Chapter 11: Using Storage Groups

In the previous two chapters, you learned how to create and manage the various types of recipients in Microsoft Exchange Server 2003. In this chapter, we turn our attention to storage groups. We’ll look at the issues involved in planning multiple databases and discuss when you should and should not use circular logging, how to create a storage group, how to create and delete a store, and how to mount and dismount a store.

Review of Exchange 2003 Storage Architecture

Chapter 2, “Exchange Server Storage Architecture,” described the storage architecture of Exchange Server 2003. This section will refresh your memory by summarizing the main points of that architecture. Refer to Chapter 2 if you need more details.

A storage group in an Exchange system consists of a set of up to five databases for the Enterprise Edition, and two for the Standard Edition. All the databases in a storage group use the same transaction log files. Each database in Exchange Server 2003 comprises two files: the rich text file (the .EDB file); and the native content file, or streaming file (the .STM file). Both of these files are managed as one unit by the Information Store service. The native content file can hold any type of content in its original form. Information is read into and out of the native content file by the Exchange Installable File System (ExIFS), a kernel mode component that provides very fast streaming.