My scenario sounds like something that should have been solved before, but my searches have turned up nothing. I am really, really new to replication so perhaps I just don't know exactly what to search for in order to find the solution, but here is my problem:
I need to make an old archive database a subscriber. This subscriber will not have all schema updates at the time I create replication. I need to retain the data in the old archive database and begin updating/syncing it with replication. The source database can have records deleted after a certain period of time but the archive database maintains a record of it.
Things I have tried:
1)
- Backup archive database.
- Run replication script which adds the publication/subscription/articles, etc. (both with
@pre_creation_cmdset to 'drop' and 'none'). - Stop synchronization on the subscription.
- Restore subscription database from backup with keep replication.
- Start synchronization. (this wipes out archive records and maintains only the source records)
2)
- Run replication script with varying
@pre_creation_cmdvalues,@sync_typevalues, etc. These either retain the records but do not have the new replication schema updates, or get the schema updates but blow out the data.
So, what am I missing in order to take an old archive database, retain its historical records, turn on replication between a publisher and this archive database as a subscriber and flow across any schema mismatches?