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I am not able to find concrete information about patching after install. So I have downloaded Oracle 12cR2 software from Oracle and I have successfully installed it. But now I am wondering if I need to apply the latest CPU (database and ojvm update)?

edit: So as my question state then should I apply the latest CPU (database and ojvm update) as a the first order of business after fresh install?

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  • You may also find this SE Q&A useful. – mustaccio Oct 23 '19 at 19:19
  • I am not asking about how to check installed patches. I am interested in about "fresh"-install patching need. – KaljaTolkki Oct 23 '19 at 21:22
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    I'd throw the question back -- why woulnd't you apply the latest CPU or PSU or PU, or whatever bundle strategy you are using. – EdStevens Oct 23 '19 at 21:46
  • Well, this is a part of academic exercise and then there are a real world scenario.. – KaljaTolkki Oct 23 '19 at 22:11
  • Wouldn't knowing what patches are already installed determine your decision to install more recent ones if they exist (subject to your usual patching policies)? – mustaccio Oct 23 '19 at 22:20
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Critical Patch Updates:

Critical Patch Updates are collections of security fixes for Oracle products. They are available to customers with valid support contracts. They are released on the Tuesday closest to the 17th day of January, April, July and October.

So it depends on your security patch policy.

But there are other types of patches: PSU(Patch Set Updates) and BP(Patch Bundle)

Here is the description from Oracle Database - Overview of Database Patch Delivery Methods - 12.1.0.2 and older (Doc ID 1962125.1) from https://support.oracle.com

Types of Proactive Patch (SPU / PSU / Bundle Patches)

(...)

  • Security Patch Update (SPU)
    • a cumulative collection of security fixes released as part of Oracle's Critical Patch Update (CPU) program
    • (...)
  • Patch Set Update (PSU):
    • a cumulative collection of fixes for proven high impact bugs encountered in the field
    • includes the security fixes that are released as part of the CPU program
    • guaranteed not to contain any changes to the optimizer or fixes which change application behaviour
    • (...)
  • Bundle Patch (BP)
    • a cumulative collection of fixes to address bugs in a given feature, product, or configuration
    • a superset of PSU
    • (...)

So maybe you want to patch with last PSU or BP to get fixes for bugs and mybe sume enhancements

You can download these patches only if you have a valid CSI (Customer Support Identifier)

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