New Patch Cycle, Decom of Old SQL/Oracle Versions, and Improving Compute Performance and Security

We are excited to introduce the new ways that we continue to improve our compute performance. This month, we have introduced a new patch cycle, retired older versions of SQL Server and Oracle databases, and modernized and secured all elements of our enterprise compute environment.  

New Patch Cycles for SQL, Oracle, and Windows OS Server

We have now introduced a new patch cycle for Oracle databases, SQL Server, and Windows OS Server. This new patch cycle is the continuation of an ongoing project to bring older and out-of-date systems into compliance, as unpatched systems can have security vulnerabilities. 

SQL databases and Windows OS Server will be on a monthly patch cycle, whereas Oracle databases will be on a quarterly patch cycle. 

For questions on bringing your databases and servers into compliance, please email: 

View a list of latest patches for each version of the SQL server under the latest update.

SQL Server and Oracle Database Decommissioning Process

On July 1, PSJH will retire older versions of SQL Server and Oracle databases. Versions below will no longer be supported by Microsoft and Oracle and soon will be retired. 

  • Oracle 9i 
  • Oracle 10g 
  • Oracle 11g 
  • SQL Server 2000 
  • SQL Server 2005 

Older versions of SQL Server and Oracle databases may have security vulnerabilities and must be decommissioned. 

For questions about the decommissioning process, please email: 

Improving our Compute Environment

We continue to modernize and secure all elements (Windows/Unix /Linux) of our enterprise compute environment. 

Providence security, compliance, and other policies require systems containing PCI, PII, PHI, and other corporate data to be covered by a vendor support plan, which must ensure security patches and updates as needed. 

To meet this requirement, securely and reliably maintain system operations, and to ensure operating system stability, as of July 31st, the Cloud Engineering and Operations (CEO) support standard is N-2 in terms of operating system versions. ‘N’ is defined as the current version of an OEM-supported operating system. ‘N-2’ is two releases before the current operating system from the OEM. Any operating system version three or more generations old will not be supported. 

 

We are asking all Application Support teams to evaluate the compute systems supporting their applications and ensure they are running on one of our supported operating systems. If the compute systems are running on a system going out of support, caregivers should begin planning to move to a supported operating system. 

For servers on unsupported operating systems where we cannot identify an owner, we will disconnect the server from the network for one week (over a month-end for financial processing) to determine if it is being used. If nobody notices the offline server after the week, we will submit a request to begin decommissioning the server.