Oracle RMAN Plug-in: Intended long-term use of Force Delete

[rin]

Hi,

I would like to understand the intended usage of the Force Delete feature in Veeam Plug-in for Oracle RMAN.

The documentation describes Force Delete as a mechanism that automatically removes backup files older than the configured number of days.
Is this feature intended to be enabled continuously as part of normal operations for Oracle RMAN backups?

If so, are there any known limitations, considerations, or best practices for long-term use?

Additionally:
1. Are there any known performance impacts associated with keeping Force Delete enabled over time?

2. Are there any operational considerations when using Force Delete together with Oracle RMAN retention policies (for example, recovery window retention or KEEP UNTIL TIME)?

3. Is Force Delete primarily intended as a temporary housekeeping mechanism, or is continuous use considered a supported and recommended deployment model?

Could you please clarify the recommended usage from a product perspective?

Best Regards,
Rin

[HannesK]

Hello,
the scenario is a standalone plugin that does not have retention configured. See user guide

In the main scenario, when using Veeam Plug-In for Oracle RMAN, you must configure the retention policy using native Oracle RMAN tools. For details, see Configuring Retention Policy

If you are using the managed plugin, or you set the retention in RMAN, then the force delete is not needed.

1. no. Did you see any issues? If yes, what is the support case number?
2. normally DELETE OBSOLETE is the way to go.
2. yes, that's more like a housekeeping thing when DELETE OBSOLETE / retention is not used for whatever reason. You can run it as often as you like, but for "normal operations" it's not needed.

Best regards
Hannes

[rin]

Hi Hannes,

Thank you for your clarification.

I would like to confirm one point regarding the intended usage of Force Delete.
In a previous support case (#08135507), Veeam Support advised that once the force-delete operation is completed, the value should be set back to 0.

Based on your recent explanation, my understanding is that Force Delete can be used continuously if desired, although it is generally considered a housekeeping mechanism rather than a normal retention management method.
Could you please clarify how these two recommendations should be interpreted together?

From a product perspective:
1. Is the recommended approach to enable Force Delete temporarily, perform cleanup, and then set the value back to 0?
or
2. Is it acceptable to keep Force Delete configured permanently (for example, 131 days), even though it is not typically required when RMAN retention and DELETE OBSOLETE are used?

I would like to better understand the recommended operational model.

Thank you for your help.

Best Regards,
Rin

[HannesK]

Hello,
as the case is very long, I did not read through it.

Veeam Support advised that once the force-delete operation is completed, the value should be set back to 0.

that makes sense, yes. and it's aligned with I wrote above.

1 & 2 are both fine, but I would go for 1 because that's the default behavior of the product and without a reason, I would not deviate from the default.

Best regards
Hannes