What’s new with Oracle database 11.2.0.4.200714 versus 11.2.0.4.201020
This blogpost takes a look at the technical differences between Oracle database 11.2.0.4 PSU 200714 (july 2020) and PSU 201020 (october 2020). This gives technical specialists an idea of the differences, and gives them the ability to assess if the PSU impacts anything.
Functions
code symbol names unique in version 11.2.0.4.200714 versus 11.2.0.4.201020 NAME RESOLVE ANNOTATION ARCHIVE_OBJECT ------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ kglrfSetNiv (kgl)rfSetNiv kernel generic library cache management ?? libgeneric11.a:kgl2.o code symbol names unique in version 11.2.0.4.201020 versus 11.2.0.4.200714 NAME RESOLVE ANNOTATION ARCHIVE_OBJECT ------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ __init_0.0 __init_0.0 ?? jox_get_cbrls_lock (jox)_get_cbrls_lock java jit compiler ?? kglNivHTComp (kgl)NivHTComp kernel generic library cache management ?? libgeneric11.a:kgl2.o kglNivHTHash (kgl)NivHTHash kernel generic library cache management ?? libgeneric11.a:kgl2.o kglrfAddNivHT (kgl)rfAddNivHT kernel generic library cache management ?? libgeneric11.a:kgl2.o kglrfDestroyNivHT (kgl)rfDestroyNivHT kernel generic library cache management ?? libgeneric11.a:kgl2.o kglrfSetNivHT (kgl)rfSetNivHT kernel generic library cache management ?? libgeneric11.a:kgl2.o next_marker (n)ext_marker network ?? libjavavm11.a:jdmarker.o slrac_end_lock (slrac)_end_lock operating system (dependent) library verify (memory) read access ?? libgeneric11.a:slrac.o
This is a poor, yet one of the only ways, to understand what is going on inside the oracle executable.
There aren’t that many things removed or added. Of course this is version 11.2.0.4, for which this PSU might be the last one because of 11.2.0.4’s expiring extended support state.
Quite striking here too is the absence of all the changed libjava related functions, for which I don’t know if these function additions have anything to do with security. However, please mind I am not implying that this is not secure, I simply can’t tell.
For the added and removed functions for this version: the only function that was added in version 12.1.0.2 is slrac_end_lock, all the other changes to functions seem to be completely unique to version 11.2.0.4.
If you did read all the functions closely, you might have seen that actually there was one libjava related function changed, and that my name resolving showed its limitations, because it marked it as ‘network’. Well, it seems that certain things, like the java functions do not follow the oracle database layered naming by letters approach.
It also seems that for adding and removing functions, the functions are mainly library cache (kgl) related.
In the data dictionary there weren’t any changes spotted. Of course this overview focusses on availability of parameters and metadata (tables and their columns), for a look into the data dictionary you should look at the work of my colleague Rodrigo Jorge (dissecting the 201020 patches)
Frits Hoogland Weblog 