Deploying a new Exchange Server infrastructure is never been so Standarted like today with Exchange 2016.
In this Post it is not the question HOW to install Exchange, it is about how to Plan it.
Microsoft recommends to use Building Blocks. The Perimeter for one Building block are:
| Number of Mailboxes | 3000 |
| Number of max. CPU Cores per Phyical CPU | 12 Cores |
| CPU Cores total | 24 Cores |
| RAM | 96 GB |
| HDD | 4x 1.8TB |
| RAID | 2x RAID 1,0 -> NTFS |
The schematic view of a Building Block look’s like:
Important to know is that the Sizing of the Domain Controllers depends about the Exchange Hardware!
| Number of Exchange CPU | Number of DC CPU |
| 8 | 1 |
Also important is to Plan Mailbox Categories e.g. like shown in the following Table:
| Mailbox Configuration | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 | Tier 4 |
| Total Number of Tier User Mailboxes / Enviroment | 600 | 800 | 4000 | 600 |
| Total Send/Receive Capability / Mailbox / Day | 200 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| Average Message Size (KB) | 200 | 100 | 100 | 50 |
| Initial Mailbox Size (MB) | 10240 | 1024 | 512 | 100 |
| Mailbox Size Limit (MB) | 15360 | 2048 | 1024 | 250 |
| Personal Archive Mailbox Size Limit (MB) | 10240 | 5120 | 5120 | |
| Deleted Item Retention Window (Days) | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Single Item Recovery | Enabled | Enabled | Enabled | Enabled |
| Calendar Version Storage | Enabled | Enabled | Enabled | Enabled |
| Multiplication Factor User Percentage | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| IOPS Multiplication Factor | 1.5 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Megacycles Multiplication Factor | 1.5 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
The definition of the Mailbox Types you can find below:
| Mailbox Profile Typ | User type | needs |
| Tier 1 | Tier 1 Mailboxes are representing User’s with a huge Number of Mail average per Day and a big Mailbox Quota. This Type is using a online Archive. | Initial Mailbox Size 10GB,
Maximum Mailbox Size 15GB, Maximum Online Archive Size 10GB, Average Mails per Day 100 |
| Tier 2 | Tier 2 Mailboxes are representing User’s with a moderate Number of Mail average per Day and a normal Mailbox Quota. This Type is using a online Archive. | Initial Mailbox Size 2GB,
Maximum Mailbox Size 5GB, Maximum Online Archiv Size 5GB, Average Mails per Day 50, Average Size per Mail 50kb |
| Tier 3 | Tier 3 Mailboxes are representing impersonal Mailboxes with a moderate Number of Mail average and a big Mailbox Quota. This Type is using a online Archive. | Initial Mailbox Size 0.5GB,
Maximum Mailbox Size 1GB, Maximum Online Archiv Size 5GB, Average Mails per Day 50, Average Size per Mail 100kb |
| Tier 4 | Tier 4 Mailboxes are Ressource and Equipment Mailboxes with a very moderate Number of Mail average per Day. The Mailbox Size is very small and no online Archive is available. | Initial Mailbox Size 100MB,
Maximum Mailbox Size 200MB, No Online Archive! Average Size per Mail 50kb |
With this Information’s you have all you need, for a deployment of a Exchange Infrastructure by Building Block.