Use Replication Monitor to view the status of replication agents and troubleshoot potential problems at a Distributor. Replication Monitor is activated as a component of a server in SQL Server Enterprise Manager only when the server is enabled as a Distributor and the current user is a member of the sysadmin fixed server role. All replication agents must be scheduled through SQL Server Agent. Replication and Replication Monitor will not work unless SQL Server Agent is running.
You can use Replication Monitor in SQL Server Enterprise Manager to:
Replication Monitor is a powerful tool for getting detailed information about Publishers, publications, and subscriptions. For example, Replication Monitor provides a list of all of the Publishers that use the server as a Distributor, display all of the publications for a particular Publisher, or identify all subscriptions to a particular publication.
For troubleshooting purposes, Replication Monitor graphically monitors the activity of all replication agents: Snapshot, Log Reader, Distribution, and Merge Agents. To display the four agents, select a Distributor, and then click Replication Monitor. To expose the detailed activity and the task history for that agent, expand the node of a specific agent.
Replication Monitor and the SQL Server Agent provide a powerful mechanism for setting up lights-out management for a replication environment. SQL Server Agent monitors the Windows NT application log, watching for an event that qualifies as one of the defined alerts. If such an event occurs, SQL Server Agent responds automatically, either by executing a task that you have defined or by sending an e-mail or a pager message to an operator that you have specified.
You can select a Distributor and use Replication Monitor to display a list of all replication-related alerts on the server.
To view the Windows NT application log, use the Windows NT Event Viewer. If you are part of the Windows NT Administrators group, you can also view remote event logs. The Windows NT application log contains SQL Server error messages as well as messages for all activities on the computer. When you use the Windows NT application log, each SQL Server session writes new events to an existing log; you can filter the log for specific events. Unlike the SQL Server error log, a new Windows NT application log is not created each time you start SQL Server; however, you can specify how long logged events are retained.