Exadata Cloud Service (ExaCS) on OCI: Shapes, Licensing, Options and BYOL Mechanics in 2026

Why ExaCS licensing differs from on-prem Exadata

The Exadata engineered system architecture is constant across delivery models, but the commercial wrapper around it differs. On-prem Exadata licenses Oracle Database EE and the Database options against the activated cores of the customer-owned rack, with Premier Support running on top. ExaCS licenses the same workloads against activated ECPUs (or OCPUs on legacy contracts) of the Oracle-owned rack, with the consumption rate covering the licence right-to-use, Premier Support, the OCI control-plane integration and the underlying hardware amortisation.

The implication: customers who think about ExaCS in on-prem licensing terms - 'how many EE Processor licences do I need' - get confused. The question on ExaCS is 'how many ECPUs of consumption do I activate, and do I cover that consumption with BYOL or License-Included rates'. The licence pool sits behind the consumption, not in front of it.

The wider ExaCS framework sits in the Oracle Cloud Licensing Guide; the ExaCS vs ExaCC vs on-prem comparison is in Exadata on-prem vs ExaCC vs ExaCS; the underlying ECPU/OCPU mechanics are in ECPU vs OCPU on Exadata; the BYOL framework across all OCI variants is in Multi-cloud BYOL rules.

ExaCS shape catalogue in 2026

ExaCS is provisioned as VM clusters on Exadata X11M, X10M or X9M infrastructure. Oracle abstracts the underlying generation in most cases - the customer selects shape parameters (database server count, storage cell count, OCPU/ECPU activation, storage capacity) and Oracle provisions on the appropriate generation.

The Quarter Rack ExaCS shape (2 database servers, 3 storage cells) is the entry point. The Half Rack (4 servers, 7 cells) and Full Rack (8 servers, 14 cells) shapes are available for large workloads. The actual hardware allocation is invisible to the customer - the OCI Console exposes the shape parameters, not the underlying physical rack assignment.

2026 ExaCS rates: ECPU, OCPU, storage, options

The published 2026 ExaCS rates across the major pricing dimensions:

Storage is metered separately from ECPU activation - the customer pays for activated ECPUs and for provisioned storage capacity. The storage rate covers the underlying Exadata storage cell allocation, the Smart Scan / Hybrid Columnar Compression / Storage Index runtime, and the redundancy overhead.

BYOL coverage mechanics on ExaCS

BYOL on ExaCS works by applying perpetual Oracle Database EE Processor entitlements to the activated ECPU pool. The standard ratio: 1 EE Processor licence covers 4 ECPUs of ExaCS consumption (= 2 OCPUs on the legacy unit). The BYOL flag is set per VM cluster at provisioning.

The mechanics in detail:

1. Customer identifies the perpetual EE Processor licences to be allocated to ExaCS BYOL. The allocation must not double-count - licences allocated to ExaCS BYOL cannot simultaneously cover on-prem deployments at the same time.
2. Customer creates a VM cluster on ExaCS, sets the BYOL flag, and provisions ECPUs up to the BYOL coverage ceiling (perpetual count x 4).
3. Consumption meters at the BYOL rate (~73% lower than LI) for the activated ECPUs.
4. For Database options used inside the BYOL'd VM cluster, the customer must additionally BYOL the matching options entitlement. Options BYOL works identically to base EE BYOL - 1 option Processor licence covers 4 ECPUs of that option's consumption.

Customers without sufficient perpetual licences default to License-Included rates. Mixed BYOL / LI deployments are supported - some VM clusters can be BYOL'd while others run LI. The full hybrid pattern mechanics are in BYOL vs License-Included on ExaCC (the same mechanics apply on ExaCS).

Options included with ExaCS infrastructure vs requiring BYOL

Some Exadata-specific software functionality is included with the ExaCS platform and does not meter as a separately-priced option. Other functionality requires the corresponding Database option entitlement.

Included with ExaCS at no separate meter:

• Exadata Smart Scan
• Exadata Hybrid Columnar Compression (HCC)
• Exadata Storage Index
• Exadata Smart Flash Cache and Smart Flash Log
• I/O Resource Manager (IORM)
• Database Resource Manager (DBRM)
• Cell-to-cell encryption (RoCE fabric)

Requires BYOL or LI metering on top of base EE:

• Partitioning
• Advanced Compression (the application-level compression - HCC is included; OLTP compression and other Advanced Compression features require the option)
• Diagnostics Pack
• Tuning Pack
• Active Data Guard
• RAC (RAC on a single ExaCS VM cluster is automatic - the VM cluster IS a RAC; the RAC option licence is required where applicable)
• Multitenant (above 3 PDBs per CDB)
• Advanced Security (Transparent Data Encryption is included via OCI key management; the rest of Advanced Security - data redaction, network encryption beyond TDE - requires the option)
• Real Application Testing
• Database Vault
• Label Security
• GoldenGate

The boundary between 'included' and 'requires option' is the most-misread aspect of ExaCS licensing. Customers routinely assume that 'Exadata' includes all options because the Exadata Storage Server software is included. Only the storage-cell-resident functions are included; the database-resident options require licensing.

Scaling and elasticity on ExaCS

ExaCS supports two scaling models: scale-up (increase ECPU per VM cluster within the rack's compute capacity) and scale-out (add additional VM clusters or additional database servers to existing VM clusters).

Scale-up on a running VM cluster is online - additional ECPUs can be activated without database downtime. Scale-down is also online but is throttled to prevent active session disruption. The OCI Console supports both via UI or CLI; the action is essentially a Resource Manager re-allocation.

Scale-out (additional VM clusters) requires provisioning a new cluster and migrating workload across via Data Guard or GoldenGate. Adding database servers to an existing VM cluster is supported on multi-server Quarter / Half / Full Rack configurations - this is also an online operation but requires a Grid Infrastructure reconfiguration.

Autonomous Database on Dedicated Exadata Infrastructure (ADB-Dedicated) supports finer auto-scaling: a VM cluster can auto-scale between 1x and 3x of allocated ECPUs based on real-time workload demand. The auto-scaling feature is ECPU-only (not available on OCPU).

The scaling flexibility makes ExaCS the most elastic of the three Exadata variants. On-prem Exadata is bounded by the customer's rack capacity; ExaCC is bounded by the per-rack subscription floor; ExaCS scales effectively to whatever the OCI region capacity supports.

Five negotiation positions on ExaCS

1. Annual Universal Credits discount on ECPU rates. Pay-as-you-go ECPU pricing is at list. Annual Universal Credits commitments earn material discount on the ECPU rate - typical 15-30% on 1-year commits, 25-40% on 3-year commits. The commit floor is negotiable; aim to land at 70-85% of forecast consumption with the discount applied, leaving 15-30% pay-as-you-go headroom for variability.
2. BYOL ratio confirmation. Confirm the 1 EE Processor = 4 ECPU ratio in the ordering document. Confirm that the customer's perpetual EE Processor count covers the planned ECPU activation at the standard ratio, and that no licence true-up is required at platform provisioning.
3. Storage rate floor. Storage on ExaCS is priced per TB per month at $280-$400 depending on tier. The published rate is negotiable - 15-25% discount is achievable on 100+ TB allocations on Annual Universal Credits commitments.
4. Migration credit. For customers migrating from on-prem Exadata or competitor platforms (SQL Server, Db2, MySQL) to ExaCS, Oracle offers migration credits that fund the first 6-12 months of ExaCS consumption. Migration credits are negotiated separately from the standard discount and can stack on top.
5. Support Rewards confirmation. Confirm that ExaCS consumption (BYOL and LI) earns Support Rewards at the standard 25% rate (33% in some regions / contract years). The Support Rewards offsets perpetual Premier Support invoices and is the most efficient way to recover ExaCS spend.

The wider OCI negotiation framework is in the Oracle Negotiation Guide; the support-cost framework is in the Oracle Support Cost Reduction Guide; the audit framework is in the Oracle Audit Guide.

Frequently asked questions

What is the minimum cost to start with ExaCS?

ExaCS has no infrastructure subscription floor and no minimum monthly commitment on pay-as-you-go. The minimum cost is the per-VM-cluster minimum: 8 ECPUs activated at BYOL rate = 8 x $0.67 x 730 hours = ~$3,914 per month per VM cluster. Plus storage (typically $1K-$5K per month per VM cluster on small deployments). The customer can therefore enter ExaCS at well under $10K per month for a single small VM cluster. Annual Universal Credits commitments shift the model to a committed spend basis.

What Database options are included with ExaCS at no extra cost?

Exadata Storage Server functions are included: Smart Scan, Hybrid Columnar Compression (HCC), Storage Index, Smart Flash Cache, Smart Flash Log, I/O Resource Manager. Database Resource Manager is also included. Database options that require separate metering: Partitioning, Diagnostics Pack, Tuning Pack, Advanced Compression (the OLTP compression features beyond HCC), Active Data Guard, RAC, Multitenant (above 3 PDBs), Advanced Security (beyond bundled TDE), Real Application Testing, Database Vault, Label Security, GoldenGate.

Does ExaCS require a multi-year commitment?

No. ExaCS can be consumed purely on pay-as-you-go without any term commitment. Customers can also choose Annual Universal Credits commitments (1-year or 3-year) to earn rate discounts; the commit is a spend floor, not a service obligation. ExaCS contrasts with ExaCC, which requires a 4-5 year infrastructure subscription commitment regardless of consumption.

Can I use my existing on-prem Oracle Database EE Processor licences on ExaCS?

Yes. The standard BYOL ratio is 1 EE Processor licence covers 4 ECPUs of ExaCS consumption. The customer flags VM clusters as BYOL at provisioning; the consumption meters at the BYOL rate (~73% lower than License-Included). The same licences cannot simultaneously cover an on-prem deployment - the customer must allocate explicitly and not double-count. The Database options pool follows the same rules: 1 option Processor licence covers 4 ECPUs of that option's consumption.

What is the difference between ExaCS and Autonomous Database on Dedicated Exadata Infrastructure?

ExaCS provides traditional Oracle Database EE on Exadata - customer-managed Container Databases, customer-controlled patching, customer-defined consumer groups. Autonomous Database on Dedicated Exadata Infrastructure (ADB-Dedicated) provides the Autonomous Database experience (auto-patching, auto-tuning, auto-scaling) running on the same underlying Exadata hardware but with Oracle managing more of the database stack. ADB-Dedicated is ECPU-only and supports auto-scaling between 1x and 3x allocated ECPUs - features not available on traditional ExaCS.

Related Oracle licensing reading