Lost database replica recovery

Occasionally, a replica is lost. This loss is usually due to a hardware failure (for example, disk crash), a software failure (for example, OS-level file system corruption), or a human error. If an unreplicated database is lost, you can restore a recent copy from backup and resume development work. The changes made between the time of the backup and the time of the failure are not recoverable.

Similarly, if you lose a replica, you can restore a recent copy from backup; however, this can result in the following conditions:
  • Some of the work done between the time of the backup and the time of the failure may be recoverable. If some of the operations were sent to other replicas in update packets, these operations must be retrieved and imported.
  • The restored copy of the replica is out of date. You must make this replica consistent with the other replicas in the family before development can proceed at the restored replica. Failure to reestablish consistency can lead to irreparable damage.

Because this procedure involves substantial effort, it is intended for situations where serious damage has occurred. (For example, the disk containing a replica is unusable.)