Microsoft and Oracle partnership allows greater choice

Oracle and Microsoft have entered into a new partnership that will help customers embrace cloud computing by providing greater choice and flexibility in deploying Oracle software.

Here are the key elements of the partnership:

Effective today, customers can run supported Oracle software on Windows Server Hyper-V and in Windows Azure

Effective today, Oracle provides licence mobility for customers who want to run Oracle software on Windows Azure

Microsoft will add Infrastructure Services instances with popular configurations of Oracle software including Java, Oracle Database and Oracle WebLogic Server to the Windows Azure image gallery

Microsoft will offer fully licenced and supported Java in Windows Azure

Oracle will offer Oracle Linux, with a variety of Oracle software, as preconfigured instances on Windows Azure

Oracle’s strategy and commitment is to support multiple platforms, and Microsoft Windows has long been an important supported platform. Oracle is now extending that support to Windows Server Hyper-V and Window Azure by providing certification and support for Oracle applications, middleware, database, Java and Oracle Linux on Windows Server Hyper-V and Windows Azure. As of today, customers can deploy Oracle software on Microsoft private clouds and Windows Azure, as well as Oracle private and public clouds and other supported cloud environments. Source

“This is certainly a game changer from Microsoft and Oracle – and a welcomed one", says our Microsoft practice head - Mark Jones. "Choice of Hypervisor is often not one that is made specifically for the database platform, but rather the enterprise. This often leaves a problem and companies asking - 'how do I get my database platform to fit that model, and do that effectively with all the licence permeations?'

This partnership now allows for a unified solution for Oracle and Microsoft SQL Server databases under a single hypervisor, that has low cost options, support and licence mobility that are not currently offered by VMware.”