Planning for File Server Uptime

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Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

The following guidelines provide basic steps to increase the uptime of file servers. For comprehensive coverage of these topics, see "Planning for High Availability and Scalability" in this book.

Choosing Hardware for Reliability and Availability

Implement a well-planned hardware strategy to increase file server availability while reducing support costs and failure recovery times. You can choose hardware for reliability and availability by following these guidelines:

  • Choose hardware from the Windows Server Catalog for products in the Windows Server 2003 family.

  • Establish hardware standards.

  • Keep spares or stand-by systems for redundancy.

  • Use fault-tolerant network components, server cooling, and power supplies.

  • Use error checking and correcting (ECC) memory. ECC memory uses a checking scheme to guarantee that the failure of any one bit out of a byte of information is corrected.

  • Use fault-tolerant storage components, such as redundant disk controllers, hot-swappable disks and hot spares, and disks configured as redundant arrays of independent disks (RAID). For more information about RAID, see "Planning the Layout and RAID Level of Volumes" later in this chapter.

  • Use disk resource management tools, such as disk quotas, to ensure that users always have available disk space.

  • Keep a log or database of changes made to the file server. The log should contain dated entries for hardware failures and replacements, service pack and software installations, and other significant changes.

  • Deploy FRS-compliant antivirus software on link target computers prior to adding files to FRS replicated links or adding new members to the replica set.

Maintaining the Physical Environment

Maintain high standards for the environment in which the file servers must run. Neglecting the environment can negate all other efforts to maintain the availability of file servers. Take the following measures to maintain the physical environment:

  • Maintain proper temperature and humidity.

  • Protect servers from dust or contaminates.

  • For power outages, provide a steady supply of power for the servers by using uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units or standby generators.

  • Maintain server cables.

  • Secure the server room.

Planning for Backup and Preparing for Recovery

Backups are essential for high-availability file servers, because the ultimate recovery method is to restore from backup. To plan for backup and recovery:

  • Create a plan for backup.

  • Monitor backups.

  • Decide between local and network backups.

  • Check the condition of backup media.

  • Perform trial restorations on a regular basis. A trial restoration confirms that your files are properly backed up and can uncover hardware problems that do not show up with software verifications. Be sure to note the time it takes to either restore or re-replicate the data so that you will know how long it takes to bring a server back online after a failure.

  • Perform regular backups of clustered file servers and test cluster failures and failover policies. For more information about backing up server clusters and testing policies, see "Backing up and restoring server clusters" and "Test Cluster Failures and Failover Policies" in Help and Support Center for Windows Server 2003.

  • If you are using DFS and FRS, put a procedure in place for recovering failed members of an FRS replica set. For more information about troubleshooting FRS, see the Windows Security Collection of the Windows Server 2003 Technical Reference (or see the Windows Security Collection on the Web at https://www.microsoft.com/reskit).

Choosing Software for Reliability

Installing incompatible or unreliable software reduces the overall availability of file servers. To choose software for reliability, follow these guidelines:

  • Select software that is compatible with Windows Server 2003.

  • Select signed drivers. Microsoft promotes driver signing for designated device classes as a mechanism to advance the quality of drivers, to provide a better user experience, and to reduce support costs for vendors and total cost of ownership for customers. For more information about driver signing, see the Driver Signing and File Protection link on the Web Resources page at https://www.microsoft.com/windows/reskits/webresources.

  • Select software that supports the high-availability features you require, such as server clusters and online backup.