I would like to know if there is a possibility or a hack that can be used to move the distribution database from one server to another without breaking/dropping replication. I've read through many blog posts and they all show a methodology to break replication and recreate it. I would like to do a quick switch so need help in getting it to as minimum as possible.
There are several articles on how to do that without recreating or reinitializing. One of the issues is that it can be a bit different for the different setups. You need to test them in your non-production environment. Here is one that seems to address most things:
SQL Server Transactional Replication Moving Distribution Database – step-by-step guide
Sue
I am not sure if you understood my question. Article referenced is actually generating scripts to drop and recreate.
It's as quick as it's going to get - that's the point as they could not reinitialize so it would be quicker. The distributor has information in msdb and master, not just the distribution database. So you are really just scripting out properties more than anything else for the distribution database. The metadata needs to be moved as well. Jobs, replication agents, configuration options all needed. When you enable the instance for publishing it creates a lot of information in different databases. It's not like you can detach the distribution database and attach it on the another server. It's not like moving a user database.
Sue