EM: File System > Replication Jobs

Description

In BBj 13.0 and higher, Replication Jobs are accessible through either the API or the Enterprise Manager, which provides administrators with an intuitive user interface for creating, editing, removing, and viewing replication jobs. For a broader understanding of replication functionality and concepts, see: Replication Introduction.

Location

EM Navigator → File System → Replication Jobs

Toolbar

Button	Function
	Exports the selected replication job configuration to a JSON format file. Note: use this file as a backup or to import the job configuration on another machine.
	Imports a replication job from an export file.
	Pauses the replication job. Note: pausing stops replication sending events while the source queues changes; resuming processes queued operations, ensuring target files remain unchanged during backups until the job resumes.
	Instructs the replication system to automatically pause the replication job. Note: as soon as all operations in the source queue have been sent to the target, as of the moment in time the administrator clicks the Pause When Caught Up button.
	Cancels the Pause When Caught Up request if one is currently in effect.
	Adds a new replication job using the replication job creation wizard.
	Removes the selected replication job(s).
	Refresh the list of and state of all replication jobs currently on the server.

Recopy Enabled: When disabled, the replication job will not attempt to recopy files that appear out of sync. This setting should normally remain enabled; however, temporarily disabling it can be useful if a job repeatedly recopies the same file. Such recopy loops occur when a file is continuously detected as different from its target counterpart, often due to corruption or on-disk modifications outside BBj’s control on the source server. Disabling recopy stops this cycle without affecting the rest of the replication job, allowing administrators to investigate the file differences.

Replication Source Jobs

The Replication Source Jobs displays all replication jobs running on the connected server. This section monitors file operations on the selected source machine and automatically sends any detected changes to the corresponding target machine.

Replication Source Jobs Settings

Column	Description
Job Name	Name of the replication job.
Status	Current status of the job. A normal running job indicates Running. Note: For additional details on the job state, select the job and note the contents of the Status area immediately below the job list.
Replicated Through	Replication stores file operation messages in a queue before sending them to the target for processing. If network performance is slow or a high volume of file operations occurs, replication may temporarily fall behind while processing these queued events. Note: During periods of high activity, replication may temporarily fall behind and then catch up when system activity decreases, even briefly. The Replicated Through value displays the timestamp of the most recent replication event successfully processed by the target and can be used to evaluate overall system performance.
Last TS Ratio	A value of close to 1 indicates replication is processing close to the speed at which operations are occurring on the source. A value less than 1 indicates replication is falling behind. A value greater than 1 indicates that replication is catching up.
Last Op Rate	Operations per second between the last two timestamps. The raw number of operations that happened between the last two timestamps divided by the number of real seconds between them.
Last Lag(ms)	The time delay in milliseconds between source event occurrence and successful replication processing on the target system currently.

Status Details

Detailed information about the selected replication job’s current state, activity, and operational messages below.

Replication Targets

A replication target is the location where the replication job makes copies of the file from the source machine, and keeps them in sync with any changes made to the files on the source. When replicating to the same machine, there will be entry in both the source job list as well as the replication targets list.

Column	Description
Job Name	Name of the replication job.
Replicated Through	Displays the timestamp of the most recent replication event.

Creating a Replication Job

To create a new Replication Job, click the on the Replication Jobs pane to open the New Replication Job Wizard.Enter a Replication Job Name, then select either Replicate a Named Database Instance or a List of Data Files and Directories, and proceed by clicking Next to continue the configuration process.

Replication Jobs Settings

Settings	Description
Replication Job Name	Enter a unique name to identify and manage replication job.
Replicate a Named Database Instance	Selects replication of an entire named database instance for configuration in the replication job wizard.
Replicate a List of One or More Data Files and Directories	Chooses replication of specific data files and directories instead of an entire database instance.

BBj Directory/File Replication

BBj Directory/File Replication defines a mapping between source files and their corresponding target files, which may reside on the same machine or on a different BBj Services installation. While the replication job is active, all changes made to the source files or directories, including subdirectories and their contents, are automatically applied to the target. During this process, the target files and directories remain read only to ensure data integrity.

File System Connection Settings

After naming the job and selecting replication option, click Next to configure File System Connection Settings. This pane, specify connections settings related to the file system server on the target.

File System Connection Settings List

Settings	Description
Source/Target On Same Machine	When unchecked, enables entering host, port, credentials, and SSL settings for remote target configuration manually. When checked, disables connection fields and permits proceeding using local machine without additional configuration details.
Host Name	The target file system server host name for establishing replication connection settings.
Port	The network port number used to establish communication with the target file system server securely. Default is 2000.
User Name	The user account required to authenticate connection with the target file system server credentials.
Password	The password associated with provided username to authenticate target file system server access securely.
Use SSL	When unchecked, connects without SSL encryption, transmitting replication credentials and data over standard communication channels. When checked, enables SSL encryption securing replication connection between source and target systems communications traffic.
Test Settings	Tests connection parameters to verify successful communication with target file system server before proceeding configuration.

Other Job Settings

After completing System Connection Settings, click Next to access the Other Job Settings pane directly. This pane configures additional replication options like bandwidth limits and advisory locking.

Other Job Settings List

Settings	Description
Maximum Bandwidth(kbps)	Maximum kilobits per second allowed for replication, 0 or empty applies no bandwidth limit. Note: lower values for the bandwidth can cause the target machine to fall behind the operations on the source machine.
Advisory Locking	When unchecked, replication uses mandatory locking, enforcing access to files and directories. When checked, replication uses advisory locking, permitting cooperative access without strict enforcement.

Select Database

After completing Other Job Settings, click Next to open the Select Database configuration pane screen. This pane, allows choosing source database, optionally creates corresponding target database, and prepares replication including related data files structures.

Select Database Settings

settings	Description
Database Name	The database to replicate, auto-populating subsequent wizard pages with its configuration and contents.
Create A Database On Target	When checked, creates read-only database on target referencing replicated data files automatically created. When unchecked, no database created on target for replicated data file access purposes.
Target Database Name	The name assigned to the newly created target database for replication.
Target Admin Server Port	Enabling wizard to create database referencing replicated target files correctly. Default is 2002.

Target Database Configuration

After completing Select Database settings, click Next to access Target Database Configuration pane. This pane allows configuring target database property paths and applying find and replace changes for precise replication directory mapping.

Target Value Find/Replace: Find locates specified target values within database properties, Replacement defines new text for matched selected values, Replace All applies replacements across all configurable properties.

Target Database Configuration Settings

Column	Settings
Property	Lists configuration property identifiers defining specific target database directory and file path settings.
Source Value	Displays source directory paths used for generating corresponding target database configuration mappings.

Table Selection

After completing Target Database Configuration, click Next to open the Table Selection pane for replication. This pane, allows selecting specific database tables or all tables to include within the configured replication job process.

Included Directories and Files

After completing Table Selection, click Next to access the Included Directories and Files configuration pane. This pane, defines source directories, file patterns, and target locations for replication, controlling included content and synchronization behavior.

Included Directories and Files Settings

Column	Description
Source	The column specifies original directories or file paths monitored and replicated to corresponding target locations.
Pattern	Specifies wildcard matching criteria determining which source files and subdirectories are replicated to targets.
Target	The destination directory path where replicated source files and subdirectories are written.

Directory/File Filter

From Included Directories and Files pane , click the button to open Directory/File Filter, define source and target paths, then confirm to add entry. Select any existing row and click the icon to delete chosen directory or file mapping.

Directory/File Filter Settings

Settings	Description
Type	Configures how the filter interprets and matches source items for replication selection. Value Description Directory Filters entire directories and all contained files for replication mapping. File Filters a specific individual file for targeted replication inclusion. Wildcard Filters items using pattern characters to match multiple filenames. Regular Expression Filters items using advanced pattern syntax for precise matching.
Source Directory	The source location directory for replication, click the icon to open Browse for Folder, optionally create a new folder with the icon, enter its name, click OK, and confirm the selected source path.
Target File	The full target file path where the selected source file will be replicated on execution.
Modes	Specifies optional mode attributes applied to matched items, controlling how the replication job processes them.
Recursive	When unchecked, replication includes only the specified directory level without processing any nested subdirectories. When checked, replication includes the specified directory and all nested subdirectories within its hierarchy.

Included Directories and Files : Included Files/Directories and Excluded Files/Directories

After completing Directory/File Filter settings and selecting OK, clicking Next opens the Included Directories and Files pane, where all added source directories, configured patterns, and mapped target paths appear, alongside options to include or exclude directories and manage entries using the available toolbar controls.

Included Files/Directories

Manages directories selected for replication by listing included items, allowing exclusion when needed, select any included directory and click the icon to move it to the excluded list.

Excluded Files/Directories

Lists files and directories the user excludes from replication. To remove an excluded entry, select it in this section and click the icon.

Wildcard/Regex Exclude Filter

When you click the icon in the Excluded Files/Directories section, the wizard opens the Wildcard/Regex Exclude Filter dialog. This dialog lets you define exclusion rules using either simple wildcard patterns (e.g., *.log, temp*) or full regular expressions to precisely exclude files within the selected source directory from replication. The Type, Source Directory, and Pattern fields allow you to specify exactly which files should not be included in the replication job.

Wildcard/Regex Exclude Filter Settings

Settings	Description
Type	Selects whether exclusion pattern is interpreted as simple wildcard or regular expression. Settings Description Wildcard Excludes file names matching * and ? wildcard patterns within the selected source directory. Regular Expression Excludes file names matching defined regex patterns applied within the selected source directory.
Source Directory	Selects the folder used for filtering. Click the icon to open the Browse For Folder dialog, then either choose an existing folder from your local system or create a new one by clicking the icon, and confirm the selection.
Pattern	The filename applied to exclude items within the selected source directory.

Summary

After completing the Wildcard/Regex Exclude Filter settings, clicking Next opens the Summary pane, presenting all configured replication job details for final review.

See Also

BBjAdminBase

Replication Introduction