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A synchronization group is two or more databases that are logically grouped together for the purpose of synchronizing specified tables, columns and rows common to each.

This article assumes that you have already added databases to your sync group, defined the tables, columns and optionally specific rows to synchronize and set the synchronization schedule and conflict resolution policy. This article walks you through the steps to deploy your sync group.

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This wiki topic may be obsolete.
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Prior to using the information in this article you should have:

  1. Provisioned a SQL Azure Data Sync server - SQL Azure Data Sync Provision a SQL Azure Data Sync Server

  2. Created and named the sync group - SQL Azure Data Sync Create a Sync Group

  3. Added a SQL Azure hub database to the sync group - SQL Azure Data Sync Add a SQL Azure Hub Database

  4. Added one or more other databases to the sync group

  5. Configured the sync group - SQL Azure Data Sync Configure a Sync Group

See the article SQL Azure Data Sync Create a Sync Group for the flow of all the steps to create a sync group.

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Deploy the Sync Group

In order for your sync group definitions and settings to be saved and applied you must deploy your sync group, which saves all your sync group settings to the server.

           

Important:
Before you deploy your sync group it is wise to backup all the databases in the sync group to protect against any issues that might arrise. We recommend Database Copy for SQL Azure databases (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff951631.aspx) and well established procedures for SQL Server databases.

If you need to restore lost or corrupted databases from any of these backups be aware that there may be non-convergence of your data in the sync group(s) the database(s) belongs to.

Once a sync group is deployed there are certain changes that can still be made to the sync group and there are changes that cannot be made to the sync group. Be sure to read the Changes that Cannot be Made to a Deployed Sync Group section below before you deploy your sync group.

  1. Click Deploy in the Sync Group section of the ribbon. (Figure 1)
    When your sync group is deployed it shows up tree view under the Sync Groups node. (Figure 2)


    Figure 1: Deploy your sync group


    Figure 2: Sync group deployed    

Changes that Cannot be Made after a Sync Group is Deployed
The following fields cannot be changed after a sync group is deployed. If you must make these changes you need to delete the sync group and create a new one that incorporates these changes.
You cannot change:

  • The sync hub database.

  • The conflict resolution policy.

  • Sync dataset, which includes the selected tables, columns and defined filtering rules for rows.

  • The database schema used by the sync group.

    		 Note:
    If you make changes to the schedule of synced database, the schema changes will not be automatically picked up by the sync group. A breaking schema changes can stop the sync group from working properly.
     

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Feedback

This release was provided in order to gather feedback from our customers. Now that you have previewed what the SQL Azure Data Sync team is doing, please let us know what you think of our direction, and tell us about your experiences. You can send us your thoughts in any of the following ways:

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See Also

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