How to Tell Your Manager You Need Quotas on Your MailboxesBhargav ShuklaSr. Premier Field EngineerMicrosoft Corporation

EXL203

Session Objectives and Takeaways

Why do we care about mailbox sizing?Does it matter?Are large mailboxes a problem?

Mailbox quota is a Business decision as much as it is an IT one

Agenda

Ask a question or twoTalk about Mailbox QuotaTalk about some more stuffLeave room for Q&ARemind you to complete evaluation

Question

Microsoft Mail was first introduced…In 1991 for PC Networks?In 1988 for AppleTalk Networks?All of the above?None of the above?

1988 for AppleTalk Networks, later sold off to become Quarterdeck Mail, then Star Nine Mail and then discontinued

Where are communications going?

1965 – Email introduced at MIT

1971 – first ARPANET email was sent

1982 – SMTP RFC 821

2000 – Exchange 2000 adds IM

Where are communications going?

2003 – MS LCS launched

2006 – Facebook and twitter opens to public

2009 – Exchange 2010 RTMs

2010 – Lync Server 2010 RTMs

Email Trends in November 2008

The average corporate user, can expect to send and receive about 156 messages a day, and this number is expected to grow to about 233 messages a day by 2012. An increase of 33% over the four-year period. (Radicati, 2008)Business users report that they currently spend 19% of their work day, or close to 2 hours/day on email. (Radicati, 2007)

2008 2010 20120

50

100

150

200

250Messages Sent/Received per User/Day

Email Trends in 2012

The average corporate user, can expect to send and receive about 110 messages a day, and this number is expected to grow to about 130 messages a day by 2016. *Email still plays an essential role in everyday business communications. Office workers spend nearly 3 hours of their day on Email. *The number of emails sent and received per day is beginning to slow due to the rapid rise in other forms of communications, particularly instant messaging (IM) and social networks. We estimate that 10% of conversations that would have previously been carried out via email are now handled via IM. *

* Radicati Email Statistics Report, 2012-2016

2012 2014 2016100

105

110

115

120

125

130

135

Messages Sent/Received per User/Day

Why are talking about mailbox quota?

Forecast is cloudyOffice 365 plans offer up to 25GB mailboxesGoogle Apps for Business offers the same

Consumer offeringsHotmail – fair use soft limitGmail – 10GBYahoo – fair use soft limit

It’s natural

IT management wants to offer moreUsers want more

What does Messaging Architect want?Meet Business requirements

What does management want?Stay within allocated budget

What does security/legal require?Meet regulations and compliance requirements

Larger Mailboxes

Why everyone wants one?

Is Larger Mailbox better?End User Benefits

Access to all required data from anywhere and any deviceAbility to quickly find data via search mechanismsReduces mailbox managementEliminates the need for .PST files

Is Larger Mailbox better?IT Benefits

High availability and rapid recoveryUtilizes high capacity disk drives efficientlyReduces end user support overheadAllows for elimination of .PST files

Is Larger Mailbox better?IT Benefits

Eliminate PSTsDo you have policy that prohibits use of PST files?PSTs Generate help desk calls

Client machine disk failureAnyone in audience backs up PST files for users?

Large PST performance issuesWhile improved with Unicode PST and Newer version of Outlook, how many are still using Outlook 2003?

Client performance and supportability issues when accessing PST’s over network

Dramatically increase legal discovery costsPredominantly a manual process

Security riskTerminated employee taking corporate e-mailStolen laptop scenarios

Have you tried PST Capture Tool yet?

What size mailboxes do I plan for?

Consider following factors for planning:Mailbox profileMessage sizeRetention requirementsSLA requirements

Average Profile (50KB)

Time Items Mailbox Size (MB)

1 Day 50 2.4

1 Month 1,500 73

1 Year 18,250 891

3 Years 54,750 2,673

Heavy Profile (75KB)

Time Items Mailbox Size (MB)

1 Day 150 ~11

1 Month 4,500 330

1 Year 54,750 4,010

3 Years 164,250 12,030

MSIT Deployment

How did Microsoft do it?

MSIT deployment

MSF Process ModelAssessment and Scoping

Identify Business and Technical requirementsIncrease employee productivityIncrease operational efficiencyDecrease costs

Assessment and scoping

Dep

loym

ent

pla

nn

ing

exe

rcis

es

Engineering lab

Pilo

t pro

jects

Productio

n rollo

ut

Release readiness approved

Vision and scope

approved

Project plans

approved

Deployment complete

Pre-release deployments and TAP

Scope complete

Envisioning

Planning

Deploying

Stabilizing

Developing

MSIT deployment

Mailbox Server Configuration GoalsIncrease the mailbox quota to 5GB

Increased reliance on e-mailnecessary to sustain long-term growth

Move to low-cost storageExchange Server 2010 built to support low-cost storageSuccessful implementation at MSIT is important

Remove third-party backupsUse native features to address backup and restore requirements

MSIT deployment

Mailbox Server Configuration GoalsSizing for storage

Existing average mailbox size (890 MB in 2008)User profile (100-150 messages per day per user)Growth rate (60 MB per user per month)Account for overhead

Changes introduced with the new Mailbox DumpsterKeep deleted items for 30 days to support backup goalContent Indexing space requirementsAverage number of transaction logs per user

Projected mailbox size = 3GB per userFormatted capacity of 1TB disk = 917 GBTotal number of users per disk = 305

MSIT deployment

Mailbox Server Configuration Goals1 TB disks to host 305 users meeting capacity requirementsWhat about IO?

1TB 7200 RPM SAS disk can sustain 100 IOPS while staying below 20ms response timesHow many mailboxes can fit in 100 IOPS?Pre-Production environment observed 0.3 average IOPS per user0.3 x 305 = 91.58.5 IOPS isn’t a lot of remaining IOPS but system won’t suffer

Operational maturity is a key factor

Calculations won’t be this simpler in RAID configurationsMust consider write IO penalty for RAID type

MSIT deployment

Mailbox Server Configuration GoalsMemory requirements

Pre-Production environment observed 120 messages per day100 messages/day profile require 6 MB of ESE cache150 messages/day profile require 9 MB of ESE cacheOS needs ~2 GB of memoryExchange Server 2010 requires ~4 GB memory for required 16 active databases32 GB server met requirements

32 GB – 2 GB – 4 GB = 26 GBAbout 8 MB average ESE cache per user

ESE cache per user in production averages 5-8 MB per user

MSIT deployment

Server Configuration32 GB Memory1 TB 7200 RPM disks in JBOD configuration35 disks per serverOne Database+Logs per disk16 maximum active databases per server5 GB quota, oh wait!

Yes, this means thin provisioningDecision to invest in engineering and support teamsBuild custom monitoring toolsRegularly report on mailbox size and changes in user profile

Analyze trade-offs carefully before deploying thin provisioning

MSIT deployment

Backup StrategySupport 5 GB mailboxesReduce costs by eliminating third-party backupsSimplify mail restore processProvide recovery for items up to 30 days old

Which meantMinimum 30 days of data available for recoveryAbility to hold information for more than 30 days if active litigation required itAbility to operate or recover with one or two failed copies

MSIT deployment

Designing for backup requirementsDAGs met high availability and resiliency requirementsSingle Item recovery met requirement of restoring items within defined restore window (30 days)Lagged database copies deployed for point-in-time copy for restore

After initial deployment, re-evaluated use of lagged copiesDAG met the goal of recovery requirements as wellLagged copies introduced administrative overhead

Treat database copies differentlyCorruption meant logs not replayed are lost, removing backups from existenceRestoring from inactive database takes more time

Decision to rely on Single item recovery and simplify DAG design

MSIT deployment

Restoring DataUtilize new dumpster design

No longer a view of databaseImplemented as a folder within Non-IPM subtree of the mailboxDumpster data is indexed and discoverableCan be moved with mailboxData stored on per-mailbox basisRecoverableItemQuota on mailbox or database helps prevent DoS attacksSingleItemRecovery enabled and set to 30 daysLitigation hold for active litigations

MSIT deployment

Recovering mail itemsSelf service using Recover Deleted Items toolAdministrative access to recover directly to mailbox or to PST

Search-Mailbox "Discovery Search Mailbox" -SearchQuery "from:'Ken Kwok' AND seattle" -TargetMailbox "April Stewart" -TargetFolder "Recovered Messages“ -SearchDumpsterNew-MailboxExportRequest -Mailbox "Discovery Search Mailbox" -SourceRootFolder "April Stewart Recovery" -ContentFilter {Subject -eq "april travel plans"} -FilePath \\MYSERVER\HelpDeskPst\AprilStewartRecovery.pst

Larger Mailbox ChallengesWhy is it important?

Large Mailbox Challenges

Server performanceClient ImpactOperations managementStorage considerationsDisaster recovery

Large Mailbox ChallengesServer Performance

Challenges Solutions

In previous versions of Exchange, IO requirements grew with mailbox size

• First time index creation on folders with high item counts

• First time OST sync on large mailboxes

Exchange 2010 is 64-bit application

ESE cache size isn’t limited, resulting in reduced read I/O operation

Write I/O operations are improved• Larger database pages (32 KB)• Better I/O coalescing• Better checkpoint depth (20/100/5)

Number of items in folders increase as mailbox size increases

Deploy Outlook cached mode to minimize server impact

Deploy records management and archive mailboxes

Utilize RPC Client throttling for users with large mailboxes and high item counts

Large Mailbox ChallengesClient Impact

Mailbox Size Client Behavior (cached mode)

Up to 5 GB Good user experience on most hardware

Between 5 and 10 GB Typically hardware dependentExperience some application pauses when slower drives respond

More than 10 GB Short pauses begin to occur on most hardware

25 GB or larger Increases frequency of short pausesUse Send/receive groups

Large Mailbox ChallengesOperations Management

Challenges Solutions

Large mailboxes introduce high log generation growth during move mailbox operations

Design log LUN capacity for mailbox moves (Mailbox server role requirements calculator is helpful)

Large mailboxes introduce longer backup times

Deploy more databases (smaller database size)

Eliminate backups if possible using native features such as DAG, single item recovery and lagged database copies

Large mailboxes introduce longer restoration times

Use native features such as single item recovery where possible

Use lagged database copies

Large Mailbox ChallengesBalance Storage Requirements

Operational

Costs (Opex)

Capital Costs

(Capex)

CapacityPerformance

ReliabilityManagement

Balance

Large Mailbox ChallengesStorage Requirements: Management

Installation and maintenance activities on SANRequires dedicated storage personnelDisk provisioning is important

Utility approach can cause problemsIncorrect provisioning can result in poor IO characteristics

SAN architecture has many moving partsTroubleshooting becomes time consuming

SAN architecture requires constant monitoring (especially shared storage environments)Thin provisioning requires careful planning

Consider procurement and other delays in provisioning new storage

Large Mailbox ChallengesStorage Requirements: Management

Installation and maintenance activities on DASDesign/deploy/forget approach“Pod” design

Per server storage doesn’t change for designed lifespanDeploy new DAG to address growthBalance mailboxes/active databases to balance IOPS within existing DAG

Backups must be performed over LANDoes native features meet your requirements?

Large Mailbox ChallengesStorage Requirements: Reliability

Microsoft IT observes an annual failure rate of 2.75% in SAS/SATA deployment in JBOD configuration

Near the rate observed in past with redundant storageMid-Tier disks are cheaper than high-end disks and higher quality than cheapest lowest-end disks

For SATA:Pay attention to enclosure specs since performance is affected based on vibration and heatUse with battery backed cache controllerEnsure warranty periods align with design goals

Large Mailbox ChallengesStorage Requirements: CapEx & OpEx

DAS solutions provide lower CapEx costAs much as 10% of the cost of other solutionsJBOD deployments save costs even more

DAS solutions can reduce OpEx cost as wellIn terms of provisioning, DAS solutions are isolated and thus performance and capacity can be assuredIn terms of maintenance, there are fewer parts to maintain (disk and controller)SAS/SATA disks consume less power

Conclusion

What should be your mailbox quota?There is no simple answerKnow your average user profileKnow average growth rateKnow average mailbox sizeUnderstand how adoption of IM/social media will impact growth forecast

Conclusion (continued…)

What should be your mailbox quota?Understand business requirementsConsider current investments, expertise and budgets to decide where to invest

Invest in people and processes vs. hardware

Use native features of Exchange Server 2010 where possible

Reduce CapEx/OpEx requirementsReduce complexityIncrease deployment flexibility

Validate early and oftenBe proactive – monitor and respond

Related Content

EXL308 - Real World High Availability and Site Resilient Design

EXL202 - Getting Microsoft Exchange and SharePoint to Play Together

EXL303 - Configuring Hybrid Exchange the Easy Way

EXL11-HOL - Exchange Server 2010 Compliance: Archiving and Retention

Find Me Later At… Exchange Booth between 11:30 AM – 2:00 PM

Geek Out with Perry Blog: http://blogs.technet.com/b/perryclarke/

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Exchange TechNet Tech Center: http://technet.microsoft.com/exchange

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© 2012 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to

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