Comments on: Create Pool – Run on OCS or SQL Server?

By: Jason Lee

Jason Lee — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:39:05 +0000

I am still having issues creating the pool. Installing it directly on the server. I am using OS of Server 2008 Standard and SQL 2008 Standard. Have fully elevated permisssions in both sql, domain and the local server. Anything else I should look for?

By: Create Pool – Run on OCS or SQL Server? « msunified.net

Create Pool – Run on OCS or SQL Server? « msunified.net — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:51:06 +0000

[...] OCS MVP Elan Shudnow wrote a great article on best practice for creating the OCS Enterprise pool on the Front End or the SQL Server. http://www.shudnow.net/2009/06/01/create-pool-run-on-ocs-or-sql-server/ [...]

By: Elan Shudnow

Elan Shudnow — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 19:00:40 +0000

Na, it’s correct. Look at the other documentation above that which is straight from OCS documentation. For example, for R1:

* If you are using a 32-bit version of SQL Server, log on to your Office Communications Server Back-end Database server as a member of the Domain Admins group.
* If you are using a 64-bit version of SQL Server, create the pool by using a computer with a 32-bit processor, such as the computer that you plan to use as the Front End Server. Log on to the 32-bit processor computer as a member of RTCUniversalServerAdmins and Domain Admins group and with user rights to create and modify SQL Server databases.

Microsoft will always prefer you to create the database on SQL to minimize the potential issue I discussed. The documentation above is not a “you have to” but more of a recommendation to minimize potential issues. Sure, you can still create the database wherever you want if firewall is disabled, ports are open, etc. as I mentioned in my article.

So taking a look at R1, since SQL is 32-bit, they want you to create the database on SQL Pool because it’s preferred to create database on SQL and if you use the GUI, it should be done from the same CPU Architecture.

So what I wrote is correct. :)

By: Richard

Richard — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:10:13 +0000

I think you put this part a bit backwards

OCS R1 with SQL 32-bit – Create Pool on SQL
OCS R1 with SQL 64-bit – Create pool on OCS FE

OCS R2 with SQL 32-bit – Create Pool on OCS FE
OCS R2 with SQL 64-bit – Create Pool on SQL (R2 is 64 bit so shouldn’t the OCS FE create the pool as said in the test above this section)

shouldn’t it be
OCS R1 with SQL 32-bit – Create pool on OCS FE
OCS R1 with SQL 64-bit – Create Pool on SQL

OCS R2 with SQL 32-bit – Create Pool on SQL
OCS R2 with SQL 64-bit – Create Pool on OCS FE

the way we did it was pretty much straight forward (as its just OCS 2007 R2 Std)
run the installer and let the FE create the pool (even though its a bit anoying that SQL2005 isn’t native 64 but Std can’t have 2008 forced on it)

By: Elan Shudnow

Elan Shudnow — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 16:41:26 +0000

In my labs, I have always done OCS to SQL and just shut off the firewall. In production, before I knew the different scenarios, we ended up installing on the SQL as that was the Microsoft recommendation and we didn’t really think about LCSCMD.

Now that I know about this, I’d either shut off the firewall on SQL (at least temporarily till the pool is created and then re-enable it) and then create the pool from the OCS Server or just use LCSCMD.

By: John Weber

John Weber — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 15:05:59 +0000

Elan,
I always like to create the pool from the pool server. Just make sure that the proper SQL tools are installed on the pool server. The SQL tools are on disk 2 of sql 2005 sp2 distribution. Ditto for SQL 2008.
My reasoning, however flawed, is that if I can accomplish this from the pool server, then I should have no SQL-OCS communication errors.
John

By: Waveformation » Create OCS 2007 Enterprise Pool on Front End or SQL?

Waveformation » Create OCS 2007 Enterprise Pool on Front End or SQL? — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 02:14:53 +0000

[...] MVP Elan Shudnow wrote a great article on best practice for creating the OCS Enterprise pool on the Front End or the SQL Server. Microsoft [...]