Managing a subscription v7

After you create a subscription, you might later change aspects of the underlying replication system environment. Attributes that might change include:

  • The network location of the subscription database server
  • The network location of the host running the subscription server, database, or operating system user names and passwords, and so forth

This information is saved in the replication system metadata when you create a subscription. Changes to these attributes result in inaccurate replication system metadata, which in turn can result in errors during subsequent replication attempts or replication system administration.

You can update the metadata stored for the subscription server, the subscription database definition, and subscriptions to keep the information consistent with the actual replication system environment.

Note

For managing a publication of a replication system, see Managing a publication.

Update a subscription server

When you register a subscription server in the Replication Server console, you can choose to save the subscription server’s network location (IP address and port number), admin user name, and encrypted password in a server login file on the computer on which you're running the Replication Server console. See Saving server login information for details.

To update the subscription server, first open the Replication Server console. The subscription server whose login information you want to alter in the server login file must appear as a Subscription Server node in the replication tree.

You can perform the following actions on the server login file:

  • Change the subscription server’s login information (host IP address, port number, admin user name, and password) that you last saved in the server login file.
  • Delete the subscription server’s login information that's currently saved in the server login file. This is the default action and requires you to register the subscription server again the next time you open the Replication Server console.
  • Resave the subscription server’s login information in the server login file. Each time you open the Update Subscription Server dialog box, you must choose to save the login information if you want it recorded in the server login file.

The following steps change only the content of the server login file residing on the host under the current Replication Server console user’s home directory. These changes don't alter any characteristic of the actual subscription server daemon (on Linux) or service (on Windows). These changes affect only how a subscription server is viewed through the Replication Server console on this host by this user.

The subscription server whose login information you want to save, change, or delete in the server login file must be running before you can make any changes to the file. See Step 1 of Registering a subscription server for instructions on starting the subscription server.

  1. Right-click the Subscription Server node and select Update.

  2. In the Update Subscription Server dialog box, complete the fields according to your purpose for updating the server login file:

    • If the subscription server now runs on a host with a different IP address or port number from what's shown in the dialog box, enter the correct information. You must also enter the admin user name and password saved in the Replication Server configuration file that resides on the host identified by the IP address you entered in the Host field. Select Save Login Information if you want the new login information saved in the server login file. If you don't select this option, access to the subscription server is available for the current session, but for later sessions you must register the subscription server again.
    • If you want to delete previously saved login information, make sure the network location shown in the dialog box is still correct. Reenter the admin user name and password saved in the Replication Server configuration file that resides on the host identified by the IP address in the Host field. Leave the Save Login Information box cleared. Access to the subscription server is available for this session, but for later sessions you must register the subscription server again.
    • If you want to save the current login information shown in the dialog box, make sure the network location shown in the dialog box is correct. Reenter the admin user name and password saved in the Replication Server configuration file that resides on the host identified by the IP address in the Host field. Select Save Login Information.
  3. Select Update. The dialog box closes after the update to the server login file completes. Select Refresh in the tool bar to show the updated Subscription Server node.

Updating a subscription database

When you create a subscription database definition, you save the subscription database server’s network location (IP address and port number), the database identifier, a database login user name, and the user’s password in the control schema accessed by the subscription server. This login information is used whenever you need to start a session with the subscription database. See Adding a subscription database for information on creating a subscription database definition.

Update the subscription database login information stored in the control schema if any of these attributes of the physical database change.

Note

Depending on the database type (Oracle, SQL Server, or Postgres), you must not change certain attributes. If you already added subscriptions, you must not change any attribute that alters access to the schema where the subscription tables were created.

Attributes you must not change if existing subscriptions include the following:

  • The Oracle login user name, as the subscription tables already reside in this Oracle user’s schema
  • The database server network location if the new network location references a database server that doesn't access the database that already contains the subscription tables
  • The database identifier if the new database identifier references a different physical database from where the subscription tables already reside

With no existing subscriptions, you can change any attribute. With existing subscriptions, you can change these attributes:

  • The login user name’s password to match a changed database user password
  • The database server network location if the corresponding location change was made to the database server that accesses the subscription database
  • The database identifier, such as the Oracle service name, SQL Server database name, or Postgres database name if the corresponding name change was made on the database server
  1. Make sure the database server that you want to save as the subscription database definition is running and accepting client connections.

  2. Make sure the subscription server whose node is the parent of the subscription database definition you want to change is running and registered in the Replication Server console you're using. See Registering a subscription server for instructions on starting and registering a subscription server.

  3. Select the Subscription Database node corresponding to the subscription database definition that you want to update.

  4. Select Subscription > Subscription Database > Update Database.

  5. In the Update Database Source dialog box, enter your changes. See Step 3 of Adding a subscription database for the meanings of the fields.

  6. Select Test. When Test Result: Success appears, select OK, and then select Save.

  7. Select Refresh in the tool bar to show the updated Subscription Database node and any of its subscriptions.

Updating a subscription

When you create a subscription, certain attributes of the subscribed publication are stored as part of the metadata for the subscription in the control schema. These include the following:

  • The network IP address of the host running the publication server that's the parent of the subscribed publication
  • The port number of the publication server

If these attributes of the publication server change in the replication system environment, then you must also change the corresponding subscription metadata so the subscription server can communicate with the correct publication server.

You can update the publication server network IP address and port number in the subscription server’s metadata.

  1. Make sure the subscription server whose node is the parent of the subscription you want to change is running and is registered in the Replication Server console. See Registering a subscription server for instructions on starting and registering a subscription server.

  2. Select the Subscription node whose attributes you want to update.

  3. Select Subscription > Update Subscription.

  4. If the publication server now runs on a host with a different IP address or port number from what's shown in the dialog box, enter the correct information in the Update Subscription dialog box. You must also enter the admin user name and password saved in the Replication Server configuration file that resides on the host on which the publication server is running.

  5. Select Update.

  6. When Subscription Updated Successfully appears, select OK.

  7. If the publication server with the new network location manages publications subscribed to by other subscriptions, repeat steps 1 through 5 for these other subscriptions.

Enabling and disabling table filters on a subscription

You must first define table filters in a set of available table filters in the publication before you can enable them on a subscription. See Adding a publication for information on defining table filters in a single-master replication system.

To enable or disable table filters on an existing subscription:

  1. Make sure the publication server whose node is the parent of the publication associated with the subscription you want to change is running and registered in the Replication Server console you're using. See Registering a publication server for instructions on starting and registering a publication server.

  2. Make sure the subscription server whose node is the parent of the subscription you want to change is running and registered in the Replication Server console you're using. See Registering a subscription server for instructions on starting and registering a subscription server.

  3. Select the Subscription node of the subscription on which you want to enable or disable individual filter rules.

  4. Select Subscription > Update Filter Rule.

  5. In the Filter Rules dialog box, select options to specify the filter rules to enable or disable on the subscription. You can enable at most one filter rule on any given subscription table.

  6. Select Update.

    A confirmation box appears with a warning message and a recommendation to perform a snapshot replication to any subscription on which you changed the filtering criteria.

  7. To proceed with the update to the filter rule selections, select OK.

    When the update is complete, Filter Rules Updated Successfully appears.

  8. We recommend that you perform a snapshot replication on the subscription that contains tables on which you changed the filtering criteria.

    A snapshot ensures that the content of the subscription tables is consistent with the updated filtering criteria. See Performing snapshot replication for details.

Removing a subscription

After you remove a subscription, replication can no longer occur for the publication that was associated with it until the publication is subscribed to with a new subscription.

Removing a subscription doesn't delete the subscription tables in the subscription database. It removes the identity and association of these tables to Replication Server. The tables remain in the database until the DBA deletes them with DROP TABLE SQL statements.

  1. Make sure the subscription server whose node is the parent of the subscription you want to remove is running and registered in the Replication Swerver console you're using. See Registering a subscription server for instructions on starting and registering a subscription server.

  2. Select the Subscription node of the subscription that you want to remove.

  3. Select Subscription > Remove Subscription.

  4. In the Remove Subscription confirmation box, select Yes.

The Subscription node no longer appears under the Subscription Database node.

Removing a subscription database

Removing a subscription database definition from Replication Server is equivalent to removing its Subscription Database node. Before you can remove a Subscription Database node, you must remove all subscriptions under that Subscription Database node. See Removing a subscription for details.

Removing a Subscription Database node doesn't delete the physical database from the database server. It removes the identity and association of the database to Replication Server. In this case, no further replications can create or update tables in the database unless there are other subscription database definitions in Replication Server with the same host and database identifier. You can remove the physical database only using the database management system’s database removal procedures.

  1. Make sure the subscription server whose node is the parent of the subscription database definition you want to remove is running and registered in the Replication Server console you're using. See Registering a subscription server for instructions on starting and registering a subscription server.

  2. Select the Subscription Database node that you want to remove.

  3. Select Subscription > Subscription Database > Remove Database.

  4. In the Remove Subscription Database confirmation box, select Yes.

The Subscription Database node no longer appears under the Subscription Server node.