8 – Leveraging Exchange Clusters

This chapter discusses the support and implementation of clustering involved in Exchange Servers. Clustering can only address issues within the domain of the cluster service technology. It also gives an overview of the history and technology surrounding clustering technology as a foundation for later discussions. It focuses on support of clustering within the Windows Server 2000/2003 operating system implemented as Microsoft Cluster Service (MSCS). The chapter follows this with a close examination of how clustering support for Exchange 2000/2003 is designed, implemented, and managed and discusses deployment best practices and takes special care to call out any notable differences in clustering between Exchange 2000 and Exchange 2003. Finally, it also looks at some of the business and decision criteria that impact one's choice to implement cluster technology for an Exchange deployment.