SQL Server running on a Sharepoint Index server?

[C@discussions.microsoft.com Ryan C]

Is it a good idea to run a sql server instance on the same server as an index
server? Our Sharepoint 2007 environment is a three server setup, one WFE
hosting central admin and our other web applications, a second WFE that just
runs the index/crawl, and a third that is only a SQL Server.

The index server is only using the SQL instance to save indexed data and
whatnot, but I've noticed that SQL is using a lot of memory which I know it
always will, but I'm wondering it that is interfering with our search crawls.

In the past we had two servers, and the WFE server did the hosting and
indexing at the same time. Our search crawls with two servers take the same
amount of time as our three server setup, so there is no change really.

[spconsultant]

I don't delieve that by definition it is a bad idea. You need to make
sure that it
is configured correctly, did you follw the documented steps for
setting up a
dedicated crawler? If not, it may stll be using the host server to do
the crawling.
Do you have enough memory? I would not even consider doing it with
less than
4GB memory, and really, you should be running on a server that will
support
at least 8GB if you have SQL and SharePoint on one server. What do you
mean
by "a second WFE that just runs the index/crawl, and a third that is

only a SQL Server.
The index server is only using the SQL instance to save indexed data
and whatnot"

It this sql instance house your content DB and confign DB?

On Nov 12, 5:29 pm, Ryan C <Ryan C...@discussions.microsoft.com>
wrote:

[Ryan C]

I did follow the steps I found a while ago setting it up. I believe they are
correct. However, how exactly do you define the index and query roles in
central admin? I believe my index server is set to both. :/

The index server has 4gb of memory. The index's SQL server instance is only
used for the search. The portal dbs and other sharepoint DB are on another
server that's just dedicated for SQL. Our consultant recommended that we put
a sql license on our index server so it doesn't have to save data across the
wire, just locally.

[spconsultant]

Here is a good technet article on configuring in this manner.
Not, you cannot have a dedicated crawler that is also an index
server, because the indexes will not the propigate to the
other WFEs.

See the section titled:
When not to configure a dedicated front-end Web server for crawling

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc261810.aspx

[Ryan C]

Wait, I thought crawling and indexing were done by the same role?

I'm starting to get confused with crawling vs idnexing. I understand what
they mean individually, but the documentation I'm reading is very ambiguous
in that respect.

So should our third server NOT be a dedicated web front end that crawls an
indexes? What we're trying to accomplish is taking the heavy load of crawling
file shares and indexing the data off of our server that's hosting the main
portal sites. The main server should just host the portal sites, CA, and
possibly search queries. Our DB server should be just a SQL server without
sharepoint installed.

[Ryan C]

I also read the section from the link you posted. Is crawling and indexing
running together a bad idea when the same server is set up as a query server?
Or should this server only run crawling, indexing, OR querying, not a
combination of the three?