Read Windows Server 2008 R2 Unleashed Online
Authors: Noel Morimoto
Monitor can be applied directly to WSRM policies. For example, if system monitoring
reveals that a particular application is in high demand but the same server is busy provid-
ing other services, making the application sluggish, the WSRM can allocate enough
resources to both items to ensure that neither the system nor the items being used are
negatively impacted. It is very common for WSRM to be implemented in conjunction
with SQL Server to improve sustainability in a consolidated environment. For example, if
10 WSRM-managed SQL Server instances exist, each instance can be granted 10% of the
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total processor. Each instance can use its entire share of the processor, but if nine
instances are using less than their allocated processor resource, the remaining instance can
use more processor resources. If demand for processor resources then increases on one of
the other instances, WSRM returns the resources as needed.
Resource allocation policies are used in WSRM to divide processor and memory usage
among applications, services, processes, and users. Resource allocation policies can be in
effect at all times, or they can run on a scheduled basis. If certain events occur or the
system behaves differently, WSRM can switch to a different policy to ensure system stabil-
ity and availability. Resource allocation policies can be exported and imported between
Windows Server 2008 R2 servers and the policies can also contain exclusions when some-
thing doesn’t require specific resource assignments.
When accounting is enabled in WSRM, administrators of the servers can review data
collected to determine when and why resource allocation policies were too restrictive or
too loose. Accounting can also help identify problems with the items in the policy as well
as peak access times. Administrators can use the information obtained by the accounting
component of WSRM to make adjustments to the policies. WSRM resource allocation poli-
cies can manage local and remote computers as well as Remote Desktop Services sessions.
WSRM comes packaged with five predefined policies. These templates provide administra-
tors with a way to quickly allocate resources, leaving room for fine-tuning at a later time.
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The predefined resource allocation policy templates are as follows:
.
Equal per Process—
Allocates resources equally among all running processes,
preventing one process from consuming all available CPU and memory resources
.
Equal per User—
Allocates resources equally among all users, preventing one user
from consuming all available CPU and memory resources
.
Equal per Session—
Allocates resources equally among all Remote Desktop Services
sessions, preventing one session from consuming all available CPU and memory
resources
.
Equal per IIS Application Pool—
Allocates resources equally among all IIS applica-
tion pools, preventing one session from consuming all available CPU and memory
resources
.
Weighted Remote Sessions—
Controls priority for users who are remotely connect-
ed to the system
NOTE
WSRM policies are only enforced when CPU usage climbs above 70%. The WSRM poli-
cies are never active on processes owned by the core operating system or any items in
the exclusion list.
TIP
Memory limits should be applied in policies only when the application, service, or
process is having issues or not allocating memory usage properly on its own.
Using Capacity-Analysis Tools
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A common task performed in WSRM is to create matching criteria rules. Matching criteria
rules allow an administrator to define (or exclude) processes, services, or applications that
should be monitored by WSRM. This definition is used later in the WSRM management
process. To create a matching criteria rule, do the following:
1. Launch Windows System Resource Manager by clicking Start, All Programs,
Administrative Tools, Windows System Resource Manager.
2. Right-click the Process Matching Criteria item in the WSRM console and select New
Process Matching Criteria.
3. Enter a unique name for the matching criteria in the Criteria Name box at the top
and click Add under the Rules section.
. Enter the processes, services, or applications in the Included Files or Command
Lines section of the Files or Command Lines tab.
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Or
. Select the object type (process, service application, or IIS application pool) from
the drop-down list, and click the Select button and select the policy to apply.
4. To exclude items from the policy, check the Excluded Files or Command Lines check
box.
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. Enter the processes, services, or applications in the Included Files or Command
Lines section of the Files or Command Lines tab.
Or
. Select the object type (process, service application, or IIS application pool) from
the drop-down list, and click the Select button and select the policy to apply.
5. Repeat the preceding steps to add all of the exclusions and items that should be
managed by or excluded from a WSRM policy.
Another task that is commonly performed is creating custom resource allocation policies.
Similar to “matching criteria rules” that look for specific process, service, and application
criteria, the custom resource allocation policy provides the administrator the ability to
define how much of a resource should be allocated to a specific process, service, or appli-
cation. As an example, if only 20% of the system processing should be allocated to a print
process, the resource allocation would be defined to limit the allocation of resources to
that process. To create a custom resource allocation policy, do the following:
1. Launch Windows System Resource Manager by clicking Start, All Programs,
Administrative Tools, Windows System Resource Manager.
2. Right-click the Resource Allocation Policies option in the WSRM console, and select
New Resource Allocation Policy.
3. Provide a name for the policy, and click the Add button in the Allocate These
Resources section.
4. On the General tab, select the Process Matching Criteria and specify the percentage
of processor time that will apply.
5. On the Memory tab, specify the maximum committed memory and working set limits.
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6. The Advanced tab allows you to select which processors the policy should be
assigned to as well as suballocating processor resources. If you want to edit these
parameters, make the changes and click OK.
7. Click OK when you are finished.
The calendar component of WSRM can be used to schedule policy enforcement on a
regular basis and by one-time or recurring events. For example, policy enforcement might
only be necessary during normal business hours. Calendar control is enabled by default
and can be controlled by right-clicking the Calendar item in the WSRM console and
selecting the Enable or Disable option. To create calendar items based on scheduled times,
do the following:
1. Launch Windows System Resource Manager by clicking Start, All Programs,
Administrative Tools, Windows System Resource Manager.
2. Expand the Calendar item in the WSRM console by clicking the plus sign.
3. Right-click the Schedule option and select New Schedule.
4. Enter a name and description for the schedule.
5. Double-click on a time slot in the New Schedule window, specify the policy, start,
and stop times, and click OK.
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Rather than creating a calendar item based on scheduled times, you can create the calen-
dar item based on a specific triggered event. To create calendar items based on specific
events, do the following:
1. Launch Windows System Resource Manager by clicking Start, All Programs,
Administrative Tools, Windows System Resource Manager.
2. Expand the Calendar item in the WSRM console by clicking the plus sign.
3. Right-click the Calendar Event option, and select New One Time Event.
4. Enter a name for the event.
5. Select Policy Name or Schedule Name, and select the appropriate policy.
6. Specify a start and end date and time (not available if associated with a schedule),
and click OK.
For calendar events that you want to trigger based on recurring events, a rule can be
created for this to happen. To create recurring events, do the following:
1. Launch Windows System Resource Manager by clicking Start, All Programs,
Administrative Tools, Windows System Resource Manager.
2. Expand the Calendar item in the WSRM console by clicking the plus sign.
3. Right-click the Calendar Event option, and select New Recurring Event.
4. Enter a name for the event.
5. Select Policy Name or Schedule Name, and select the appropriate policy.
6. Specify a start and end time and specify a recurrence schedule, such as every
Monday (not available if associated with a schedule), and click OK.
Using Capacity-Analysis Tools
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One example of where WSRM is useful is when an administrator wants to allocate system
resources to sessions or users who are active on a Windows Server 2008 R2 Remote
Desktop Services system. Configuring a WSRM policy for Remote Desktop Services can
ensure the sessions will not behave erratically and system availability will be stabilized for
all who use the Remote Desktop Services server. This is accomplished using the Equal per
User or Equal per Session policy templates provided with WSRM. To allocate resources to a
Windows Server 2008 R2 Remote Desktop Services system, do the following:
1. Launch Windows System Resource Manager by clicking Start, All Programs,
Administrative Tools, Windows System Resource Manager.
2. Expand the Resource Allocation Policies option in the WSRM console.
3. Right-click Equal_Per_Session or Equal_Per_User, and select Set as Managing Policy.
4. A dialog box opens indicating that the calendar function will be disabled; click OK.
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5. Click OK.
Assessment and Planning Solution Tool
As mentioned earlier in the chapter, the Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit (MAP)
provides a solution to IT personnel when faced with questions like “Which product
should we buy or deploy?” or “Are we ready for Windows Server 2008 R2?” Granted, there
are multiple approaches to tackling questions like these; however, Microsoft has again
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developed a tool that will do most of the work for you. The Assessment and Planning
Solution Tool inventories and assesses systems, hardware, and software and makes product
and technology recommendations based on those results. The discovery and readiness
tools included in the latest version of MAP include Windows Server 2008 R2 Readiness,
Windows 7 Readiness Assessment, Windows Vista Hardware Assessment, Office 2007
Assessment, SQL Server Discovery, Windows Server Role Discovery, Virtual Machine
Inventory, Power Savings Assessment, Security Assessment, and Application Virtualization
Assessment. The Assessment and Planning Solution Tool can be downloaded from the
Microsoft Download site at www.microsoft.com/downloads/.
System Center Capacity Planner (SCCP) 2007
System Center Capacity Planner 2007 Infrastructure Planning and Tools are tools for IT
staff to plan their migration or deployment of System Center Operations Manager
(OpsMgr) 2007, SharePoint Server 2007, and Exchange 2007/2010. SCCP can determine
and recommend the necessary changes for deploying SharePoint, Exchange 2007/2010,
and OpsMgr 2007. This includes in-depth analysis of hardware, network architecture,
placement of servers, and much more. SCCP 2007 can even advise on changes after
deployment, whether they are planned or unplanned such as the addition of new users,
new features like Outlook WebApp (OWA), or changes to the network. More information
about SCCP 2007 can be found at the following website: http://www.microsoft.com/
systemcenter/en/us/capacity-planner.aspx.
System Center Operations Manager 2007
System Center Operations Manager (OpsMgr) 2007 has replaced its popular predecessor,
Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM). OpsMgr 2007 is a comprehensive monitoring and
reporting solution that reports on conditions related to services, system, and network
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performance, and alerts administrators when problems arise, for example, when critical
services have failed to start, when CPU usage consistently stays above a designated thresh-
old, or when excessive paging is observed by the OpsMgr agent. OpsMgr integrates
directly with Active Directory, Windows Server 2008 R2, and most other Microsoft tech-
nologies to provide an overall solution to help automate monitoring of critical systems
and processes. OpsMgr uses management packs specific to the technology, such as the
Windows Server 2008 R2 baseline operating system, Exchange 2007/2010 or Internet
Information Services 7.5 (IIS), so little configuration is needed out of the box. More infor-
mation regarding OpsMgr 2007 can be found in Chapter 23, “Integrating System Center