Multi-AZ/AR FAQ

FAQs - RDS365 Multi-AZ/AR for MS SQL Server Web

  1. How does RDS365 Mlti-AZ/AR compare to RDS Multi-AZ ?
  2. Does RDS365 Multi-AZ/AR supports MS SQL Server Web Edition ? Does it replicate from On-premise MS SQL Server, EC2 SQL Server and RDS? Also does it allow geo-replication (cross-region) from RDS and EC2 SQL Server Standard and Enterprise to Web Edition?
  3. Does RDS365 SQL AlwaysOn support InterCloud replications such as AWS RDS to Azure SQL and Google Cloud?
  4. Amazon’s RDS SQL Multi-AZ seems like an attractive value proposition, but it is rather expensive and the mirrored MS SQL Server is not even a read-replica, it cannot be used for reporting. Besides, the only option to create the SQL Server replica is to another zone within the region. Can CloudBasic’s RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replicate be used instead of RDS Multi-AZ? What is the estimated replication lag?
  5. Our primary systems are located in AWS US-East Virginia, but we expect heavy read-traffic from Europe and Asia (mobile apps hitting the closest APIs in Frankfurt and Tokyo). Can we use RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replicate to create more than one geo read-replicas in Europe and Asia for each database on our primary RDS SQL Servers in US Virginia?
  6. How do I get started with RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replication Service?
  7. What SQL Server sources and targets does CloudBasic RDS AlwaysOn replication solution support?
  8. Why should I use CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwaysOn Service instead of my own self-managed replication solution?
  9. Can I monitor the progress of a database replication task?
  10. How do I integrate RDS SQL AlwaysOn with other applications?
  11. Can I replicate data from encrypted data sources?
  12. Can CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replicate be used to replicate SQL Server RDS and EC2 SQL Server across different AWS accounts? I see that it handles cross-region replication, but does it do cross-AWS-accounts replication? Our DR requirements state that all DR artifacts must be stored in completely separate AWS accounts. This ensures that an account level security breach would not affect business continuity. Does your tool replicate across AWS accounts?
  13. Can RDS SQL AlwaysOn can have replication setup from multiple different instances of RDS into one instance of RDS in a different region?
  14. Can CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwayOn Replication Service migrate databases for me

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Q 1: How does RDS365 Multi-AZ/AR compare to RDS Multi-AZ ?

A: Unlike with AWS RDS Multi-AZ the replica is actually accessible and can be used for reporting. Moreover the replica can be located in another region. RDS365 Multi-AZ/AR delivers more value and costs estimated 1/3rd of the cost of RDS Multi-AZ

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Q 2: Does RDS365 Multi-AZ/AR supports MS SQL Server Web Edition ? Does it replicate from On-premise MS SQL Server, EC2 SQL Server and RDS? Also does it allow geo-replication (cross-region) from RDS and EC2 SQL Server Standard and Enterprise to Web Edition?

A: Yes, this product supports RDS SQL Server Web Edition. It comes standard with pre-installed SQL Server Web Edition on the RDS365 Server.  It supports replication from RDS, EC2 and On-Premise MS SQL Server versions. It can be used for any type of Geo-replication scenario. Since this product replicates asynchronously, it allows the RDS365 server to be launched on an inexpensive EC2 server type that supports the reporting load. If RDS365 server is a stand-by server for DR, then when the DR event occurs, the server can be upgraded to a larger instance within minutes.

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Q 3: Does RDS SQL AlwaysOn support InterCloud replications such as AWS RDS to Azure SQL and Google Cloud?

A: Yes, AWS RDS to Azure SQL is supported. The initial replication might be a little challenging depending on the database size. However the continuous replication is supposed to work smoothly for most use case and data change volumes. You can see a benchmark comparing AWS RDS Cross-region replication against AWS RDS to Azure SQL benchmark here: https://cloudbasic.net/aws/rds/alwayson/benchmark/

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Q 4: Amazon’s RDS SQL Multi-AZ seems like an attractive value proposition, but it is rather expensive and the mirrored SQL Server is not even a read-replica, it cannot be used for reporting. Besides, the only option to create the SQL Server replica is to another zone within the region. Can CloudBasic’s RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replicate be used instead of RDS Multi-AZ? What is the estimated replication lag?

A: Yes, using CloudBasic's RDS SQL AlwaysOn instead of RDS Multi-AZ is a common use case. It is used in various scenarios, including when the system architecture requires reporting to not run against the primary RDS, for data offloading. Also, since RDS SQL AlwaysOn Multi-AZ capabilities go beyond the boundaries of the AWS region (Multi-AR), it can be used for data locality. RDS AlwaysOn delivers good performance even in cross-region scenarios (AWS Cross-Region & AWS-to-Azure/GoogleCloud): https://cloudbasic.net/aws/rds/alwayson/benchmark/

Sample configuration:

RDS Source: r3.XLarge, MS SQL Server EE w/ Encryption and Multi-Zone Mirroring
RDS Destination: m3.Large, MS SQL Server 2012 Web Edition
RDS Source Location: US-East-1 (Virginia)
RDS Destination Location: US-West-1 (California)

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Q 5:  Our primary systems are located in AWS US-East Virginia, but we expect heavy read-traffic from Europe and Asia (mobile apps hitting the closest APIs in Frankfurt and Tokyo). Can we use RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replicate to create more than one geo read-replicas in Europe and Asia for each database on our primary RDS SQL Servers in US Virginia?

A: Yes, this is a common use case. The replication is handled asynchronously; replication over long distance internet connections to remote region is possible.

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Q 6: How do I get started with RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replication Service?

A: Getting started with RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replication is quick and simple. Most data replication tasks can be set up in less than 10 minutes. There is no requirement for Active Directory or Witness servers.

Once you sign up for the service on https://cloudbasic.net/aws/rds/alwayson/, you will receive an AMI ID and an activation key over email. Locate the AMI ID in the list of Community AMIs and launch as an EC2 server within or outside of your VPC. Once the instance is running, and port 80 opened in the security group, connect to it by pointing a browser to the public DNS root URL (or IP) at default www port 80. Activate the server with the provided activation key. Login with user: admin, initial temporary password: {EC2 Instance ID}. Upon successful login, you will land on the wizard page, which will allow you to initiate RDS/SQL Server replication in various scenarios, in just a few clicks

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Q 7. What MS SQL Server sources and targets does CloudBasic RDS AlwaysOn replication solution support?

A: All RDS and MS SQL Server versions, including Web Edition (2008 and above) are supported. Replication between any two MS SQL Servers versions is supported. Replication from On-Premise to AWS RDS or EC2 SQL Server, from i.e. 2008 to 20014, from Standard/Enterprise to Web Edition, from AWS RDS or EC2 SQL Server to On-premise, from AWS RDS to SQL Azure or SQL Server on Google Cloud, are all supported.

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Q 8: Why should I use CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwaysOn Service instead of my own self-managed replication solution?

A: CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwaysOn is very easy to use. It is a lightweight high-performance solution that has been designed for AWS. It has been tested by some of the largest corporations in America. It took CloudBasic’s senior engineers years to develop it and make it capable of delivering superior performance. Check out the benchmarks: https://cloudbasic.net/aws/rds/alwayson/benchmark

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Q 9. Can I monitor the progress of a database replication task?

A: Yes. CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwaysOn has a variety of metrics displayed in Replication Runtime Console. It provides an end-to-end view of the data replication process, including diagnostic for each point in the replication pipeline.

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Q 10. How do I integrate RDS SQL AlwaysOn with other applications?

A: RDS SQL AlwaysOn provides a provisioning API that allows creating a replication task directly from your development environment, or scripting their creation at scheduled times during the day. The service API and CLI allows developers and database administrators to automate the creation, restart, management and termination of replication tasks.

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Q 11. Can I replicate data from encrypted data sources?

A: Yes, CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwaysOn can read and write from and to encrypted RDS databases. It will be able to extract decrypted data from such sources and replicate it to the target. The same applies to storage-level encryption. As long as RDS AlwaysOn has the correct credentials to the database source, it will be able to connect to the source and propagate data (in decrypted form) to the target. We recommend using encryption-at-rest on the target and protect data in transit using SSL to maintain the confidentiality of your information. If you use application-level encryption, the data will be transmitted through replication service, in encrypted format, and then inserted into the target database.

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Q 12: Can CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwaysOn/Geo-Replicate be used to replicate SQL Server RDS and EC2 SQL Server across different AWS accounts?  I see that it handles cross-region replication, but does it do cross-AWS-accounts replication? Our DR requirements state that all DR artifacts must be stored in completely separate AWS accounts.  This ensures that an account level security breach would not affect business continuity. Does your tool replicate across AWS accounts?

A: Yes, CloudBasic can replicate across AWS accounts. All it needs is the default port 1433 opened in the firewalls on both sides.

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Q 13: Can RDS SQL AlwaysOn can have replication setup from multiple different instances of RDS into one instance of RDS in a different region?

A: Yes, RDS SQL AlwaysOn can support your replication scenario. You have to launch the CloudBasic server at the region/zone where the destination RDS is located. This is the recommended deployment setup for most cases.

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Q 14. Can CloudBasic RDS SQL AlwayOn Replication Service migrate databases for me?

A: Yes. You can run a continuous replication of your database (from On-Premise to AWS, between AWS regions; or between i.e. AWS and Azure or AWS and Google Cloud) just if you were to configure the destination databases to be your read-replicas for DR or reporting. You can cut-over by terminating the continuous copy process whenever ready. Once time migration without setting up of change tracking is also an option.

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