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10 Dell EMC PowerVault ME4 Series and Microsoft Exchange Server 2016 | 3925-BP-EX
2.7 Partition type
GUID Partition Table (GPT) is recommended for Exchange 2016 volumes. Volumes larger than 2 TB require
that GPT is used to access the entire size of the volume. Master Boot Record (MBR) is the default partition
type and is also supported, but the partition size is limited to less than 2 TB.
2.8 Mailbox server sizing considerations
Understanding user patterns is an important part of determining sizing parameters for any Exchange Server
implementation.
Tools like Jetstress, Profile Analyzer, and LoadGen (described in this section) can help determine the best
settings for the type of mailbox user, mailbox size, and server configuration. By having information such as
mailbox count, required mailbox size, send/receive statistics, and average message size, Jetstress can use
these parameters to run a performance test to simulate how the specific configuration would perform.
Servers should be sized before they are moved into production. This process should include a Jetstress test
to determine if the hardware and disk configurations are suitable for the type and amount of traffic to be
expected. Once a successful Jetstress test is completed, Exchange Server can be installed and client testing
can be performed using LoadGen. LoadGen simulates actual client traffic operations such as sending and
receiving mail, creating calendar appointments, and accessing public folder data. A number of other tests are
available as part of the profile configuration and can be customized as necessary.
Mailbox I/O requirements have been substantially lowered since Exchange 2013. The overall I/O requirement
for Exchange 2016 mailboxes has decreased by over 50 percent from Exchange 2010 (see Figure 1).
IOPS-per-mailbox requirement per Exchange Server version
Microsoft provides the following information on simulation and analysis tools for Exchange (links provided):
Jetstress 2013 should be used to simulate disk I/O load on a test server running Exchange 2013 or 2016 to
verify the performance and stability of the disk subsystem before putting the server into a production
environment. Find more information on Microsoft.com.
0.325
0.1
0.05
0.039
2007 2010 2013 2016
IOPS per mailbox
Microsoft Exchange Server version
Mailbox profile I/O requirements (profile: Heavy)