July 2010 - Posts

VM Heaven aka 24TB
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 8:06 AM

So, my test lab has been running lean and mean for a while. A few weeks back I decided that in order to test ConfigMgr v.Next. I needed to update my lab. In the past I had a few discussion about Hyper-v and getting more performance out of it.

 

The summary of the tips are:

·        Separate the OS drive from the VMs

·        Separate the page file from the OS and VMs

·        More drives are better

·        Faster RPM is better

·        More memory is better

·        Keep at least 25% free HD space on all drives

·        Defrag your HDs

 

One of the debates is about RAID setup vs performance, and how to get the most out of it.

 

Back in Feb 2010, I had the opportunity to use one of the MS Labs, I was surprised at how “fast” everything was. Here are the specs:

HP ProLiant DL380 G5

16GB of RAM

Intel Xeon 5150 (2.66 GHz on a 1333 MHz bus) x 2 socket x 2 core each

HP Smart Array RAID Controllers P400 with 512MB BBWC (Cache)

Hard Drive Configuration:

    C: 2 x 72GB 2.5 inch SAS drives in a RAID 1+0 configuration (68GB of space)

    E: Either 3x146GB or 6x72GB 2.5 inch SAS drives in a RAID 5 configuration (273GB of space)

 

This lead to a few debates on what is the best setup for Hyper-v.

 

Everyone agreed that you want: 

·        RAID 1 for OS

·        RAID 1 or RAID 0 for the Page file

 

The real debate happened when we talked about what RAID should one use for VMs. Should it be RAID 1, 5, 10, 50, or 60?, What size should your sectors be? Should you use caching controller? etc.

 

On most of my lab servers, I have being using RAID 5 for everything including the OS and page file, as HD space was at a premium.

 

So when I needed a new lab for v.Next, I decide put some of these tips into practice.

 

I purchased:

·        Dell R610 (New to me J)

o   24GB of Ram.

o   2 * 147 GB SAS drives 15k RPM

o   4 * 500 GB SAS drives 7.2k RPM

·        Habey DS-1220N 12-bay 3U Rackmount Storage Enclosure

·        HighPoint RocketRAID 2314 PCI-e x4

·        12 * Western Digital 2TB 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s drives 7.2k RPM

 

Then I setup up the server as:

·        C:\ RAID 1 147 GB  - OS

·        D:\ RAID 1 500 GB – Page file

·        E:\ RAID 1 2TB – ConfigMgr 2k7 VMs

·        F:\ RAID 10 10TB – All other VMs.

·        Windows 2008 R2 Datacenter

·        Two of the 500 GB SAS are un-used right now, as there is an issue with the Dell R610 only allowing 2 RAID setups in a 6 Drive server and only RAID 0 and 1 are allowed. I’m working on getting this fixed.

 

Generally what do I think of this setup? I notice a big different between this setup and my RAID 5 setup. but I’m un-happy with the HighPoint controller, and I will replace it soon. The reason is simple, there is no management software to speak of and the support is well, let’s just says it’s not good either.

 

Pro:

·        Tons of HD space

·        Cost

·        Heating cost are reduced in Winter. J

 

Cons:

·        eSata control has no management tools, yes there is a web page but what good is it? It will not proactively tell you that there is something wrong? It ridiculous.

·        AC costs are higher in the summer. J

 

 

Would I do this again?

Yes, I would purchase another Dell R610 Server but only with 4 drives!

Yes, I would consider purchasing another Habey 12 bay case, but it would be nice to have the case HDs down when all the eSata connections are inactive.

No, I would NOT purchase another HighPoint card. Their support is terrible, it is ludicrous that there is no management software (website software does not count as it not proactive) or OpsMgr Management Pack.

by Garth Jones

Filed under: Virtual Server , ConfigMGr, OpsMgr, Training, self-study, System Center, SCVMM, Hyper-v, SCCM, vNext

PCs without IE 8
Monday, July 19, 2010 8:08 AM

select Distinct
    CS.Name0
from
    dbo.v_GS_COMPUTER_SYSTEM CS
    left outer join dbo.v_GS_SoftwareFile SF on CS.ResourceID = SF.ResourceID
where
    SF.ResourceID not in (select Distinct ResourceID from dbo.v_GS_SoftwareFile where FileName = 'iexplore.exe'  and FileVersion like '8.%')
    and FileName = 'iexplore.exe'

by Garth Jones

Filed under: ConfigMGr, SMS, System Center, Code, SQL, vNext

Dynamic Subnet Collection
Friday, July 16, 2010 12:02 PM

select
    * 
from 
    SMS_R_System
    inner join SMS_G_System_NETWORK_ADAPTER_CONFIGURATION on SMS_G_System_NETWORK_ADAPTER_CONFIGURATION.ResourceId = SMS_R_System.ResourceId
where
    SMS_G_System_NETWORK_ADAPTER_CONFIGURATION.IPAddress like "192.168.1.%"

by Garth Jones

Filed under: SMS, Code, WQL, SCCM, vNext

Range Like
Thursday, July 08, 2010 8:47 PM

select
*
from
dbo.v_GS_NETWORK_ADAPTER_CONFIGUR
where
IPAddress0 IS not NULL
and IPAddress0 like '192.168.[1-9].%'

by Garth Jones

Filed under: ConfigMGr, SMS, System Center, Code, SQL, SCCM, vNext

Missing Brackets
Thursday, July 08, 2010 8:37 PM

SELECT DISTINCT
    SYS.Netbios_Name0,
    fcm.SiteCode,
    ROUND(CONVERT (FLOAT ,LDISK.FreeSpace0) / 1024, 2) AS FreeSpace0,
    ROUND (CONVERT (FLOAT, PROC1.MaxClockSpeed0), -2)/ 1000 AS 'Processor (GHz)',
    ROUND (ROUND(CONVERT (FLOAT ,MEM.TotalPhysicalMemory0) / 1048576, 2) * 1024, 0) AS C083, OPSYS.Caption0 AS 'Operating System',
    CONVERT(FLOAT, LEFT(OPSYS.Version0, 3)) Version
FROM
    v_FullCollectionMembership fcm
    JOIN v_R_System SYS ON fcm.ResourceID=SYS.ResourceID
    JOIN v_GS_PROCESSOR PROC1 ON SYS.ResourceID = PROC1.ResourceID
    JOIN v_GS_X86_PC_MEMORY MEM ON SYS.ResourceID = MEM.ResourceID
    JOIN v_GS_OPERATING_SYSTEM OPSYS ON SYS.ResourceID = OPSYS.ResourceID
    JOIN v_GS_LOGICAL_DISK LDISK ON SYS.ResourceID = LDISK.ResourceID AND LDISK.DeviceID0=SUBSTRING(OPSYS.WindowsDirectory0,1,2)
WHERE
    (TotalPhysicalMemory0 < 204800 or
    PROC1.MaxClockSpeed0 < 2000 or
    LDISK.FreeSpace0<16000)
    and fcm.CollectionID=@ID
GROUP BY
    SYS.Netbios_Name0,
    LDISK.FreeSpace0,
    PROC1.MaxClockSpeed0,
    MEM.TotalPhysicalMemory0,
    OPSYS.Caption0,
    OPSYS.Version0,
    fcm.SiteCode

by Garth Jones

Filed under: ConfigMGr, SMS, Code, SQL, vNext

Happy Canada Day 2010!
Thursday, July 01, 2010 9:49 AM

I know that I will! I get to watch our puppy go to the cottage for the first time and see how she like the lake!

by Garth Jones

Filed under: Canada

SMSUG.ca Forums
Thursday, July 01, 2010 9:44 AM

I have decided that the forums on www.SMSUG.ca are not being used and due to some SPAMMER populating the membership list, I have closed them down. This is a good thing as it means I will arrange for the site to be convert to a blog only site. With the new site will come a new look a feel. (wait for it)

 

If you are looking for ConfigMgr , SCCM , SMS, v.Next Forums then I suggest:

www.faqshop.com/forums/

www.myitforum.com/forums

social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/category/configurationmanager

 

by Garth Jones

Filed under: Joke, Virtual Server , User Groups, 70-401, ConfigMGr, 70-400, MOM, Study group, SMS, OpsMgr, Canada, Fun Links, SoftGrid, 70-299, 70-640, 70-643, EnergizeIT, 70-642, MS Support, Training, Windows 2008, self-study, Podcast, System Center, UK, Ottawa, 70-620, 70-536, CTE Solutions, 70-293, 70-622, 70-294, SCMDM, SCSM, SCE, SCVMM, Vista, exam, 70-652, 70-403, 70-402, MVP, Code, VS 2008, 70-624, Q&A, 70-298, A+, SQL, Windows 2003, 70-649, 70-646, 70-647, 70-431, TechDays Canada, Sector, MCSE, Hyper-v, WQL, MDT, 70-635, 70-671, 70-672, 70-673, Flowcharts, Drinks, 70-631, 70-089, MMS, DPM, Enhansoft, Poll, RobertHalf, Microsoft Canada, DevTeach, Redgate, myITforum, Rant, 70-630, 70-236, VMRCPlus, Windows 7, MSN, SCCM, SP2, SMSI, SMS Installer, Microsoft, Zune, App-v, Med-V, 70-669, Windows XP, Samsung, mobile, 70-432, vNext

Find the collections which does'nt have members
Thursday, July 01, 2010 9:34 AM

select
    C.Collectionid,
    C.Name
from
    dbo.v_Collection C
Where
    C.Collectionid not in (Select Collectionid from dbo.v_FullCollectionMembership)

by Garth Jones

Filed under: ConfigMGr, SMS, Code, SQL, SCCM, vNext