Re: Backup fails with volsnap error

Both Exchange and SQL will use all available RAM, so what you're seeing on
the 2nd server isn't unusual. SQL can be throttled to use less, but I would
expect to find any server with 2 GB, and most with 3 GB, running with no
free RAM. It's only when you get to 4 that you start seeing free RAM on
some servers.

I still say something's wrong with Trend using half the RAM on the box. I
don't use it, but my eTrust AV is using 60 MB - just over 10% of what
Trend's grabbing on yours. Even their own RAM requirement of 512 MB would
include being able to run the operating system and presumably some apps in
that 512.

"Lance Kujala" <LanceKujala@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:052B5867-8690-4887-A10B-ECA62E5AD3F2@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
More info. I dont think the AV has anything to do with it.

I have a second SBS 2003 R2 server running exchange with 2GB of RAM and
its
memory usage is way over the top.

the top memory users are
store is 567,000
sql 307,000
sql 208,000
w3wp 102,000
w3wp 74,000

There hasn't been any errors per se on this server, just warnings.

Lance

"Dave Nickason [SBS MVP]" wrote:

I recommend against messing with Exchange, even assuming there's a way to
do
it. Exchange will use as much RAM as it can get (up to a certain point),
but it rapidly releases it as it's needed by other apps. This is
ancient,
tried and true technology.

In fact, if you get Trend under control, you'll probably see Exchange
grab
some or all of the memory you free up that way. The difference is,
Exchange
should release it when VSS needs it, which Trend is apparently not doing.

"Lance Kujala" <LanceKujala@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:BA892B81-DC1B-458A-AA71-A52B9FEBE466@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Now that I am looking at it; Trend does seem to be an issue.
The Trend requirments say 512MB of RAM for the system.... hah.
I will talk to Trend about the memory usage.

I ran a defrag on the hard drives (no reboot or anything else) and the
backup worked ok last night. I havent setup a scheduled defrag yet (I
normally do...), so I guess its wait and see if the problem comes back.

While I agree that the system needs more memory; right now the client
wont
want to pay for it (they are annoyed right now). What I am thinking of
is
limiting the amount of memory used by the different services. I know
how
to
do this with Sql Server, but not sure about how to limit the memory
usage
for
Exchange server.

Lance


"Dave Nickason [SBS MVP]" wrote:

That doesn't really seem out of line. It appears that dbserver.exe is
part
of Trend too - hopefully someone can comment on whether that's a
normal
amount of RAM for Trend to be using, since based on what you're
posting
here
it seems to be using half the RAM on the server.

I'm wondering if this isn't an actual RAM issue rather than something
in
VSS
that needs to be fixed or patched. With Trend using over half the RAM
and
Exchange using another 30%, that server's got to be breaking a sweat.
Can
you throw another GB or two of RAM in there to see if that improves
the
situation?

I'd do that regardless, but I'd also look at Trend. Half a GB seems
excessive - what's the system requirement for that version?


"Lance Kujala" <LanceKujala@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in
message
news:41DD11F3-0FE2-4E11-AB57-42D0EABAE20E@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi Dave;

Yes, using NtBackup via the SBS backup.

1GB RAM, PF Usage is 1.2GB.
earlier in the year PF usage was hovering around the 1GB range.

Main Tasks
- store.exe 314,344
- dbserver.exe 174,156 (not sure what is running this)
- SMEX_Master.exe 162.048 (TrendMicro AV)
- sqlservr.exe 144,912 (the standard sbs servers)
- OfcService.exe 140,500 (TrendMicro)
- svchost.exe 97,388 (?)
- services.exe 89,352
- sqlservr.exe 65,520 (second sbs sql server)
- NTRtScan.exe 61,904 (trendmicro)

Obviously the TrendMicro AV is also a memory hog.

What is strange is that when I just "run" the backup task from
scheduled
tasks during the day with everyone logged in, there are no problems;
but
when
it is run at night, that is when the problems happen.


Lance Kujala
MSCE

"Dave Nickason [SBS MVP]" wrote:

There's a fair number of hotfixes for VSS-related issues, but I'd
have
thought you'd have them covered with SP2. There is one recent KB
about
3rd
party backup software, but you're talking SBS backup, right?

When you say memory usage is through the roof, what specifically is
using
that memory? How much RAM is on the server? Can you post back a
list
of
anything using over 100 mb of RAM along with how much it's using
(just
sort
the list in Task Manager by CPU and list anything over 100,000 K -
there
should only be a few).


"Lance Kujala" <LanceKujala@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in
message
news:3EDAC295-BEA6-43EC-BD3C-869B4F869F7F@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
running sbs 2003 sp2 with exchange sp2 + latest patches.

the backup is occasionally failing with a vss error.
looking in the event log, I see event id 21 error
"the flush and hold operations for volume C: was aborted because
of
low
available system memory."

this error shows up for all drives in the backup.

checked the KB's, nothing that applies to this situation.

will try defragmenting the hard drives (one is 5% the other 15%)

I have noticed that memory usage has gone through the roof over
the
last
few
months after applying the OS/Exchange/3party service packs.

Any ideas on how to deal with / work around this problem?












.

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