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Oracle Coherence and Split-Brain FAQ (Doc ID 1069132.1)

Last updated on SEPTEMBER 03, 2024

Applies to:

Oracle Coherence - Version 3.7.1.1 and later
Information in this document applies to any platform.

Purpose

This FAQ is a high level description of "Split-Brain" and how it applies to Oracle Coherence.  See <Note 1069429.1> for a specific example of a Split-Brain occurrence in Oracle Coherence. 

Questions and Answers

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In this Document
Purpose
Questions and Answers
 What is Split-Brain?
 What does "co-operating" mean?
 What's at risk?
 What if the processes aren't co-operating?
 I thought Split-Brain was all about physical network infrastructure and connectivity failures. Can it really occur at the process level, on the same physical server?
 Garbage Collection can't cause a Split-Brain.  Right?
 Split-Brain will only ever occur when a system has two processes.  With three or more processes it can easily be detected and resolved.  Right?
 Splits always occur "down-the-middle". Right?
 Stateless architectures don't suffer from Split-Brain. Right?
 Client+Server architectures don't suffer from Split-Brain. Right?
 All Stateful architectures suffer from Split-Brain. Right?
 The solution is simple - completely avoid Split-Brains by waiting longer for communication to recover, doing more checks and avoiding assumptions. Right?
 Split-Brain only occurs in systems that use unreliable network protocols (ie: protocols other than TCP/IP). Right?
 TCP/IP decreases the chances of a Split-Brain occurring. Right?
 Having all processes in a distributed system connected via a single physical switch will help prevent Split-Brain. Right?
 Can Split-Brain be solved?
 What are the best practices for dealing with Split-Brain?
 How can a Split-Brain event be detected?  How are they defined?
 How does Oracle Coherence deal with Split-Brain?
References

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