Microsoft BizTalk Server supportability on a virtual machine

This article discusses the support policy for running Microsoft BizTalk Server in a virtualization environment.

Microsoft BizTalk Server 2004 and later versions are fully supported when they are installed on a supported operating system that is running in the following virtual server environments:

• Microsoft Virtual Server 2005
• Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V
• Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008
• A virtual machine solution that was validated by the Server Virtualization Validation Program (SVVP)

BizTalk Server may not perform as expected if you have installed the software on a supported operating system that is running on a virtual machine (VM) other than the VM environments that were listed previously.

The following table indicates the supportability of BizTalk Server in the different virtual environments. In this table, "Yes" means that it is fully supported. Note SVVP lists products that have been tested and validated to work with Windows Server. Some SVVP companies have only been validated for Windows Server 2008. For more information the operating systems that are supported by BizTalk Server, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
For more information about SVVP, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

Product support for BizTalk Server on a VM other than the supported VM environments that are listed in the "Introduction" section is provided as commercially reasonable support. Commercially reasonable support is defined as all reasonable support efforts by Microsoft Customer Service and Support that do not require BizTalk Server code fixes.

If you have problems in BizTalk Server on a VM other than the supported VM environments that are listed in the "Introduction" section, and the problem cannot be resolved through commercially reasonable support, the problem must be reproducible in a non-VM environment or on one of the supported VM environments listed in the "Introduction" section for the problem to be escalated to the BizTalk Server product group as a bug. For more information about Microsoft server software and supported virtualization environments, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
Microsoft SQL Server has strict guidelines and a formal support policy for SQL Server products that are running in a hardware virtualization environment. Make sure that SQL Server is installed and configured correctly in a hardware virtualization environment. Also, because BizTalk Server makes extensive use of SQL Server databases, it is important to be aware of support policies for running SQL Server on a Hyper-V virtual machine.

For more information about SQL Server support in a virtualization environment or on a Hyper-V virtual machine, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q: What level of technical support will I receive if my non-Microsoft vendor configuration is certified through SVVP?

A: Customer Service and Support will work together with you and the SVVP certified vendor to investigate the problem. Customer Service and Support or the SVVP vendor will follow the process that is documented on the following SVVP Web site to use the TSANet program together with your permission in an attempt to resolve the problem: Q: What if the non-Microsoft vendor virtualization configuration is not certified through SVVP?

A: Customer Service and Support will follow the support policies that are documented in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 897615. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: If Customer Service and Support determines that the problem may be related to the vendor virtualization software, Customer Service and Support may require that you try to reproduce the problem outside the virtualization environment. It is important to carefully read about the configurations that are supported for SVVP. For more information, visit the following Microsoft Web site: Note Not all vendor configurations are considered certified by SVVP even though the vendor participates in the program. The list of validated configurations may be updated as vendors submit changes through this program.