The Datacenter High Availability Program: Frequently Asked Questions

The Microsoft Datacenter High Availability Program consists of four components to deliver a scalable high availability solution to enterprise customers:

The Datacenter High Availability Program delivers consistent, predictable, high availability support built from best practices that have been developed since Datacenter Server was initially released in September 2000. Customers can choose among service providers, and be assured Microsoft has built a set of audit and reporting features to promote consistent service across different service providers and hardware platforms. The DSP is the single point to manage and resolve issues, including escalating directly to Microsoft’s experienced support engineers and OEMs (if the DSP is not the OEM).

Customers can subscribe to Microsoft's Premier support program to obtain regular levels of support from Microsoft or obtain support from their OEM.

Windows Server 2003 R2 Datacenter Edition supports as many as 32, 32-bit processors and the 64-bit Datacenter Edition supports up to 64 processors, while Enterprise Edition only supports up to 8 processors. Datacenter Edition has configuration hardening, and has specialized Datacenter system testing, partner certification, and support programs. Configurations with Enterprise Edition are not eligible to join the Datacenter High Availability Program.

OEMs and partners work with Microsoft to qualify Datacenter Edition-based configurations through Hardware Compatibility Tests. By qualifying the configurations, Microsoft OEMs further increase the reliability of the platform with testing at device, utility, application, system, and solution levels. For more information, see Windows Server 2003 Datacenter Edition, Driver Program Overview, and HCL Criteria for Datacenter Servers.

You can consult the Windows Server Catalog of Tested Products, the complete reference for products that have been tested for Windows Server compatibility.

The applications are tested by VeriTest, an independent third-party company, based on Microsoft-provided specifications.

For more information, read about the Certified for Windows Program.

Read the list of the certified applications.

Find out more about ISVs who have certified, or are in the process of certifying, their applications on the Windows Server 2003 family, including Datacenter Edition.

A DSP is a firm who can offer services and support contracts for the Datacenter High Availability Program. A DSP is a Microsoft partner that has met the requirements of the Gold Certified Partner for Support Services program for Windows Server 2003 R2 Datacenter Edition. The certification includes meeting requirements unique to supporting Datacenter customers.

The DSP is committed to providing 24x7x365 support within the customer's region, has a process in place to escalate issues to the OEM or Microsoft, tracks customer issues, assists with verification and change management process, and offers a minimum 99.9 percent uptime promise.

Datacenter customers can work with their OEMs to determine the DSPs that support a specific hardware configuration.

DSPs are often the hardware vendor (OEM) who builds a specific configuration. Otherwise, the DSP has been approved by and works very closes with the OEM to provide support and service on their hardware.

The Datacenter High Availability (HA) Program consists of proactive and reactive support and services. The proactive services include: assessments, change management, and configuration audits. The reactive services include 24x7x365 support, partner notifications and triggers, and the Microsoft High Availability Resolution Queue (HARQ).

A Datacenter Assessment is an initial verification at the customer site to ensure the installed Datacenter is a qualified configuration.

Datacenter Edition configurations are verified using the Configuration Assessment Test and the Configuration Compare tool.

DSPs verify the configurations during the initial assessment, and as needed to follow the change management process.

Customers are required to follow a documented change management process to provide a quick assessment of the system configuration.

The DSP provides 24x7x365 support within the customer's region, has a process in place to escalate issues to the OEM and Microsoft, and manages customers’ Datacenter issues.

The HARQ is a Microsoft support program that provides 24x7x365 access to Microsoft support. Customers who join the Datacenter High Availability Program, DSPs, and OEMs call the Microsoft HARQ for problem resolution.

Customers who join the Datacenter High Availability Program and Program partners can access the HARQ for Datacenter Edition issues.

The HARQ can be utilized by customers to track all issues relating to Datacenter if the customer has the appropriate support agreement with Microsoft.

The issues will be tracked the same and given the same priority in both cases.

The HARQ represents an expanded version of the JSQ. Customers will be transitioned from the JSQ to the HARQ.