Replication

[NathanSavidge]

Hi All,

I have a networked DB that i want to replicate and have the users of it have a replicated copy on their C drive, and replicate to the master (Q Drive).

So Q Drive is where all local changes are made to and the C drive versions are the ones the users will edit.

Am i right in thinking that i

1) Make a local replica copy of the master on the Q drive and then copy this local replica to each user

or

2) Make the Q drive version a Global replica, then make my local replica from this global?

I have done some reading on this subject and am a little confused now.

Thanks

 

[boblarson]

Do your users have connection to the network or are they sometimes disconnected?

If they are connected then there should be no reason for using replication.

Also your database should be split (frontend/backend) and the backend (tables only) placed on the server (Q Drive?). And a copy of the frontend on each user's machine. You can use an autoupdater (see my link for my website which has one) to keep the frontends up to date for the users.

Replication should never be used to send design changes of objects like forme, macros, modules, reports, etc. It has specific circumstances where it can be useful, but they are more rare than not.

 

[NathanSavidge]

Hi Bob,

Yes, completely agree, the only problem is the users are on the network, but the network where i work is ludicrously slow, so to query some data it takes about 30 seconds between forms, so i wanted local replicas to allow them almost instant viewing, and then a synchronise on saving, should they have edited anything.

I have always used linked tables, just the network here doesnt allow me to.

Thanks

 

[dfenton]

If the network is ludicrously slow, that may indicate that it's also completley unacceptable for using direct synchronization, which is dangerous except on a reliable and reasonably fast network (at least 10mbps).

Also, if it's WiFi, forget it. You can't use direct replication on a wireless network because it's just as dangerous as trying to edit directly across a WiFi connection.

The purpose of replication is to allow editing of the same data in multiple locations simultaneously such that the edits can be merged. Performance problems are not a valid justification for using Jet replication. Fix the network and you won't need to introduce the complexities and latency inherent in replication.

 

[NathanSavidge]

Hi Bob,

This is my point. Sorry if i didnt clear it up. I work for a global investment bank that need to roll my database out accross the Uk and then overseas. We have users who will just view and users who will view and update, so i only want the database to replicate when users have saved changes. In all other instances they will use their local, i.e. customer phone number etc, but changes to banking details will be replicated when a user from any location saves.

 

[dfenton]

For supporting multiple sites, I'd suggest hosting the app on Windows Terminal Server/Citrix, or using Sharepoint. Jet Replication is simply not the best choice for that scenario any longer (while from c. 1997 to 2001 or so, it was the absolutely best solution in terms of ROI).