MORE INFORMATION
Because of the complexity and distributed nature of merge
replication, it is important to isolate the problem in a specific part of a
merge replication topology. After you have isolated the problem, you can either
correct the problem yourself or contact Microsoft Product Support Services
(PSS) for help.
BASIC TROUBLESHOOTING
The following information will help you troubleshoot merge
replication agent failures:
Check the Agent history to determine what
task failed and the reason for the failure. To view the Agent history, follow
these steps:
- Run SQL Server Enterprise Manager.
- Expand a SQL Server Group folder, and then expand the Server folder.
- Expand Replication Monitor.
- Click to select Merge
Agents.
- To view the history, right-click the appropriate merge
publication, and then click Agent
History.
Note The steps in Microsoft SQL Server 2005 are different. For more information about how to view the Agent history in SQL Server 2005, read see SQL Server 2005 Books Online.
The majority of merge replication failures involve some
kind of errors reported by the Merge Agent. Frequently, the top-level error
reported by the agent is not enough to find the root cause of the problem. This
top-level error is likely to be followed by a more specific replication error
such as a server-side error reported by the SQL Server database engine or by
the operating system. Assuming you are not using the merge replication ActiveX
controls, you can turn on the Merge Agent output logging facility to obtain
extended error information by referring to the steps in the following Microsoft
Knowledge Base article:
312292 How to enable replication agents for logging to output files in SQL Server
Some common errors the Merge Agent may
experience, and possible solutions to those errors are:
- You may receive this error message:
Timeout expired.
If you receive this error, increase the Query Timeout value in
the Merge Agent profile. The Query Timeout value in the Merge Agent profile
indicates the number of seconds permitted to complete internal queries. This
value is also controlled by the QueryTimeout parameter you specify when you run the Merge Agent.
- You may receive this error message:
General network error.
To identify the cause of the
error, follow these steps:
- Make sure that the snapshot folder is shared and that the
domain account on which the SQL Server Agent Service is running has permission
to access the folder.
- Set up a Microsoft Network Monitor tool trace to record the
activity during the synchronization process. This will give you information
about the packet losses or network instability.
Possible reasons for the error are:
The Merge Agent cannot resolve the DNS name of the servers involved in replication.
-or-
General network problems, as discussed in the "General network error" error message.
How to troubleshoot performance problems
A merge replication application must provide the
functionality required by the business rules of the application and also
complete its operations in a timely manner, even if the volume of data and the
number of users increase over time.
Because merge replication is
implemented by using tables and queries in Microsoft SQL Server 2000,
performance depends on how efficiently SQL Server handles the processing needs
of replication. This,in turn, depends on how well the database is designed and
tuned to perform. For information about diagnosing and troubleshooting the
performance of partition processing and addresses, and for some general
database design principles that affect performance, visit the following
Microsoft Web site:
Diagnosing
and troubleshooting slow partitioned merge processesYou
can enhance the performance of the merge replication application. To fine tune
merge replication, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Enhancing
merge replication performanceHow to troubleshoot replication conflicts
When Publishers and Subscribers are reconnected and
synchronization occurs, the Merge Agent detects conflicts and determines what
data will be accepted and propagated to other sites. This is based on what
resolver was specified when merge publication was implemented. For more
information about Merge Replication Conflict Detection and Resolution, visit
the following Microsoft Web site:
Merge
replication conflict detection and resolutionFor more
information about the Microsoft Replication Interactive Resolver, visit the
following Microsoft Web site:
Microsoft
Replication Interactive ResolverFor more information about
the Microsoft Replication Conflict Viewer, or the Merge Publication, visit the
following Microsoft Web site:
Microsoft
Replication Conflict Viewer, Merge Publication REFERENCES
If you want to contact Microsoft Product Support Services
(PSS) for assistance, the PSS Support Professional working on your case may request
additional information that is specific to your environment. For more
information, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
315642 Information that PSS needs to
troubleshoot SQL Server replication
For more information about how merge
replication works, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
How
merge replication worksFor more information about how to
plan for merge replication, visit the following Microsoft Web
sites:
Planning
for merge replicationMerge replication or updatable subscriptions