Thomas.Poett@TEAMS (MVP Teams and Cross-Tenant Migration Specialist)

One of the most frequently asked questions is: How do we license SQL Server as a Lync Backend Solution correctly. This is not an very easy question. But first in general the common SQL licensing applies. This is mainly regarding if you license as per CPU or Server. This question will mainly not have an impact regarding Lync based licensing. Lync Server Enterprise Deployment requires an SQL Server instance. this is fact, as well as several other Lync Server or Components (e.g. pChat or monitoring and Archiving) We have a few SQL Backend scenarios: 1. Single SQL Server This solution do not provide an HA feature, either the Server, nor the database. But it is possible in adding this server deployment into an mirrored solution(3.) 2. Clustered SQL Server (with a single Database) This provides only HA for the Server themselves, but the Database is not protected. Well some solution exists, where the storage is in a mirrored relationship and there provide database HA in anoth

Several time i ran into the same issue with OCSLogger and Snooper. If you actually started logging with OCSLogger, you could also verify that bytes were written onto disk, but once you started analyzing the trace, you find the OCSLogger file and the Snooper EMPTY. So there are some reasons due to OCSLogger is NOT a supported method any longer how we should analyze log's. Better and suggested is the Central Logging Service. This is why we have some issue after we deployed Snooper. (Sounds wirred, is wirred) But Snooper is still the best and optimal solution identifying issues. So what could this have caused: 1. Your OS is other than EN-US, this means, you have to ensure that your DATE and TIME Format is set to ENGLISH (United States). (While the location is not relevant!) 2. You have applied an Update, e.g. CU 3. In this case your issues is, where files are or arn't correctly replaced. SOLUTION regarding 2nd issue: You have to manually copy the default.tmx and de

Several times while preparing the AD Forest, we run into an issue during the preparation process. This is mostly with a new installation. You will receive an preparation failed error regardles if you chose the wizard or the Enable-CsAdForest command. It failes with: Prepare Forest Active Directory setting exection failed on an unrecoverable error Command execution failed: Value cannot be null. Parameter name: InstanceToDelete This is an wellknow issue in the installation process. Solution: you must use the PowerShell command Enable-CsAdForest -GroupDomain <AD Domain FQDN> -GroupDomainController <DC FQDN> -GobalCatalog <GC FQDN> Author: Thomas Pött Managing Consultant Microsoft UC

If you prepare the Schema update for Lync 2010 or 2013, you might encountar an error: Task execution failed. The exit code is "5". This is an error related to missing user rights (permission). The user who executs the Schema Prep Install-CsAdServerSchema has not member of the Domain Schema Admins. Thisis often an issue, if you changed the replication on the Schema Master by disabling INBOUND and OUTBOUND replication. Even if you have new assigned the Schema Master, and the Lync Servers Logon Server is now the DC, where the replication was disabled, before you assigend joined the group, it is not replicated. Solution: Enable the replication, than logout and login again, than disable the replication angain AD commands: Disable Replication repadmin /options <schema master DC name> +DISABLE_OUTBOUND_REPL repadmin /options <schema master DC name> +DISABLE_INBOUND_REPL Enable Replication repadmin /options <schema master DC name> -DISABLE_OUTBO