Article Summary: This article details steps on troubleshooting DFS replication synchronization on non-SYSVOL replica sets
Note: DFSR is a technology used to replicate the data from DFS namespaces across a group of servers called a replication group. It is important for these members to be as synchronized as the resources allow. These are the recommended troubleshooting steps for DFS Replication group synchronization.
1.
Check for backlogs:
a. Run a diagnostic report.
i.
Server 2012 and later - Click
Server Manager, click
Tools, then click
DFS Management
Server 2008, 2008 R2 - Click
Start ->
Administrative Tools ->
DFS Management
ii. Expand
Replication
iii. Right-click on the replication group for the namespace.
iv. Click
Create Diagnostic Report
v. Choose
Next all the way through the Wizard.
vi. The report will open automatically in the default web browser. It will also be available in
C:\DFSReports when the browser is closed.
b. From an elevated command prompt run '
DFSDiag /TestDFSIntegrity /DFSRoot:<DFS root path> /Full'
and troubleshoot the results. Pipe results to a file (
<cmdstring> > dfsdiag.txt) to facilitate item review.
c. Run a propagation test using the same routine as the diagnostic report, but choose
Propagation Test on
the initial page instead of
Health Check.
2.
Check for delays:
a. Validate NIC drivers are up to date.
b. Validate anti-virus software is DFS-aware (i.e., correct exclusions are set) or consider temporarily disabling
as a means of troubleshooting.
c. Check bandwidth throttling
i.
Server 2012 and later - Click
Server Manager, click
Tools, then click
DFS Management
Server 2008, 2008 R2 - Click
Start ->
Administrative Tools ->
DFS Management
ii. Expand
Replication
iii. Click on the replication group for the namespace.
iv. Click on the
Connections tab.
v. Right-click the replication group member and choose
Properties.
vi. Ensure
"Enable replication" and
RDC are checked.
vii. Click the
Schedule tab. Click
View Schedule.
viii. Make sure that bandwidth usage says "
Full". On the other hand if it is throttled, consider increasing to see if
it has a positive impact on performance.
d. Check the Staging Quota. The default is 4Gb.
i. Click
Server Manager, click
Tools, then click
DFS Management.
ii. Expand
Replication
iii. Click on the replication group for the namespace having issues.
iv. Right click each member of the replication group in the
Memberships tab.
v. Click the
Staging tab.
vi. If 4Gb is not sufficient based on the file sizes in the data set, consider increasing.
Advanced Staging area sizing:
http://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2011/07/13/how-to-determine-the-minimum-staging-area-dfsr-needs-for-a-replicated-folder.aspx
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Background information on DFS-R implementation can be found at:
http://www.adshotgyan.com/2010/12/dfsr-replication-group-in-windows-2008.html
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