Forum Discussion
TonyRedmond
Aug 31, 2017MVP
Games hardware vendors play
Regretfully, some hardware vendors continue to play games with the server and storage configurations they publish through Microsoft's ESRP (Exchange Solution Reviewed Program). Of course, the solutio...
rohankh
Nov 04, 2025Copper Contributor
What ESRP is and isn’t
- ESRP is intended to guide sizing and configuration for Exchange deployments, but it’s not a formal benchmark program with rigorous, external validation for every vendor’s SKU.
- Vendors may publish validated configurations that align with ESRP guidelines, but real-world deployments can differ due to model revisions, firmware/driver changes, or custom SKUs.
Common pain points you might be seeing
- SKU drift: New server/storage SKUs released after ESRP validation aren’t always reflected in ESRP, leading to gaps between documented configurations and what customers actually receive.
- Firmware/driver gaps: Even if the baseline hardware is ESRP-listed, after-sale firmware and driver updates can change performance and compatibility characteristics.
- Storage tier mismatches: Vendors may propose storage configurations (e.g., HDD/SSD mix, NVMe caching) that ESRP didn’t anticipate or validate, causing divergence in performance or reliability.
- Network and PCI topology: ESRP docs sometimes omit nuanced interconnect details, yet real deployments require specific NICs, HBAs, or PCIe slot layouts that affect latency and IOPS.
- Support and warranty scope: The published ESRP configuration doesn’t always align with what the vendor supports, especially for customer-applied changes or field upgrades.
What you can do to mitigate
- Verify against current hardware: When planning, cross-check ESRP recommendations with the exact SKU/firmware revisions you’re considering. If possible, request the vendor to provide a clean bill of materials (BOM) and firmware baseline.
- Demand field-validated specifics: Ask for real-world benchmarks or case studies that match your Exchange version, mailbox density, backup/DR requirements, and HA/DR topology.
- Version discipline: Keep a change log of any hardware or firmware updates during deployment and test critical ESRP-stated assumptions after each change.
- Independent validation: Consider third-party validation or internal performance testing (e.g., simulating your mailbox mix, I/O patterns, and reboot/maintenance cycles) before large-scale rollout.
- Align with Exchange requirements: Ensure choices align with Exchange 2019/2022 requirements (or your specific version) around CPU, memory, storage IOPS/latency targets, and database availability group (DAG) considerations.
If you want, I can:
- Summarize the key ESRP validation criteria and common gaps to watch for.
- Help craft a due-diligence checklist for evaluating vendor configurations before purchase.
- Draft a set of questions to push back on vendors so you get more transparent, test-backed details.