Microsoft® SQL Server 2012 Unleashed

When to Use Database Mirroring

As mentioned earlier in this chapter, database mirroring elevates the availability level of a SQL Server–based application to a very high level without any special hardware and extra administration staff skills. However, when you should use database mirroring varies depending on your true needs.

Basically, if you need to increase the availability of the database layer, have automatic data protection (that is, redundant storage of data), or decrease the downtime that would normally be required to do upgrades, you should use database mirroring. An ever more popular scenario for database mirroring is when you need to offload reporting that is easily satisfied with periodic database snapshots. This usage provides great ...