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Review DFS Namespaces Server Requirements

Published: October 22, 2009

Updated: May 12, 2010

Applies To: Windows Server 2008 R2

A namespace server is a domain controller or member server that hosts a namespace. The number of namespaces you can host on a server is determined by the operating system running on the namespace server.

The following servers can host multiple domain-based and stand-alone namespaces:

Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise
Windows Server 2008 R2 Datacenter
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise
Windows Server 2008 Datacenter
Windows Server 2003 R2, Enterprise Edition
Windows Server 2003 R2, Datacenter Edition
Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition
Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition

Servers that are running the following operating systems can host multiple domain-based namespaces in addition to a single stand-alone namespace:

Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard
Windows Server 2008 Standard
Windows Server 2003 R2, Standard Edition with Service Pack 2 or later
Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition with Service Pack 2 or later

Note
Windows Server 2003, Web Edition cannot host any namespaces. It can act as a folder target; though a maximum of 10 concurrent incoming server message block (SMB) connections are permitted.

The following table describes additional factors to consider when choosing servers to host a namespace.

Guidelines for Servers that Host Namespaces

Server Hosting Stand-Alone Namespaces	Server Hosting Domain-Based Namespaces
Only servers running Windows Server 2008 support access-based enumeration for stand-alone or domain-based (Windows Server 2008 mode) namespaces. Must contain an NTFS volume to host the namespace. Can be a member server or domain controller. Can be hosted by a failover cluster to increase the availability of the namespace.	Only servers running Windows Server 2008 can host domain-based namespaces in Windows Server 2008 mode. Must contain an NTFS volume to host the namespace. Must be a member server or domain controller in the domain in which the namespace is configured. (This requirement applies to every namespace server that hosts a given domain-based namespace.) Can use multiple namespace servers to increase the availability of the namespace The namespace cannot be a clustered resource in a failover cluster. However, you can locate the namespace on a server that also functions as a node in a failover cluster if you configure the namespace to use only local resources on that server.

Server Hosting Stand-Alone Namespaces

Server Hosting Domain-Based Namespaces

Only servers running Windows Server 2008 support access-based enumeration for stand-alone or domain-based (Windows Server 2008 mode) namespaces.
Must contain an NTFS volume to host the namespace.
Can be a member server or domain controller.
Can be hosted by a failover cluster to increase the availability of the namespace.

Only servers running Windows Server 2008 can host domain-based namespaces in Windows Server 2008 mode.
Must contain an NTFS volume to host the namespace.
Must be a member server or domain controller in the domain in which the namespace is configured. (This requirement applies to every namespace server that hosts a given domain-based namespace.)
Can use multiple namespace servers to increase the availability of the namespace
The namespace cannot be a clustered resource in a failover cluster. However, you can locate the namespace on a server that also functions as a node in a failover cluster if you configure the namespace to use only local resources on that server.

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