SQL Server replication to Azure

Question

We have an Access front-end and a SQL Server back-end.

Due to a contract change, we are now required to give our client access to our database.

We tested our front-end against a copy of our database in Azure, but we found it laggy.

Is there a mechanism for replicating our SQL Server database to Azure, allowing the client to access it and make changes, with those changes replicated back to our SQL Server db?

Is this what the Peer-to-peer replication is in SQL Server?

I read this blog and it seems to describe what I'm looking for: http://tk.azurewebsites.net/2012/07/17/how-to-setup-peer-to-peer-replication-in-azure-iaas-sql-server-2012/

Answer 1

If you feel you must go with replication, I think the best method to choose is dependent upon the needs of your client to see the data.

There's three core types of replication available:

• Transactional (very granular, transactions are pushed from publishers to subscribers)
• Merge Replication: done via the use of triggers
• Snapshot: done via point in time snapshots pushed from publisher to subscriber.

(more info here, with subsequent links leading to detailed use cases/behaviors of each): https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms152531(v=sql.120).aspx

Peer to peer is a type of transactional replication. If your client wants only to be able to read the database, this is probably overkill. I would think snapshots would be the least intrusive and get them reasonable data intervals.

I have to wonder if there's any reason you can't just expose the current local SQL and database over TCP though? Seems like it'd be a bit easier: give them a readonly login and they can check on it whenever they want. Again, depends on their requirements I suppose.