise-grade
server virtualization solution that bundles KVM virtualization
and management capabilities along with access to automation,
Oracle Ksplice for zero-downtime updates, and Oracle
Linux all in one support subscription.
It’s built on two core components—Oracle Linux KVM
for compute and Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager
for management.
The Oracle Linux KVM hypervisor is certified
during the Oracle Linux certification process,
therefore entries for Oracle Linux KVM and Oracle Linux
are not listed separately in the HCL. Bare metal servers
certified with Oracle Linux are inherently certified
to run as an Oracle Virtualization host.
Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager (OLVM) is
a free, open-source management interface to Oracle Virtualization.
Oracle offers full support for OLVM, which is based
on the oVirt community project.
For information about the operating system requirements
of hosts that can be managed by Oracle Linux Virtualization
Manager (OLVM), refer to the
OLVM documentation in the Oracle Linux Documentation
Library. See the
Oracle Virtualization site for an overview of the
Oracle Virtualization solution.
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Which versions of Oracle Linux support Oracle Virtualization?
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Which servers are certified for Oracle Virtualization?
Beginning with Oracle Linux 7.6 and UEK 5.2
(aka UEK R5 Update 2), all certified servers are inherently
certified as Oracle Virtualization compute hosts.
Refer to the
OLVM documentation for current compute host requirements.
Storage and component vendors may independently elect
to validate their products with Oracle Virtualization
and OLVM using their own in-house certification tools
to confirm compatibility with their products. This is
not an Oracle requirement.
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