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The Snapshot Agent run at the Distributor and is typically used with all types of replication. It prepares schema and initial data files of published tables and other objects, stores the snapshot files, and records information about synchronization in the distribution database.

The first step towards troubleshooting a delay in database replication is to figure out at which step of the replication process the delay occurred, and which agent performed that step. Using the Snapshot Replication Agent test, you can determine whether/not the Snapshot agent is contributing to a slowdown (if any) in the replication process. This test, at pre-configured intervals, monitors how quickly the agent delivers transactions to the distribution database. Latencies in creation of snapshot files or in recording synchronization details in the Distributor are thus revealed.

Measurement	Description	Measurement Unit	Interpretation
Delivered_Cmds	Indicates the rate at which the Snapshot agent delivered commands to the Distributor.	Commands/Sec
Delivered_Trans	Indicates the rate at which the Snapshot agent delivered transactions to the Distributor.	Trans/Sec	A high value is desired for this measure. If the value of this measure dips consistently over time, it is indicative of a slowdown. A contention for memory / CPU resources on the SQL server, or high disk I/O on the server could cause snapshotting to slow down.