Why should you care?

Reporting databases or remote sites need near-real-time copies without hammering OLTP.

See it live — copy this example

Run in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) or Azure Data Studio.

-- Conceptual checklist (configure via SSMS wizards / scripts as admin)
-- 1) Configure distributor
-- 2) Create publication on DataVerse articles (e.g. dbo.Products)
-- 3) Create subscription to DataVerse_Report
SELECT name, is_published, is_subscribed
FROM sys.databases;

What happened?

• The query shows publish/subscribe flags.
• Real setup uses distributors and publications — too environment-specific for a single CREATE script here.

Practice next

1. Read which replication type fits (transactional vs snapshot).
2. In lab, walk the SSMS publication wizard if available.
3. Monitor replication latency jobs.
4. List syspublications in a published DB if present.
5. Document RPO/RTO separately from replication lag.

Remember

Replication distributes data copies. Publications select articles. HA usually uses AGs or failover clustering instead.

Reporting subscriber

DataVerse OLTP publishes Products to a report subscriber.

Outcome: Heavy BI queries leave checkout alone.