Learn more about running DBCC CHECKDB in SQL Server Always on AG. Our SQL Server Support team is here to help you with your questions and concerns.

Running DBCC CHECKDB in SQL Server Always on AG

When we use SQL Server Always On Availability Groups, we have to be able to perform DBCC CHECKDB on databases participating in AGs while maintaining high availability and data integrity.

DBCC CHECKDB is a command that helps check the physical and logical integrity of all the objects in a database.

Here are a few things to consider while running DBCC CHECKDB on databases within an AAG:

• Use Secondary Replica for DBCC CHECKDB:

  Our experts recommend running DBCC CHECKDB on a secondary replica to reduce any impact on the primary replica’s performance.

  We can run DBCC CHECKDB on a secondary replica as long as the secondary replica is in the synchronized state and available for read-only connections.
• Read-Only Routing:

  We have to configure read-only routing to direct read-only connections to a readable secondary replica. This makes sure that DBCC CHECKDB operations do not affect the primary replica’s performance.

  We have to make the secondary replica used for DBCC CHECKDB has been configured to allow read-only connections.
• Database Snapshot for DBCC CHECKDB:

  Additionally, we can use database snapshots to run DBCC CHECKDB on a secondary replica.

How to run DBCC CHECKDB

Let’s take a look at how to run DBCC CHECKDB on a secondary replica with read-only routing and a database snapshot:

1. First, we have to make sure the secondary replica is in the synchronized state and available for read-only connections.
2. Then, create a database snapshot on the secondary replica:

   

   Here, we have to replace OurSnapshotName with the snapshot name, OurDatabaseName with the name of our database, and ‘SnapshotFileLocation’ with the path where we want to store the snapshot file.
3. Next, run DBCC CHECKDB on the database snapshot.
4. Then, monitor and review the DBCC CHECKDB results to ensure the database’s integrity.

This lets us perform DBCC CHECKDB with minimal impact on the primary replica’s performance and ensures high availability for our SQL Server environment.

[Need assistance with a different issue? Our team is available 24/7.]

Conclusion

In brief, our Support Experts demonstrated how to run DBCC CHECKDB in SQL Server Always on AG.