DFSR Pre-Seeding Event Log: The DFS Replication service detected that a file was changed on multiple servers

Marcus Wong Theen Nam 1,091 Reputation points
2021-09-14T17:03:59.32+00:00

I have one DFS replication group which consists of 2 servers (Server A and Server B) and both replicating the \Users folder and it is multipurpose mesh topology. I'm adding a new file server (Server C) as member into this existing replication group.

Prior adding the replication group, I have performed the following:

  1. Pre-seed the folder using robocopy command: robocopy.exe \ServerA\Users D:\Users /e /b /copyall /r:3 /w:3 /MT /xd DfsrPrivate /tee /log:c:\temp\pre-seedsvrA.log
  2. Enable share for D:\Users folder in Server C
  3. Added server C as target folder in DFS Namespace and disabled it
  4. Added this server C into replication group and set primary member as Server A.

During the time that I'm doing step 2 to 4, our users are still using the file server and updating some of the files in Server A.

From the event log, I can see the log for initialization of replication was setting up. And after that, the initial replication was completed successfully but I can see few logs as below:

"The DFS Replication service detected that a file was changed on multiple servers. A conflict resolution algorithm was used to determine the winning file. The losing file was moved to the Conflict and Deleted folder. "

Is this a normal behavior that I can safely ignore it? Is it because of the files were updated in the source thus causing the content between Server A/B and C is not the same?

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Windows Server
Windows Server
A family of Microsoft server operating systems that support enterprise-level management, data storage, applications, and communications.
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Windows Server Storage
Windows Server Storage
Windows Server: A family of Microsoft server operating systems that support enterprise-level management, data storage, applications, and communications.Storage: The hardware and software system used to retain data for subsequent retrieval.
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  1. Limitless Technology 39,351 Reputation points
    2021-09-15T07:37:13.473+00:00

    Hello Marcus,

    No. DFS Replication does not communicate with File Replication Service (FRS). DFS Replication and FRS can run on the same server at the same time, but they must never be configured to replicate the same folders or subfolders because doing so can cause data loss.

    you can check out the FAQs for better understanding, using the below link

    https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/storage/dfs-replication/dfsr-faq

    Hope this answers all your queries, if not please do repost back.
    If an Answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and upvote it : )

    Regards,