Tag Archives: DAG

Exchange

Upgrade to Exchange Server 2013 RTM CU2

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Now that Microsoft has released Exchange Server 2013 RTM CU2 it’s time to have a closer look at installing this Cumulative Update.

In contrast with the previous Update Rollups as we’ve seen in Exchange 2007 and Exchange 2010, which were only a set of hotfixes bundled together, a Cumulative Update is a full version of the product. So, it is now possible to install an Exchange 2013 server from scratch using the CU2 download.

Another advantage of a CU is that Microsoft can bundle new functionality into the product, even Schema changes are possible (as a matter of fact CU2 does include a number of Schema changes) but also the Configuration container in Active Directory can be changed.

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Exchange

File Share Witness (FSW) on non-Exchange Server

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Microsoft is shifting focus on Load Balancing solutions. During TechEd 2010 in Berlin it was announced that Windows Network Load Balancing (NLB) is no longer recommended (but still supported) and that the recommendation will be to use a hardware load balancer.

Another new recommendation is to use combined Exchange server with all three Server Roles, i.e. Hub Transport, Client Access and Mailbox Server Role when possible.

When using a Database Availability Group (DAG) you have to use a server outside the DAG as a File Share Witness (FSW). Normally an Exchange 2010 Hub Transport Server is recommended for FSW usage, but when using a two node DAG each with three Server roles an additional Hub Transport Server might not be available.

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