AWS is Ending RDS Custom for Oracle

If your team runs Oracle on RDS Custom, you have 12 months to migrate to an alternative. There are three paths - understand what each option means for your team.
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12-Month Window
Action required before AWS end-of-life deadline

AWS has retired RDS custom for Oracle

AWS is retiring RDS Custom for Oracle on March 31, 2027. Tessell is the managed alternative. RDS Custom existed for a specific reason - Oracle teams needed OS-level access and deeper database control alongside a managed service. Tessell preserves all of that - running inside your own AWS account, fully managed, with migration handled for you.
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Tessell is a fully managed database service - meaning Tessell handles all database operations including patching, backups, high availability, and disaster recovery, while your databases and data remain entirely within your own AWS account.
AWS's recommended path is self-managed Oracle on EC2. If you'd prefer to stay managed, that's Tessell.
Standard RDS
Works well for standard Oracle workloads. If you relied on RDS Custom's OS-level access, custom agent support, and deeper Oracle control, confirm whether standard RDS meets those requirements before committing.
EC2 Self-Managed
OS access retained, fully on your team
The trade-off is full operational ownership - patching, HA, DR, backups, and OS maintenance become your permanent responsibility, with no managed service layer.
Tessell
OS access fully retained - governed and audited
Fully managed: patching, HA, DR
Full Oracle EE/SE support
Native backups and OEM integration
Near-zero downtime migration from RDS Custom
Up to 65% reduction in total database cost of ownership
Runs inside your own AWS account -your infrastructure, your control
Standard RDS
No OS-level access

What you get after RDS Custom

Capability
OS-Level Access
Managed Patching / HA / DR
Performance (IOPS)
Third Party Monitoring
Native Oracle Backups
OEM Integration
Cross-Region DR
IaC Support
Zero downtime migration
Data in Your Tenancy
DR Drill
RDS Standard
Restricted
Partial
Max - 86k
No
Included
Supported
Included
Limited
N/A
Yes
No
EC2 Self-Managed
Available
Manual
Varies
Manual setup
Manual
Manual
Manual
Manual
Manual
Yes
Manual
Tessell
Full access, governed and audited
Fully automated
2M–5M+ (NVMe)
Fully supported
Included
Native
Included
Terraform, Python, Go, Shell
Yes, using Data Guard Replication
Yes
Yes, allows failover and switchback without rebuild
Tessell migrates from RDS Custom using continuous Data Guard replication. Your source database stays live and fully accessible throughout. The final switchover takes seconds to minutes, with built-in rollback capability if anything requires attention before commit.
Tessell allows you to switch over to Cross Region DR for daily purposes and also switchback to the primary region without the need of rebuilding the instance.

Trusted by leading organizations worldwide

Our migration of 500+ critical Oracle databases with Tessell was a major milestone in our transformation journey. Tessell's managed service has already reduced complexity and costs.

John Moia
AVP, Data and Analytics – CSX Technology

Why Oracle teams choose Tessell?

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Upto 65% Lower Total Cost of Ownership
Multi-DB consolidation, license optimization, and eliminated third-party tooling deliver documented cost reductions - proven by customers.

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10x Performance Boost
Choice of NVMe-backed storage at 2M-5M+ IOPS -purpose-built for Tier-1 mission-critical Oracle workloads without the performance ceiling of AWS/ EBS-backed storage.

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Your AWS Infrastructure, Your Control
Your databases run on EC2 instances on your AWS account - your VPCs, your subnets, your encryption keys, your security policies. Tessell manages the operations. You own the infrastructure.

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Enterprise Security Built In
Zero-trust architecture. No inbound access from Tessell's control plane. Bring your own networks and encryption keys. PCI DSS v4.1 certified, SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001.

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Migration Bundled
Tessell handles the full migration from RDS Custom - using Data Guard, transportable tablespaces, or import/export depending on your environment. Execution, cutover, and validation all included.
99.99% uptime SLA.

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License Visibility
Full visibility into Oracle licenses across your estate - by region, compute type, and workload. Your team maintains accurate compliance and manages license allocation from day one.

Built for regulated and complex environments

AWS has ended RDS Custom for Oracle. Choose your next path deliberately, not under deadline pressure.

Schedule a consultation to explore your Oracle environment on Tessell, including a TCO comparison. Migration included at no extra cost.
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