the repl Distribution Agent (DA) pushes from Distributor (or pulls from sub), taking the initial outload from snapshot files (incl any post-snapshot.sql), and will then process subsequent changes (unless just a simple Snapshot).

If DA gets an error during that initial outload it will restart (perhaps after some delay), but if it had already shoved out some tables already (previous attempt) it will wisely skip doing it again (since the snapshot files obviously havent changed).

You need to discover why that first attempt failed rather than worrying why n-th attempt skipped.

- maybe your postrepl failed [is so, try without]

Perhaps you need to change timeouts or change profile to verbose to discover any problems.

Suggest that you action ONE pub at once (ie don't try several to same sub as some interlock might bite you). or ensure you have "sp_addpublication @independent_agent = false ..." so multiple pubs share DA

Your #2 problem relates to order of the snapshot running and the DA starting, and value for "sp_addpublication @status= ..".

You should be wise to action one pub-sub at once [via SSMS] and script out the (drop+create). Review that script and use in future (instead of SSMS), and edit to cope with D/R considerations

HTH

Dick