The NETx Server does not synchronize the data that is stored within the SQL database. This includes trending values and test results of the NETx LaMPS module. However, it is possible to use synchronization features of the SQL database to provide a synchronization of the SQL data.
Please keep in mind that NETxAutomation is not responsible for setting up a synchronization environment of SQL databases. It is within the responsibility of the user. However, NETxAutomation will provide some guidelines that will help to set up such environment. In general it is recommended to consult IT experts for this task.
In principle, there are 2 possible scenarios for using an SQL database with a main / backup solutions.
Using single SQL database instance
Within this scenario, the main and backup server are using the same SQL server instance. The following figure shows the situation where the main server is online:
In this situation, the main server is connected to the SQL instance. The backup server is inactive and thus not connected to the SQL instance. Now, consider that the main fails and the backup server is getting active. In this case, the backup opens the connection to the single SQL instance:
This solution has the advantage that is easy to configure. In addition, only 1 SQL instance is required and no additional license fees for a SQL synchronization are necessary. The drawback is that the SQL instance is a single point of failure. If the SQL instance fails, the data is not available for BMS functions like reporting. To increase the reliability of a single SQL instance, hardware redundant server systems or fail-safe virtual machines can be used.
Using synchronization mechanisms of SQL database provider
At the time of writing this document, successful tests with MS SQL Server synchronization have been done. However, for MS SQL Server synchronization, additional license costs from Microsoft will occur. For MariaDB, no information is available, yet.