---
last_verified: 2026-03-14
description: Storage performance characteristics across OCI storage tiers.
---

storage_tiers:
  adb_serverless:
    type: "Exadata managed storage"
    iops_random_read: "Up to 600K per ADB instance"
    iops_random_write: "Workload dependent"
    throughput: "Scales with OCPUs"
    latency_read_us: "<200 (Smart Scan eligible)"
    latency_write_us: "<500"
    notes: "Performance scales with OCPU count, Exadata Smart Scan offloads queries"

  exadata_storage:
    type: "Exadata Smart Storage"
    iops_random_read: "Up to 6.4M per rack (X9M)"
    throughput_gbps: "Up to 100 GB/s (X9M)"
    smart_scan: true
    flash_cache: true
    hcc: true
    notes: "Highest performance tier, Smart Scan can offload full table scans"

  block_volume_balanced:
    type: "Block Volume (Balanced)"
    iops_per_gb: 60
    max_iops: 25000
    throughput_kbps_per_gb: 480
    max_throughput_mbps: 480
    latency_us: "Sub-millisecond"

  block_volume_higher_performance:
    type: "Block Volume (Higher Performance)"
    iops_per_gb: 75
    max_iops: 35000
    throughput_kbps_per_gb: 600
    max_throughput_mbps: 600
    latency_us: "Sub-millisecond"

  block_volume_uhp:
    type: "Block Volume (Ultra High Performance)"
    max_iops: 450000
    max_throughput_mbps: 2680
    notes: "Requires UHP-enabled shapes"

  object_storage:
    type: "Object Storage"
    throughput: "High (parallel multipart uploads)"
    latency: "Milliseconds (first byte)"
    use_for: "Backups, archives, unstructured data"
    not_for: "Random IOPS workloads"

  file_storage:
    type: "File Storage (NFS)"
    max_iops: 25000
    max_throughput_mbps: 1200
    latency: "Sub-millisecond"
    use_for: "Shared file access, NFS workloads"

sizing_from_source:
  exadata_to_adb:
    notes: "ADB-S on Exadata infra — performance is comparable or better"
    recommendation: "Map directly, ADB auto-tunes storage"
  physical_server_to_block_volume:
    notes: "Match IOPS and throughput requirements to block volume tier"
    recommendation: "Use Higher Performance for database, Balanced for app tier"
  san_to_block_volume:
    notes: "SAN IOPS vary widely — get actual metrics"
    recommendation: "Size for P95 IOPS, test with fio before migration"