Implementing Skype for Business on Windows 2012 R2 Environment with SQL 2014 Always ON – Part1

By Satheshwaran Manoharan

May 30, 2015

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Implementing Skype for Business on Windows 2012 R2 Environment with SQL 2014 Always ON – Part1

Implementing Skype for Business on Windows 2012 R2 Environment with SQL 2014 Always ON – Part2

Implementing Skype for Business on Windows 2012 R2 Environment with SQL 2014 Always ON – Part3

Minimum Forest / Domain functional level supported: Windows Server 2008

Supported operating systems for Skype for Business:

Windows Server 2012 R2 Enterprise
Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
Windows Server 2012 Datacenter
Windows Server 2012 Standard
Windows Server 2008 R2 (Lync Server 2013 InPlace upgrade)

Supported database for Skype for Business

Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Enterprise
Microsoft SQL Server 2012 SP1 Enterprise
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Enterprise
Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Standard
Microsoft SQL Server 2012 SP1Standard
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Standard

High Availability support for Skype for Business:

SQL Mirroring
SQL Clustering
SQL Always On (Its Supported only on SQL 2012/2014 Enterprise Versions)
Supports Standalone Database Servers

SQL Always On (Keep in mind)-

Replicas should be on Same Subnet
It should be Synchronous-Commit mode
No Support for read access on secondary replicas

Open Server Manager – Load Windows 2012 R2 Iso in the Machine – Install .Net Framework 3.5 – Use(Specify and Alertnate source path.

Hotfix for 2012 R2 – Download and Install https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2982006

Prerequisites on Skype for business Front-end Servers – “RSAT-ADDS” — Active directory tools – Need not to be installed in all Front end servers.

Add-WindowsFeature NET-Framework-Core, RSAT-ADDS, Windows-Identity-Foundation, Web-Server, Web-Static-Content, Web-Default-Doc, Web-Http-Errors, Web-Dir-Browsing, Web-Asp-Net, Web-Net-Ext, Web-ISAPI-Ext, Web-ISAPI-Filter, Web-Http-Logging, Web-Log-Libraries, Web-Request-Monitor, Web-Http-Tracing, Web-Basic-Auth, Web-Windows-Auth, Web-Client-Auth, Web-Filtering, Web-Stat-Compression, Web-Dyn-Compression, NET-WCF-HTTP-Activation45, Web-Asp-Net45, Web-Mgmt-Tools, Web-Scripting-Tools, Web-Mgmt-Compat, Server-Media-Foundation, BITS

Restart the Computer

Run –Setup.exe – E:\Setup\amd64\Setup2.exe

Prepare Active Directory

PrepareSchema

Choose local domain – Prepare Forest

Install Administrative tools –

Open Skype for Business Server Topology builder – Create New Topology

Enter SIP domain –

Define Site name & Description –

Choose “Open the New Front End Wizard when this Wizard Closes.

Choose Frontend pool name –

Enter Front end pool servers –

Choose Conferencing and Enterprise voice only.

No PBX integration in this topology

Do not choose the Enable an Edge pool to be used by the media component of this Front End pool option.Keep this setting cleared for now (Will Cover Edge Pool in Next Part)

If you don’t have a SQL cluster – Refer below link on how to build a Always-ON cluster using SQL 2014.

Installing/Configuring SQL 2014 Always ON Cluster on Windows 2012 R2 – Recommended way

Enter SQL Server Listener Name – I have used the Default Instance.

Note :

SQL Server FQDN – you will be entering one SQL Node name (For now).
Once the Skype for Business Databases is created , You will be adding the Skype for Business Databases to the Availability group
Once that’s done, you will add the RTC group permissions added on other SQL node manually(Skype for Business will add automatically on the first SQL node you install).
After everything is completed you will Edit the topology to “SQL Server FQDN as Listener name”