Book Review

Fundamentals of SQL SERVER 2012

Sebastian Meine, Ph.D.

This book was a pleasure to read.

Sebastian offers a breezy introduction to SQL Server 2012 replication that touches on all the main points. And it was well edited - you won't stumble across any typos or grammar errors (nice). He carefully explains subtleties, like security, without overwhelming the reader with a lot of jargon.

After providing an overview of replication in general (publisher, distributor, subscriber, push vs. pull, replication agents etc.) the book handles transactional replication in detail before examining merge replication and the differences between the two.

Exercises are everywhere, so you can build his replications on your own servers while reading the book.

This book has chapters devoted to the distributor, publication access list, SQL Server Agent jobs, conflict resolution for merges, and replication monitor. These are important subjects in their own right, and he has emphasized that importance by these sections.

But an additional chapter on using the more limited SQL Server Express would be welcomed.

Sebastian concludes with a section on troubleshooting, which is really important since replication errors can be difficult to interpret.

Who should buy this book?

Anyone who knows SQL Server basics (but wants to replicate) would be well-served by reading this book before digging into BOL.