Databases per volume
Autoreseed
Self-recovery behaviors
Lagged copy innovations
Managed availability
Database failover changes
Best copy selection changes
DAG network innovations http://aka.ms/E15HATechEdAU http://aka.ms/E15HATechEdNZ http://aka.ms/E15HATechDaysNL http://aka.ms/E15HATechEdNA http://aka.ms/E15HATechEdEU

MSExchangeRepl
MSExchangeDAGMgmt
Cluster
Crimson Channel

Microsoft exchange replication service | MSExchangeRepl
MSExchangeRepl.exe
Runs on all Mailbox servers (not just DAG members)
Communicates with Active Directory and other DAG members
Active Directory lookup
Copy status lookup
Replay core manager
Seed manager
Autoreseed manager
Disk reclaimer manager
Replay RPC server wrapper
Remote data provider wrapper
VssWriter
Active manager
Active manager RPC server wrapper
Failure item manager
TPR API manager
Support API manager
Server locator manager
Health state tracker

Microsoft Exchange DAG management service | MSExchangeDagMgmt
MSExchangeDagMgmt.exe
Runs on all Mailbox servers (not just DAG members)
Communicates with Active Directory and other DAG members
Active Directory lookup
Copy status lookup
Monitoring
Tracer instance

Microsoft Exchange DAG management service | MSExchangeDagMgmt
MSExchangeDagMgmt.exe
Runs on all mailbox servers (not just DAG members)
Communicates with Active Directory and other DAG members
Active Directory lookup
Copy status lookup
AutoReseed
Disk reclaimer
Dynamic replay lag playdown
Future AutoDAG copy layout and mobility features

Cluster Service | ClusSvc
Clussvc.exe
Quorum
Membership and node management
Networks and heartbeating
Cluster registry

Votes can be taken away manually or dynamically
Exchange management of quorum model based on nodes, not votes
Removing votes requires manual configuration of quorum model
Exchange will make incorrect quorum model management decisions if votes are manually removed at the cluster level

Registry changes are replicated immediately to all DAG members

IsEntryExist?True*ActiveServer?ex2*LastMountedServer?ex2*LastMountedTime?2013-07-
15T22:29:39*MountStatus?Mounted*IsAdminDismounted?False*IsAutomaticActionsAllowed?True*
Name of the server where the database is currently mounted or is expected to be mounted when mount operations complete
The name of the server where the database was last successfully mounted
The date and time stamp of the last time the database was mounted

IsEntryExist?True*ActiveServer?ex2*LastMountedServer?ex2*LastMountedTime?2013-07-
15T22:29:39*MountStatus?Mounted*IsAdminDismounted?False*IsAutomaticActionsAllowed?True*
The current mount status for the database
Possible values are mounted / dismounted
Designates whether the current dismounted status of the database is the result of administrator action
Possible values are true / false
Designates whether the database can be automatically activated by AM
Possible values are true / false

Area of Windows Server event log used by applications for logging and internal communication
These logs store events from a single application or component rather than events that might have system-wide impact
This is referred to as an application's crimson channel
ActiveMonitoring
HighAvailability
MailboxDatabaseFailureItems
ManagedAvailability
PushNotifications
Troubleshooters

“We recommend that you use a Hub Transport server running on Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 in the Active Directory site containing the DAG. This allows the witness server and directory to remain
under the control of an Exchange administrator.”
“If your DAG is extended to multiple datacenters, we recommend deploying the witness server in the
datacenter that is considered to be the primary datacenter.”

A third location, such as a third physical datacenter or branch office

Single DAG deployed in a single datacenter Locate witness server in the same datacenter as DAG members
Single DAG deployed across two datacenters; no additional locations available
Locate witness server in primary datacenter
Multiple DAGs deployed in a single datacenter
Multiple DAGs deployed across two datacenters
Locate witness server in the same datacenter as DAG members. Additional options include:
Using the same witness server for multiple DAGs
Using a DAG member to act as a witness server for a different DAG
Locate witness server in the same datacenter as DAG members. Additional options include:
Using the same witness server for multiple DAGs
Using a DAG member to act as a witness server for a different DAG
Single or Multiple DAGs deployed across more than two datacenters
Locate the witness server in the datacenter where you want the majority of quorum votes to exist

The witness server location must have network infrastructure and connectivity that is isolated from network failures that affect the two datacenters with Exchange

Azure does not yet support the required underlying network configuration to enable an Azure file server VM to act as a witness server

When a node shuts down or crashes, the node loses its quorum vote
When a node successfully rejoins the cluster, it regains its quorum vote
By dynamically adjusting the assignment of quorum votes, the cluster can increase or decrease the number of quorum votes that are required to keep running
This enables the cluster to maintain availability during sequential node failures or shutdowns

By dynamically adjusting the quorum majority requirement, the cluster can sustain sequential node shutdowns to a single node
This is referred to as “Last Man Standing” scenario

DQ = 7

X
X
X
DQ = 4

X X
X
X
DQ = 3

X
X X
X
X
DQ = 2

0 = does not have quorum vote
1 = has quorum vote
Get-ClusterNode <Name> | ft name, *weight, state
Name DynamicWeight NodeWeight State
---- ------------- --------------
EX1 1 1 Up

“Selecting this option generally increases the availability of the cluster. By default the option is enabled, and it is strongly recommended to not disable this option. This option allows the cluster to
continue running in failure scenarios that are not possible when this option is disabled.”
Leave it enabled for majority of DAG members
Don’t factor it into availability plans
The advantage is that, in some cases where 2008 R2 would have lost quorum, 2012 can maintain quorum; this only applies to a few cases, and should not be relied upon when planning a DAG

Run StartDagServerMaintenance.ps1 to put DAG member in maintenance mode
Perform the maintenance (e.g., install the update rollup)
Run StopDagServerMaintenance.ps1 to take DAG member out of maintenance mode and put it back into production
Optionally rebalance the DAG by using RedistributeActiveDatabases.ps1

Set-ServerComponentState <Server> -Component HubTransport -State Draining -Requester
Maintenance
Set-ServerComponentState <Server> -Component UMCallRouter –State Draining –Requestor
Maintenance
Redirect-Message -Server <Server> -Target <FQDNTarget>
Suspend-ClusterNode <Server>
Set-MailboxServer <Server> -DatabaseCopyActivationDisabledAndMoveNow $True
Set-MailboxServer <Server> -DatabaseCopyAutoActivationPolicy Blocked
Set-ServerComponentState <Server> -Component ServerWideOffline -State Inactive -Requester
Maintenance
Get-ServerComponentState <Server> | ft Component,State -Autosize
Get-MailboxServer <Server> | ft DatabaseCopy* -Autosize
Get-ClusterNode <Server> | fl
Get-Queue

Set-ServerComponentState <Server> -Component ServerWideOffline -State Active -Requester
Maintenance
Set-ServerComponentState <Server> -Component UMCallRouter –State Active –Requestor Maintenance
Resume-ClusterNode <Server>
Set-MailboxServer <Server> -DatabaseCopyActivationDisabledAndMoveNow $False
Set-MailboxServer <Server> -DatabaseCopyAutoActivationPolicy Unrestricted
Set-ServerComponentState <Server> -Component HubTransport -State Active -Requester Maintenance
Get-ServerComponentState <Server> | ft Component,State -Autosize
Get-MailboxServer <Server> | ft DatabaseCopy* -Autosize
Get-ClusterNode <Server> | fl
Get-Queue