Positive experience with server failure and move to new hardware :)   

We have three mail servers, one of them is a small Dual P3 based compaq 
that runs mail for one of the departments.

I got up this AM around 5 and tried to get email, no good, could not 
connect to email server. Went down to office and server was not running, 
tried to restart, no go, found PSU 6A fuse was blown? Replaced fuse, and 
it blew on first power?

This server is the Dual P3/1ghz  1.8GB RAM, Compaq, uses a non-standard 
PSU, and never gave a sign of a problem.

I had an old P4/1.8ghz/512MB RAM (non-hyper threaded) Sony Vaio sitting 
on the floor, took the Software RAID drives and their controller card (I 
had them connected to a Promise IDE (non-raid) controller card since the 
Compaq didn't support IDE drives) and installed them in the Vaio? 
Rebooted, waited as it found new hardware, assigned the old IP to the 
NIC, rebooted, reactivated Windows 2003 Enterprise Edition, etc? All is 
working, it's almost like a Windows hardware swap means nothing on an 
exchange server - I was VERY lucky?

So, apart from the server now running on 512MB (and that's the max the 
board can handle), it's up and running fine. I've never had a failure 
and move to new hardware work so well.

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date: Sat, 15 Apr 2006 11:19:11 GMT   author:   Leythos

Re: Positive experience with server failure and move to new hardware :)   

On Sat, 15 Apr 2006 11:19:11 GMT, Leythos  wrote:

>We have three mail servers, one of them is a small Dual P3 based compaq 
>that runs mail for one of the departments.
>
>I got up this AM around 5 and tried to get email, no good, could not 
>connect to email server. Went down to office and server was not running, 
>tried to restart, no go, found PSU 6A fuse was blown? Replaced fuse, and 
>it blew on first power?
>
>This server is the Dual P3/1ghz + 1.8GB RAM, Compaq, uses a non-standard 
>PSU, and never gave a sign of a problem.

Non standard? It's an odd shape I'll grant you but non standard?

>
>I had an old P4/1.8ghz/512MB RAM (non-hyper threaded) Sony Vaio sitting 
>on the floor, took the Software RAID drives and their controller card (I 
>had them connected to a Promise IDE (non-raid) controller card since the 
>Compaq didn't support IDE drives) and installed them in the Vaio? 
>Rebooted, waited as it found new hardware, assigned the old IP to the 
>NIC, rebooted, reactivated Windows 2003 Enterprise Edition, etc? All is 
>working, it's almost like a Windows hardware swap means nothing on an 
>exchange server - I was VERY lucky?

It's not almost, it is. Exchange couldn't give two hoots about the
underlying hardware. If you did the restore properly then you will get
your Exchange up and running. Well done for that, btw!

>
>So, apart from the server now running on 512MB (and that's the max the 
>board can handle), it's up and running fine. I've never had a failure 
>and move to new hardware work so well.

date: Sat, 15 Apr 2006 18:40:48 +0100   author:   Mark Arnold [MVP]

Re: Positive experience with server failure and move to new hardware :)   

In article , mark@mvps.org 
says...
> On Sat, 15 Apr 2006 11:19:11 GMT, Leythos  wrote:
> 
> >We have three mail servers, one of them is a small Dual P3 based compaq 
> >that runs mail for one of the departments.
> >
> >I got up this AM around 5 and tried to get email, no good, could not 
> >connect to email server. Went down to office and server was not running, 
> >tried to restart, no go, found PSU 6A fuse was blown? Replaced fuse, and 
> >it blew on first power?
> >
> >This server is the Dual P3/1ghz + 1.8GB RAM, Compaq, uses a non-standard 
> >PSU, and never gave a sign of a problem.
> 
> Non standard? It's an odd shape I'll grant you but non standard?

What I mean is that I can't take a standard P3 type PSU and use it - 
there are additional connections for the ML350 that are not on AT, ATx 
and newer PSU units.

> >I had an old P4/1.8ghz/512MB RAM (non-hyper threaded) Sony Vaio sitting 
> >on the floor, took the Software RAID drives and their controller card (I 
> >had them connected to a Promise IDE (non-raid) controller card since the 
> >Compaq didn't support IDE drives) and installed them in the Vaio? 
> >Rebooted, waited as it found new hardware, assigned the old IP to the 
> >NIC, rebooted, reactivated Windows 2003 Enterprise Edition, etc? All is 
> >working, it's almost like a Windows hardware swap means nothing on an 
> >exchange server - I was VERY lucky?
> 
> It's not almost, it is. Exchange couldn't give two hoots about the
> underlying hardware. If you did the restore properly then you will get
> your Exchange up and running. Well done for that, btw!

Sorry, I considered the OS and the Exchange services to be part of the 
same package. I've had other Exchange servers, where they were single 
server domains, fail, and it took HOURS to recover them, this was 
painless.

I put a Dual Xeon ASUS on order today, should have it early next week.

-- 

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date: Sat, 15 Apr 2006 23:54:27 GMT   author:   Leythos