January 29, 2002 at 2:09 pm
I have a 60gb database that needs to be replicated to a hot reporting server and I have limited disk space to host the snapshot files, even compressed ones. So is it possible to eliminate the initial snapshot and still have transactional replication?
February 2, 2002 at 7:40 pm
Sure. The trick is to get the data into a steady state for a few minutes. Disconnect all the users and do a backup. Restore the backup on the other server (or you can detach and just copy the mdf if you prefer, then reattach on each server). Then configure the publication normally, then let users back in. This way there are no transactions that get applied to the db without the logreader running.
Another alternative is to break your pub up into smaller pieces so that you're not trying to move the entire 60g at once. Split up into 2 or more pubs of about equal size. If you're using SQL2K take a look at the concurrent snapshot option to reduce locking issues while building the snapshot. This is a good idea since if your pub ever fails you can just right click and do the reinitialize - far less mental strain when you're under the gun!
Andy
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