How can I move the distribution database to a new server?

Question

I need to migrate an old distribution database to a new VM. My understanding is that you can detach/attach the distribution DB to make this easier. What are the 'gotchas' in this process? Do I need the detach/attach the system databases as well? The distributor
is facilitating data from Oracle to SQL Server.
Another question.. what are some good benchmarks for figuring out how much horsepower I should have set up in my VM that running distribution?
Thanks,
phil

Answer 1

Hi philliptackett77,
As your description, you want to migrate the distribution database to a new server. Based on my research, you need to remove the replication,  create the distribution on the new server, and recreate publication and subscription according to Satish's post.
So you don’t need to detach or attach the distribution database or system databases.
To make this process simple, you could use SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) to generate scripts and run the scripts to recreate publications and subscriptions or drop publications and subscriptions as the screenshot below. Checking ‘To create or enable the
components’ generates the script for creating the publications and subscriptions, and Checking ‘To drop or disable the components’ generates the script for dropping the publications and subscriptions.
Firstly, please use SSMS to generate the script which is used to create publications and subscriptions.
1.Connect to Publisher, or Subscriber in SSMS, and then expand the server node.
2.Right-click the Replication folder, and then click Generate Scripts.
3.In the Generate SQL Script dialog box, check ‘To create or enable the components’.
4.Click Script to File.
5.Enter a file name in the Script File Location dialog box, and then click Save. A status message is displayed.
6.Click OK, and then click Close. For more information about the process, please refer to the article:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms152483.aspx
Secondly, follow the steps above, check ‘To drop or disable the components’ to generate the script used to drop publications and subscriptions. Then run the sript to drop publications and subscriptions.
Thirdly, please disable distribution using Transact-SQL or SSMS following the steps in the article:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms152757(v=sql.105).aspx.
Fourthly, please create the distribution at the new server using Transact-SQL or SSMS following the steps in the article:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms151192.aspx#TsqlProcedure.
Last, please run the script generated in the first step to recreate publications and subscriptions.
Regards,
Michelle Li