An automated method is provided for use when replacing a currently operating data replication engine in a first system with a new data replication engine in the first system in a bidirectional data replication environment. The currently operating data replication engine in the first system and the new data replication engine in the first system replicates first database transactions from an audit trail of a first database in the first system to a second database in a second system. The new data replication engine in the first system generating a list of active database transactions in the first system, and sends the list of active database transactions to the new data replication engine in the second system as a first token. The new data replication engine in the second system receives the first token, fetches a transaction event from an audit trail of second database, and replicates the fetched transaction event to the new data replication engine of the first system when the fetched transaction event does not match a transaction on the list in the first token. These steps are repeated during operation of the new data replication engine of the second system. The currently operating data replication engine in the first system is stopped from replicating first database transactions when all of the transactions on the list of active database transactions that were generated have been replicated to the second system.