Tricky Computer Terms: Replication
When I take my car to the mechanics, he’ll rattle off a long monologue about what’s right with it and what’s wrong with it. It normally ends with “She’ll be ‘right mate.” And it’s always met with a blank stare from me as I try and decipher what the heck they’re talking about.
We know it’s similar with computers. There’s a lot of lingo getting tossed around that sounds way too complicated to try understand. Well, it’s actually not… so here at Smile IT we’re going to help out. We’re putting together a list of common terms that have everyone nodding and no one knowing what they mean.
Gather round teacher’s desk and put your listening ears on, it’s time for lesson 1: Replication.
What is Replication
Replication is basically the copying of data from one database to one or more other databases. The copy made is an exact one that includes all settings and permissions. The replication software ensures all databases are regularly updated with any changes and remain exact copies of each other.
What Does Replication Achieve?
Two things really:
– The data is able to be accessed off multiple servers. This speeds things up because you’ve got two or more databases providing information, as opposed to one database getting overloaded.
– If one of the servers fails, the data can still be accessed off the remaining servers.
How is it Different from a Backup?
A backup is an external storage of your data from a particular time. It can be accessed to restore the data if it’s deleted or lost. Replication works differently – if data is deleted from one server, it’ll then be deleted from all the servers. Replication is by no means a replacement for backups.
There ends your first lesson! If you can think of any other IT terms you’d like explained, just drop us an email!
When he’s not writing tech articles or turning IT startups into established and consistent managed service providers, Peter Drummond can be found kitesurfing on the Gold Coast or hanging out with his family!