NTFS Quotas

NTFS Quotas
NTFS Quotas were first introduced in Windows Server 2000. Their basic functionality has not changed that much seen then. To address some of the short falls of NTFS Quotas, a new system for Quota management called File System Resource Manager was introduced in Windows Server 2008. NTFS Quotas works on the drive level and cannot be used on the folder level. It works off the owner of the file. Since it works at the drive level, all files are counted towards the user’s quota. This includes files in the recycle bin. The quota is also calculated based on the uncompressed file size. This assumes you are using Windows compression. If you are using a different compression system, like zip, Windows uses the actual disk space not the uncompressed size.

NTFS vs FSRM Quotas
The biggest difference between NTFS and FSRM Quotas is that NTFS Quotas works at the drive level while FSRM works at the folder level. It is common in business to apply quotas to users’ home folders, however not to apply them to general or department shares. With NTFS quotas, the only way to apply quotas to only the user’s home folder is to place these folders on their own drive. This means a bit more planning and organization from the administrator in order to separate general data from user data. Since FSRM can work on the folder level, all data can be stored on the same drive, it is just a matter of placing the data in separate folders on that drive. FSRM also adds additional features like reports, e-mail alerts and scripts. These features make managing FSRM a lot simpler.

NTFS Quotas
Quotas use two values to control how much data is being used. Space used is determined by adding up how many files that user is the owner of. When the user reaches the soft quota value, NTFS quotas will generate an event in the event viewer. It is possible to create a trigger on the event viewer so when this event appears, additional software is run that can send a message to the user. FSRM in contrast has the ability to alert the user when this value is reached. The user can still write to the drive if they reach the soft quota. When they reach the hard quota, they will be denied access to the drive. The idea is that the soft quota gives the user a warning so they can remove some files before they reach the hard quota.

References
“Installing and Configuring Windows Server 2012 R2 Exam Ref 70-410” pg 87-88

Credits