The
SQL Server 2008 instance hosting your SharePoint content can have a
significant impact on SharePoint performance. It is highly recommended
that each SharePoint farm have its own SQL Server instance and that
this server is dedicated to hosting only SQL Server. This will allow
for further optimizations. It is important to understand what steps should be taken when installing
and configuring SQL Server to achieve optimal SharePoint performance.
Areas of concern regarding your SQL Server 2008 installation include
SQL Server 2008 editions
Hardware requirements
Software requirements
1. SQL Server 2008 Editions
SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server
2008 are offered in several different editions, each of which includes
different features, functionality, and limitations. To ensure that the
level of availability, scalability, and fault tolerance of your
SharePoint implementation meets the needs of your business, you must
choose the appropriate edition of SQL Server to install for SharePoint.
Table 1
lists some of the most common SQL Server 2008 editions and the features
and limitations of each that you should consider when determining which
edition of SQL Server to use to host your SharePoint content.
Table 1. SQL Server 2008 Edition Features and Limitations
| EDITION | APPLICATION OR RECOMMENDED USAGE | CPU | MEMORY | DATABASE SIZE |
|---|
| Enterprise | Enterprise environments that need redundancy and built-in business intelligence | Operating system maximum | Operating system maximum | Unlimited |
| Standard | Shared data scenarios in departments and small to large businesses | 4 CPU | Operating system maximum | Unlimited |
| Workgroup | Remote offices that need local instances of company data | 2 CPU | 4 GB | Unlimited |
| Developer | Full-featured edition for development and testing only | Operating system maximum | Operating system maximum | Unlimited |
| Express | Entry-level database ideal for learning and ISV redistribution | 1 CPU | 1 GB | 4 GB |
| Compact | Embedded database for developing desktop and mobile applications | Operating system maximum | Operating system maximum | 4 GB |
Although there are several editions you could choose, the recommendation is to use the SQL Server 2008 Enterprise Edition for
production because it provides the best option for high availability,
scalability, fault tolerance, and support for business intelligence.
Alternatively, if the Enterprise Edition is too costly or includes
features and functionality that your organization won’t need, you can
use the SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition in production. These are the
only two editions that should be used in any organization’s SharePoint
2010 production environment.
In addition to the actual SQL Server 2008 installation, SharePoint 2010 requires the following SQL Server 2008 configuration.
64-bit only version of SQL Server 2008
SQL Server 2008 Service Pack 1
Cumulative update package 2 for SQL Server 2008 SP1
Note:
If you are using SQL Server 2005, it requires the 64-bit version with Service Pack 2 or later.
The SQL Server 2008
Developer Edition is free, but it cannot be used in a production
environment. This edition provides all of the functionality of the
Enterprise Edition, so you should use it during the development and
test phase of SharePoint, and then it can be easily deployed to your
SQL Server 2008 Enterprise or Standard production environment.
Note:
The SQL Server Express Edition
is the SQL Server edition installed if you choose to perform a basic
SharePoint 2010 installation, but the Express edition of SQL Server
2008 will limit your SharePoint performance, scalability, and
functionality, as shown in Table 3-1.
Note:
MORE INFO For additional information on all of these SQL Server 2008 editions, visit http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc645993.aspx. For information about the available SQL Server 2005 editions and their features and limitations, visit http://www.microsoft.com/Sqlserver/2005/en/us/compare-features.aspx.
2. SQL Server Hardware Requirements
Similar to installation of
SharePoint 2010, SQL Server also has certain hardware requirements to
ensure that it runs as optimally as possible. These SQL Server 2008
requirements are similar for both the Enterprise and Standard editions
of your SQL Server instances that will be hosting your SharePoint
content.
SQL
Server is memory intensive, and adding more physical memory can greatly
improve the performance of SQL Server. Use the following guidelines to
determine how much memory to install to create an optimal SharePoint
experience.
8 GB of RAM for
Less than 40 GB of content databases
Less than 15 content databases
Less than 800 users
Less than 175 concurrent connections
16 GB of RAM for
40 to 60 GB of content databases
15 to 25 content databases
800 to 1200 users
175 to 225 concurrent connections
32 GB of RAM for
More than 60 GB of content databases
More than 25 content databases
More than 1200 users
More than 225 concurrent connections
Note:
BEST PRACTICE
SQL Server will run much more efficiently if there is a lot of
available memory. Be sure to add as much memory as possible to your
SharePoint SQL Server installation to optimize the SharePoint
experience.
The disk space requirements vary, depending on the SQL Server features you choose to install and the actual system configuration. Table 2 lists the disk space requirements for the different SQL Server 2008 components.
Table 2. SQL Server 2008 Feature Disk Space Requirements
| FEATURE | DISK SPACE REQUIREMENTS |
|---|
| Database Engine and data files, Replication, and Full-Text Search | 280 MB |
| Analysis Services and data files | 90 MB |
| Reporting Services and Report Manager | 120 MB |
| Integration Services | 120 MB |
| Client components | 850 MB |
| SQL Server Books Online | 240 MB |
3. SQL Server Software Requirements
SQL Server 2008 also has software requirements that must be met for successful installation and to ensure that it runs efficiently and provides SharePoint optimal performance.
The software required to install the Enterprise and Standard SQL Server
editions falls into two categories—software installed prior to running
the SQL Server setup and software installed during the SQL Server setup.
The software that is required prior to running SQL Server setup includes
Windows Server 2008 operating system (Windows Server 2003 is supported but not recommended)
Windows Installer 4.5 or later
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 SP1 or later
The software that is installed during the SQL Server setup includes
Note:
MORE INFO For additional information on the SQL Server 2008 hardware and software requirements, visit http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143506.aspx#EEx64. For information on the SQL Server 2005 hardware and software requirements, go to http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143506(SQL.90).aspx.
