Deployment guide

Oracle Linux 8

Overview

Oracle Linux 8 is an enterprise-grade Linux distribution with full binary compatibility with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8. This guide shows how to deploy and configure the SecureAnyCloud Oracle Linux 8 AMI from the AWS Marketplace.

Available versions: Oracle Linux 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 8.5, 8.6, 8.7, 8.8, 8.9 and 8.10. Each version is a separate AMI on the AWS Marketplace.

What you get:

Oracle Linux 8 with the latest security patches
AWS CLI 2.7.7 for managing AWS services
AWS CloudWatch Agent 1.247352.0b251908 for monitoring and log collection
AWS Systems Manager Agent 3.1.1476.0 for remote management
Cloud Init 22.1 for instance initialization
An OS package update script that keeps the system current
24/7 SecureAnyCloud support with a 24 hour response SLA

Prerequisites

Before you launch the AMI, make sure you have:

An active AWS account
An active subscription to your chosen Oracle Linux 8 version on the AWS Marketplace
An EC2 key pair for SSH access
Familiarity with EC2 instance management and SSH

Recommended instance type: t3.small (2 vCPU, 2 GB RAM) or larger. The minimum requirements are 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM and 20 GB of disk space.

Launch the AMI

Open the AWS Marketplace and search for "Oracle Linux 8 SecureAnyCloud".
Select the minor version you need (8.0 through 8.10).
Select Continue to Subscribe, accept the terms, then select Continue to Configuration.
Choose your Region and Software Version.
Select Continue to Launch.
Choose Launch through EC2 for full control over instance configuration.
Select your instance type (t3.small is recommended).
Configure storage with a minimum of 20 GB gp3.
Configure your Security Group with an inbound rule that allows SSH: port 22, TCP, source your IP address.
Select your EC2 key pair and launch the instance.

Connect via SSH

Wait until the instance is running and has passed both status checks (2/2). Then connect over SSH:

ssh -i your-key.pem ec2-user@<public-ip-address>

Switch to the root user:

sudo su -

Verify the system

Check the OS version:

cat /etc/oracle-release

Check the kernel version:

uname -r

Using AWS CLI

The AWS CLI is preinstalled. Confirm its version:

aws --version

Attach an IAM role with the permissions you need to the instance, or configure credentials with aws configure.

Configuring the CloudWatch Agent

Run the configuration wizard as root:

/opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/amazon-cloudwatch-agent-config-wizard

Start the agent:

/opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/amazon-cloudwatch-agent-ctl -a fetch-config -m ec2 -s -c file:/opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/config.json

Check the agent status:

/opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/amazon-cloudwatch-agent-ctl -m ec2 -a status

Using Systems Manager

Check the SSM Agent status:

systemctl status amazon-ssm-agent

The instance needs an IAM role with the AmazonSSMManagedInstanceCore policy attached.

Configuring Cloud Init

The Cloud Init configuration file is at:

vi /etc/cloud/cloud.cfg

Server Components

Component Version Install Path

AWS CLI 2.7.7 /usr/local/aws-cli

AWS CloudWatch Agent 1.247352.0b251908 /opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent

AWS Systems Manager Agent 3.1.1476.0 /usr/bin/amazon-ssm-agent

Cloud Init 22.1 /etc/cloud

Filesystem Layout

Mount Point Size Description

/ 38 GB Root filesystem (NVMe)

/boot 2 GB Operating system kernel files

Note: On supported instance types, Oracle Linux 8 uses NVMe storage devices.

Scripts and Log Files

Script/Log Path Description

initial_boot_update.sh /stage/scripts Updates the OS with the latest packages on first boot

initial_boot_update.log /stage/scripts Output log for the boot update script

On Startup

An OS package update script runs on first boot. To disable it, run:

rm -f /stage/scripts/initial_boot_update.sh crontab -e
# Delete the @reboot line, save and exit

Common Administration Tasks

Update all packages:

dnf update -y

Install a package:

dnf install -y package-name

Manage services:

systemctl start service-name
systemctl stop service-name
systemctl enable service-name
systemctl status service-name

View system logs:

journalctl -f

Oracle Linux Specific Features

Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK)

Oracle Linux includes the Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK), Oracle's own optimized kernel for enterprise workloads. UEK 6 is the default kernel on Oracle Linux 8. Compared with the Red Hat Compatible Kernel (RHCK), it offers enhanced performance, advanced diagnostics and improved hardware support.

Verify which kernel is running:

uname -r

If the output contains uek, the instance is running UEK. If it contains el8, it is running RHCK.

To switch between kernels, run:

# List installed kernels grubby --info=ALL | grep title
# Set the default kernel (example for RHCK)
sudo grubby --set-default /boot/vmlinuz-<rhck-version>
# Reboot to apply
sudo reboot

UEK 6 highlights:

Based on Linux 5.4 LTS with Oracle enhancements
Optimized for Oracle Database and middleware workloads
DTrace tracing framework for advanced diagnostics
Enhanced Btrfs filesystem support
Improved NVMe and network driver performance

Ksplice zero-downtime patching

Oracle Linux includes Ksplice, which applies critical kernel security patches without a reboot. This suits production database servers where uptime is critical.

Check the Ksplice status:

sudo ksplice kernel show

Apply available patches without a reboot:

sudo ksplice kernel upgrade

Note: Full Ksplice functionality requires an Oracle Linux Premier Support subscription. The AMI includes the Ksplice tools preinstalled.

Oracle Database compatibility

Oracle Linux 8 is Oracle's recommended operating system for Oracle Database deployments. Key advantages:

Prevalidated and certified for all Oracle Database versions (11g through 23ai)
Required Oracle prerequisite packages available through oracle-database-preinstall RPMs
Automatic Storage Management (ASM) kernel driver support through UEK
Optimized huge pages and shared memory configuration for database workloads

Install the Oracle Database prerequisites:

sudo dnf install -y oracle-database-preinstall-19c

This command configures the kernel parameters, user accounts and resource limits that Oracle Database installation requires.

Troubleshooting

Cannot connect over SSH

Verify the instance has passed 2/2 status checks.
Check that your security group allows port 22 from your IP address.
Make sure you are using the correct key pair and username (ec2-user).

dnf update fails

Verify internet access (public subnet or NAT gateway).
Check DNS resolution: nslookup yum.oracle.com
Check disk space: df -h

CloudWatch Agent is not working

Verify the agent status with the amazon-cloudwatch-agent-ctl command.
Check that the IAM role has CloudWatchAgentServerPolicy.
Review the logs: tail -f /opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/logs/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.log

Security Recommendations

Restrict SSH access. Allow port 22 only from trusted IP addresses.
Use IAM roles for AWS API access instead of access keys.
Keep the system updated. Run dnf update regularly.
Enable SELinux. Verify it with getenforce.
Configure firewalld for additional host-level security.
Monitor with CloudWatch for CPU, memory and disk alerts.
Use SSM Session Manager for secure, auditable remote access.

Support

If you have any issues with this product, contact SecureAnyCloud support:

Email: sales@secureanycloud.com
Website: secureanycloud.com
Support hours: 24/7, with a 24 hour response SLA

Deploy on AWS

Launch Oracle Linux 8 with 24/7 support from SecureAnyCloud.

View on Marketplace

Need Help?

Our support team is available 24/7.

sales@secureanycloud.com

Overview

Oracle Linux 8 is an enterprise-grade Linux distribution. This guide shows how to deploy and configure the SecureAnyCloud preconfigured Oracle Linux 8 virtual machine image from the Azure Marketplace.

What you get:

Oracle Linux 8 with LVM partitioning
The Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) for enhanced performance
The Azure Linux Agent (waagent) for cloud integration
Chronyd for NTP time synchronization
SELinux in enforcing mode
Gen2 Hyper-V virtual machine support
24/7 SecureAnyCloud support

Platform: Microsoft Azure (Gen2 Hyper-V). Default user: azureuser.

Prerequisites

Before you deploy the image, make sure you have:

An active Microsoft Azure subscription
Access to the Azure Portal or Azure CLI
An SSH key pair for Linux VM access
Familiarity with Azure VM management

Recommended VM size: Standard_B2s (2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM) or larger.

Deploy the virtual machine

Option A: Azure Portal

Open the Azure Marketplace and search for "Oracle Linux 8 on Azure SecureAnyCloud".
Select the image and choose Create.
On the basics tab, set the following:
- Subscription: your Azure subscription
- Resource Group: create a new one or select an existing one
- Virtual Machine Name: a name for your VM
- Region: your preferred Azure region
- Size: Standard_B2s (recommended)
Under Administrator Account, select SSH public key and enter your key.
Under Inbound Port Rules, allow SSH (port 22).
Select Review + Create, then Create.

Option B: Azure CLI

az vm image terms accept --urn sac1647283583153:oracle-linux-8:default:latest
az vm create \
  --resource-group myResourceGroup \
  --name my-oracle-linux-8-azure-vm \
  --image sac1647283583153:oracle-linux-8:default:latest \
  --size Standard_B2s \
  --admin-username azureuser \
  --generate-ssh-keys \
  --public-ip-sku Standard

Connect via SSH

When the VM is running, connect over SSH:

ssh azureuser@<public-ip-address>

To find the VM's public IP address, run:

az vm show --resource-group myResourceGroup --name my-oracle-linux-8-azure-vm --show-details --query publicIps -o tsv

Verify the installation

After you connect, verify the operating system:

cat /etc/os-release uname -r

Check disk space and memory:

df -h free -h

Verify that the Azure Linux Agent is running:

systemctl status waagent

Update the System

Apply the latest security patches:

sudo dnf update -y

Configure the firewall (optional)

The Azure Network Security Group (NSG) controls inbound and outbound traffic. You can also configure the local firewall. List its current rules:

sudo firewall-cmd --list-all

To allow additional ports, run:

sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=80/tcp sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=443/tcp sudo firewall-cmd --reload

Common Use Cases

Oracle Database hosting (19c, 21c, 23ai)
Oracle WebLogic application server
Enterprise middleware and Java applications
General-purpose enterprise Linux workloads

Troubleshooting

Cannot connect over SSH

Verify in the Azure Portal that the VM is in the Running state.
Check that the Network Security Group allows port 22.
Make sure you are using the correct username: azureuser.
Verify that your SSH key matches the one you configured during deployment.

Azure agent is not running

sudo systemctl start waagent
sudo systemctl enable waagent

Package manager issues

sudo dnf update -y

If the repositories are unreachable, check DNS resolution:

nslookup google.com

Support

For help with this image, contact SecureAnyCloud support:

Website: secureanycloud.com
Product catalogue: secureanycloud.com/products
User guides: secureanycloud.com/guides
SLA: 24 hour response

Deploy on Azure

Launch Oracle Linux 8 on Azure with 24/7 support from SecureAnyCloud.

View this image

Need Help?

Our support team is available 24/7.

sales@secureanycloud.com

Deploy on Azure