Databases Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 7
SQL Data Sync
When I first wrote this chapter for the first edition of this topic, SQL Data Sync was part of SQL Azure Labs and called
SQL Azure Data Sync Services. Not too much later it was moved out of the SQL Azure Labs and has been in CTP
(Community Technology Preview) and available in the Windows Azure Management Portal. Since that time, SQL Data
Sync Services, or DSS, has been gaining tremendous momentum and acceptance and by the time you read this, will
be out of CTP and in full general availability.
A bit of background is due. In November 2009, at the Microsoft Professional Developers Conference (PDC) in
Los Angeles, Microsoft announced Project Huron, which allows database synchronization capabilities in the cloud.
If you've been following the hype and keeping up with the blog posts regarding Huron, you know that Microsoft has
been billing it and associated database sync functionality as “friction free,” meaning easy to set up and maintain.
Microsoft's goal with Huron was to eliminate many of the emblematic complexities and idiosyncrasies that are
associated with data sharing between databases, such as scalability and configuration. Along with these goals,
Microsoft also wanted to include user-friendly tools that let administrators easily configure and synchronize
their data.
In June 2010, at the start of Tech-Ed in New Orleans, Microsoft announced the public preview availability of the
Data Sync Service for SQL Azure, part of the Huron project. This is Microsoft's solution to allow users to easily and
efficiently share data between databases without regard to database locations or connectivity. Sharing data is only the
beginning: Microsoft also has visions of including data collaboration, providing users and developers the ability to use
and work on data regardless of the data's location.
In May 2012, Microsoft formally implemented a new approach to the naming and branding of the services in
Windows Azure, including SQL Azure Data Sync Services. As such, SQL Azure Data Sync Services is now called SQL
Data Sync.
This chapter focuses entirely on the capabilities and features of SQL Data Sync. It begins with a brief overview
and then shows you how to get started by setting up and configuring the Data Sync service. You will then work
through several examples of using SQL Data Sync in different scenarios and situations. You also see some patterns
and best practices along the way to help ensure a solid understanding of the Data Sync Service.
Understanding SQL Data Sync
SQL Data Sync provides bidirectional synchronization between two or more databases. On the surface, it's as simple
as that; but even behind the scenes, it doesn't get much more complicated. With zero lines of code, you can quickly
and easily configure your SQL Database to be synchronized with other SQL Database instances in any of the Microsoft
Azure data centers or even with on-premises SQL Server.
Why the Need?
Why is the ability to sync data between SQL Database instances important? That's a fair question to ask. Let's explore
a couple of answers.
