BranchCache Distributed Cache Mode Step

by Step Guide
Microsoft Corporation
Published: March, 2010
Author: James McIllece
Editor: Scott Somohano

Abstract
BranchCache is a wide area network (WAN) bandwidth optimization technology that is included in
some editions of the Windows Server® 2008 R2 and Windows® 7 operating systems. To optimize
WAN bandwidth, BranchCache copies content from your main office content servers and caches
the content at branch office locations, allowing client computers at branch offices to access the
content locally rather than over the WAN.
This step by step guide provides instructions on how to deploy BranchCache in distributed cache
mode on a test network.
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Contents
BranchCache Distributed Cache Mode Step by Step Guide...........................................................1
Abstract....................................................................................................................................1

Contents..........................................................................................................................................3

BranchCache Step-by-Step Guide: Demonstrate Distributed Cache Mode in a Test Lab...............4

Test Lab Scenario Overview........................................................................................................4
Requirements for BranchCache...............................................................................................6

Steps for Demonstrating BranchCache Distributed Cache Mode...................................................7

Perform basic configuration of all computers..................................................................................7

Rename the computer....................................................................................................................7

Configure a static IP address..........................................................................................................8

Install and configure the BranchCache content Web server...........................................................9

Install the Web Server (IIS) server role.........................................................................................10

Install the BranchCache feature....................................................................................................13

Install the WINS feature................................................................................................................15

Configure Content-01 with BranchCache performance counters..................................................16

Enable BranchCache on client computers....................................................................................17

Verify BranchCache functionality..................................................................................................17

Verify WINS registration................................................................................................................18

Access Web content on Client-01.................................................................................................19

Access Web content on Client-02.................................................................................................22

Access Web content on Client-03.................................................................................................23

Calculate overall BranchCache results.........................................................................................25

Optional - Reset computers to rerun tests.....................................................................................26

Additional Resources....................................................................................................................27
BranchCache Step-by-Step Guide:
Demonstrate Distributed Cache Mode in a
Test Lab
BranchCache is a wide area network (WAN) bandwidth optimization technology that is included in
some editions of the Windows Server® 2008 R2 and Windows® 7 operating systems.
To optimize WAN bandwidth, BranchCache copies content from your main office content servers
and caches the content at branch office locations, allowing client computers at branch offices to
access the content locally rather than over the WAN.

Note

This guide is available in Word format at the Microsoft Download Center, at

http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=185325.
BranchCache modes
When content is cached on a server in the branch office, BranchCache is deployed in hosted
cache mode. Hosted cache mode is not depicted in this step-by-step guide.
When content is cached on client computers in the branch office, BranchCache is deployed in
distributed cache mode.
This guide provides instructions for deploying BranchCache in distributed cache mode in a test
lab environment.
Content server
To deploy BranchCache, you must deploy a content server. This guide provides instructions for
deploying a Web server content server using Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) in
Windows Server® 2008 R2 in a test lab environment.

Test Lab Scenario Overview

In this BranchCache distributed cache mode scenario, there is one BranchCache content Web
server and there are three client computers.
In a real world scenario, the content server is installed at your organization’s main office, while the
client computers are installed at a branch office. In addition, the branch office is connected to the
main office with DirectAccess, a virtual private network (VPN) connection, or using some other
remote access technology.
In this test lab scenario, all four computers are installed on the same local area network (LAN)
segment and are connected to a network hub using Ethernet cables. With this test lab
configuration, the network hub replaces the VPN or DirectAccess connection that would exist in
the real world scenario.
Content servers and content information
When you deploy a BranchCache-enabled Web server, the Web server automatically generates
identifiers for the content at the moment when the content is first requested by a BranchCache-
enabled client computer. These content identifiers are called content information.
When a client requests content for the first time, the Web server computes content information as
it transmits the content to the client. The Web server then stores the content information for
subsequent client requests.
The server only transmits content information the second time that content is accessed.
In order to store content in its BranchCache local cache, a client computer must first receive
content information from the BranchCache content Web server. Thus the second client computer
that requests the same content as the first client receives both the content information and the
content itself, and stores the content in the local cache.
All subsequent requests for the same content by other computers result in the content server
sending only content information, while the content itself is obtained from the cache on the client
computer.
The process works according to the following example.
1. A client computer, Client-01, requests a Web page from the BranchCache content Web
server, Content-01.
2. Content-01 automatically generates the content information for the requested Web page.
Content-01 sends the content, but not the content information, to Client-01.
 3. Another client computer, Client-02, requests the same Web page from Content-01. The
Web server sends the content information to Client-02. Client-02 uses the content information
to query other client computers in the branch office for the content, and discovers that none of
the clients have the content in the branch office. Client-02 then requests and receives the
actual content from the Web server. Because Client-02 now has both the Web page and the
content information for the Web page, Client-02 stores the content in its BranchCache cache.
4. Another client computer, Client-03, requests the same Web page from Content-01. The
Web server sends only the content information to Client-03. Client-03 then uses the content
information to query other client computers to find out if they have the content. Client-02
matches the content information to the content in its cache, and sends the requested Web
page to Client-03.
The scenario provided by this guide illustrates this example of how content and content
information is handled by BranchCache.

Note

Content information is very small in size compared to the actual content that it
represents. For example, if a Web page and related content (such as images on the Web
page) are around 185,000 bytes, content information for that content can be as small as
around 200 bytes.

Requirements for BranchCache

Following is a list of operating systems that support BranchCache content server or BranchCache
client computer functionality. To successfully deploy BranchCache in a test lab environment, you
must use operating systems that support BranchCache.
Operating systems for BranchCache client computer functionality
To perform the steps in this guide, you must have three physical or virtual client computers that
are running one of the following operating systems:
• Windows® 7 Enterprise
• Windows® 7 Ultimate
Operating systems for BranchCache content server functionality
To perform the steps in this guide, you must have one physical or virtual server computer to be
used as a BranchCache content Web server that is running one of the Windows
Server® 2008 R2 family of operating systems, with the following exceptions:
• In Windows Server® 2008 R2 Enterprise Core Install with Hyper-V, BranchCache is not
supported.
• In Windows Server® 2008 R2 Datacenter Core Install with Hyper-V, BranchCache is not
supported.

Note

To perform the steps in this guide, virtual computers, also called virtual machines (VMs),
can be used instead of physical computers if you are running a version of Windows
 Server 2008 R2 that supports Hyper-V, and if the operating system on the VM supports
BranchCache.

Steps for Demonstrating BranchCache

Distributed Cache Mode
You can use the following topics to configure a BranchCache content Web server and three
BranchCache-enabled client computers in a test lab environment, and then verify BranchCache
functionality.
• Perform basic configuration of all computers
• Install and configure the BranchCache content Web server
• Enable BranchCache on client computers
• Verify BranchCache functionality

Perform basic configuration of all computers

Before installing or configuring other technologies, it is important to perform basic computer
configuration on the computer running Windows Server® 2008 R2 and on the three computers
that are running Windows® 7.
After installing the operating system, you must rename the computer and configure networking.
To perform these actions, use the following topics.
• Rename the computer
• Configure a static IP address

Rename the computer

You can use this procedure to rename the computer running Windows Server® 2008 R2 and to
rename the three client computers that are running Windows Server® 2008 R2. While performing
this procedure, use the following names for the computers:

Computer Role Operating System Computer Name

BranchCache content server Windows Server 2008 R2 Content-01

BranchCache client computer Windows® 7 Enterprise or Client-01

Windows® 7 Ultimate

BranchCache client computer Windows 7 Enterprise or Client-02

Windows 7 Ultimate
Computer Role Operating System Computer Name

BranchCache client computer Windows 7 Enterprise or Client-03

Windows 7 Ultimate

Membership in Administrators, or equivalent, is the minimum required to perform these

procedures.

To rename computers running Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7

1. Click Start, right-click Computer, and then click Properties. The System dialog box
opens.
2. In Computer name, domain, and workgroup settings, click Change settings. The
System Properties dialog box opens.

Note
On computers running Windows 7, before the System Properties dialog box
opens, the User Account Control dialog box opens, requesting permission to
continue. Click Continue to proceed.
3. Click Change. The Computer Name/Domain Changes dialog box opens.
4. In Computer Name, type the name for your computer based on the values provided
in this topic. For example, if you are configuring your content server, type Content-01.
5. Click OK twice, click Close, and then click Restart Now to restart the computer.

Configure a static IP address

You can use this procedure to configure a static IP address on the content server and on the
three client computers.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent, is the minimum required to perform these
procedures.
To determine the IP address with which to configure each computer, use the following table.

Computer Role Computer Name IP Address

Content server Content-01 192.168.0.254

Client computer Client-01 192.168.0.1

Client computer Client-02 192.168.0.2

Client computer Client-03 192.168.0.3

 To configure a static IP address on a computer running Windows Server 2008 R2 or
Windows 7
1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. In Control Panel, click Network and Internet. Network and Internet opens.
In Network and Internet, click Network and Sharing Center. Network and Sharing
Center opens.
3. In Network and Sharing Center, click Change adapter settings. Network
Connections opens.
4. In Network Connections, right-click the network connection that you want to
configure, and then click Properties.
5. In Local Area Connection Properties, in This connection uses the following
items, select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4), and then click Properties. The
Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) Properties dialog box opens.
6. In Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) Properties, on the General tab, click
Use the following IP address. In IP address, type the IP address that you want to use.
7. Press tab to place the cursor in Subnet mask. A default value for subnet mask is
entered automatically. Either accept the default subnet mask, or type the subnet mask
that you want to use.
8. In Default gateway, type the IP address of your default gateway if you have one on
your test network.
9. On client computers only, you must configure TCP/IP Properties with the IP address
of the WINS server that will provide name-to-IP address resolution services in your test
lab. To configure this setting on client computers, click Advanced. The Advanced
TCP/IP Settings dialog box opens. Click the WINS tab, and then click Add. Type the IP
address of the Web content server, 192.168.0.254, which will also act as a WINS server
in the test lab.
10. Click OK twice, and then click Close.

Install and configure the BranchCache

content Web server
After performing basic configuration of the server computer, you can use the following sections to
install and configure the Web Server (IIS) server role and the BranchCache feature.
In addition, you can install the Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) feature to provide name-
to-IP address resolution services for computers on the test network.
• Install the Web Server (IIS) server role
• Install the BranchCache feature
 • Install the WINS feature
• Configure Content-01 with BranchCache performance counters

Install the Web Server (IIS) server role

You can use this procedure to deploy a static content Web server on Content-01. A static content
Web server is the most basic configuration that provides support for HTML Web sites. You can
use a static content Web server to host internal or external Web sites. When you install IIS 7, the
default installation provides all the IIS modules required to support a static content Web server,
including the ability to serve static HTML files, documents, and images to the BranchCache-
enabled clients on your test network.

Note

You must be a member of the IIS 7 Administrators group to perform this procedure.

To install the Web Server (IIS) server role

1. On Content-01, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Server
Manager.
2. In Roles Summary, click Add Roles.
3. In the Add Roles Wizard, on the Before You Begin page, click Next.
4. On the Select Server Roles page, select Web Server (IIS), and then click Next.

Note
If an informational dialog box notifies you of required dependencies, click Add
Required Role Services to accept installation of the dependencies.
5. On the Web Server (IIS) page, click Next.
6. On the Select Role Services page, note the preselected role services that are
installed by default, and then click Next.

Note
You only have to install the IIS 7 default role services for a static content Web
server.
7. On the Confirm Installation Selections page, confirm your selections, and then click
Install.
8. On the Installation Results page, confirm that your installation of the Web Server (IIS)
role and required role services completed successfully, and then click Close.
9. To verify that IIS installed successfully, type the following into a Web browser:
http://localhost
Internet Explorer opens with the Set Up Windows Internet Explorer 8 dialog box in the
foreground. To close the dialog box, click Ask Me Later. In Internet Explorer, the default
Web site on your Web server with the II7 welcome Web page is displayed.
Install the BranchCache feature
You can use this procedure to install the BranchCache feature and start the BranchCache service
on the BranchCache Web content server, Content-01.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent is the minimum required to perform this procedure.

To install and enable the BranchCache feature

1. On Content-01, click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Server
Manager. Server Manager opens.
2. In the Server Manager left pane, right-click Features, and then click Add Features.
The Add Features Wizard opens.
3. In the Add Features Wizard, in Features, select the BranchCache check box, and
then click Next.
4. In Confirm Installation Selections, review your choice and then click Install. The
Installation Progress pane is displayed during installation, and then the Installation
Results pane is displayed.
5. In Installation Results, review the summary and then click Close. The Add Features
Wizard closes.
6. In the Server Manager left pane, double-click Configuration, and then click
Services.
7. In the details pane, in Services, double-click BranchCache. The BranchCache
Properties dialog box opens.
8. In the BranchCache Properties dialog box, on the General tab, verify that the
BranchCache service is started. If it is not already started, click Start to start the
BranchCache service, and then click OK.

Important
The BranchCache service startup type is Automatic, which means that the
BranchCache service starts whenever the computer is restarted. It is
recommended that you keep the startup type value set to Automatic.
Install the WINS feature
Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) enables computers running Windows to find other
computers using NetBIOS across subnets. Some programs rely on WINS to function across the
network, however BranchCache does not require WINS - you can use either WINS or DNS for
name resolution services when you deploy BranchCache.
For this step-by-step guide, WINS is used for name resolution services because it is easy to
deploy in a test lab environment.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent, is the minimum required to perform this procedure.

To install WINS
1. Do one of the following:
a. In Initial Configuration Tasks, in Customize This Server, click Add Features.
The Add Features Wizard opens.
b. Click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Server Manager. In the
left pane of Server Manager, click Features, and in the details pane, in Features
Summary, click Add Features. The Add Features Wizard opens.
2. In Select Features, in Features, scroll down the list, select WINS Server, and then
click Next.
 3. In Confirm installation selections, click Install.
4. In Installation Results, review your installation results, and then click Close.

Configure Content-01 with BranchCache

performance counters
You can use Windows Performance Monitor and BranchCache performance counters to
determine BranchCache efficiency and to calculate WAN bandwidth savings when you use
BranchCache.
You can use this procedure to configure Performance Monitor on the BranchCache content Web
server, Content-01, with BranchCache performance counters. After you test BranchCache using
the procedures that follow, these performance counters will provide BranchCache performance
data for all client computers that are used during the tests.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent is the minimum required to perform this procedure.

To configure BranchCache performance counters on the content server

1. On Content-01, click Start, click Search programs and files, and type perfmon. In
Search results, in Programs, click perfmon.exe. Windows Performance Monitor opens.
2. In Monitoring Tools click Performance Monitor to view the Performance Monitor
graph. To change the performance monitor graph to report view, click the graph toolbar
icon that displays an arrow to reveal the drop-down list, and then click Report.

3. To add BranchCache counters, click the graph toolbar icon that is a green plus sign
(+). The Add Counters dialog box opens. In the left pane, scroll to BranchCache Kernel
Mode, and click to expand the list of BranchCache Kernel Mode counters. Click Client
Cache Miss Bytes, hold down the Ctrl key, and then click Server Cache Miss Bytes,
 Hash Bytes, and Projected Server Bytes Without Caching.
4. Click Add, and then click OK.

Enable BranchCache on client computers

You can use this procedure to manually configure each BranchCache client computer for
distributed cache mode by using network shell (netsh) commands.

Important

You must perform this procedure on all three client computers to successfully deploy
BranchCache in your test lab.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent is the minimum required to perform this procedure.

To enable BranchCache distributed cache mode using network shell commands

1. On the BranchCache client computer that you want to configure, click Start, click
Search programs and files, and then type command. In search results, under
Programs, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as Administrator. The
command prompt opens with the elevated privileges that are required to run netsh
commands.
2. Run the following command: netsh branchcache set service mode=DISTRIBUTED

Note
Running the netsh branchcache set service command both configures the
client computer for distributed cache mode and automatically configures the
client computer firewall with the following inbound exceptions for distributed
cache mode: TCP port 80 and UDP port 3702.
3. To verify that BranchCache distributed cache mode is correctly configured on the
client computer, run the following command: netsh branchcache show status. The
BranchCache Service Status is displayed in the command prompt window with the
following values: Service Mode: Distributed Caching; Serve peers on battery power:
Disabled; and Current Status= Running.

Verify BranchCache functionality

You can use the following topics to verify BranchCache functionality in your test lab.
1. Verify WINS registration
2. Access Web content on Client-01
 3. Access Web content on Client-02
4. Access Web content on Client-03
5. Calculate overall BranchCache results
6. Optional - Reset computers to rerun tests

Verify WINS registration

You can use this topic to verify that all computers on the test network have registered their
NetBIOS names with the WINS server, to verify that networking is functioning correctly, and to
ensure that your configuration matches the requirements of this guide before you begin the
BranchCache testing process.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent is the minimum required to perform this procedure.

To verify computer registration in WINS

1. On Content-01, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Server
Manager. Server Manager opens.
2. In the Server Manager left pane, click and expand Features and then WINS.
3. In WINS, click Active Registrations. Note that no WINS records are displayed in the
right pane yet. Right-click Active Registrations, and then click Display Records. The
Display Records dialog box opens.
4. In Display Records, on the Record Mapping tab, click Find Now.
5. The Display Records dialog box closes, and the WINS registrations for all
computers that have registered a record with the server are displayed in Active
Registrations.
6. In Active Registrations, you should see both [00h] Workstation and [20h] File
Server WINS records for all computers on the network, including Client-01, Client-02,
Client-03, and Content-01, as illustrated in the example below.
 If all computers have registered records in the WINS database, your test network is
installed correctly, and you can continue with the BranchCache tests in this guide.
If one or more computers have not registered records in WINS, do the following:
a. Verify that you have configured the WINS server IP address in TCP/IP v4
network connection properties according to the instructions provided in the topic
Configure a static IP address.
b. Either restart the computer so that it automatically registers its NetBIOS name
with the WINS server or run the following command at the command prompt to
release and then renew the name record registration with the WINS server: nbtstat
-RR

Important

In order for you to successfully perform the procedures in this guide, Content-01 must
register its own record in the WINS database. If Content-01 has not registered a record in
WINS, configure the TCP/IP v4 properties of the network connection on Content-01 with
its own IP address as the WINS server. This will cause Content-01 to register its own
record if it has not already done so.

Note

A Microsoft WINS server record includes the WINS client NetBIOS name, IP address,
and a value called a version ID. When you release and renew the record, an existing
record’s version ID is incremented or a new record is registered. When you run nbtstat
-RR, a timer is invoked so that the command cannot be successfully run again for 2
minutes. This delay is provided to prevent a WINS server from becoming saturated by
client renewal requests. The –RR portion of the command syntax is case sensitive.

Access Web content on Client-01

You can use this topic to monitor BranchCache performance as you access content on the Web
server Content-01. Before accessing the content, you must configure Performance Monitor with
BranchCache counters to record BranchCache activity.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent is the minimum required to perform this procedure.

To configure Performance Monitor and access BranchCache content

1. On Client-01, click Start, click Search programs and files, and type perfmon. In
Search results, in Programs, click perfmon.exe. Windows Performance Monitor opens.
2. In Monitoring Tools click Performance Monitor to view the Performance Monitor
graph. To change the performance monitor graph to report view, click the graph toolbar
icon that displays an arrow to reveal the drop-down list, and then click Report.
3. To add BranchCache counters, click the graph toolbar icon that is a green plus sign
(+). The Add Counters dialog box opens. In the left pane, scroll to BranchCache, and
click the arrow to expand the list of BranchCache counters. Click Retrieval: Bytes from
cache, hold down the Ctrl key, and then click Retrieval: Bytes from server. Both
counters are now selected.

4. Click Add, and then click OK. Note that the values for both BranchCache counters
are zero.
5. On Client-01, click Start, click Search programs and files, type http://content-01,
and then press ENTER.
6. Internet Explorer opens with the Set Up Windows Internet Explorer 8 dialog box in
the foreground. To close the dialog box, click Ask Me Later. In Internet Explorer, the
default Web site on your Web server with the II7 welcome Web page is displayed.

7. Return to Performance Monitor to review the statistics in Report view. Note that
 Client-01 obtained the Web page from the content server, and did not receive any content
information, so both BranchCache counters maintain a value of zero.

Access Web content on Client-02

You can use this topic on Client-02 to monitor BranchCache performance as you access Web
content. Before accessing the content, you must configure Performance Monitor with
BranchCache counters to record BranchCache activity.
Membership in Administrators, or equivalent is the minimum required to perform this procedure.

To configure Performance Monitor and access BranchCache content

1. On Client-02, click Start, click Search programs and files, and type perfmon. In
Search results, in Programs, click perfmon.exe. Windows Performance Monitor opens.
2. In Monitoring Tools click Performance Monitor to view the Performance Monitor
graph. To change the performance monitor graph to report view, click the graph toolbar
icon that displays an arrow to reveal the drop-down list, and then click Report.
3. To add BranchCache counters, click the graph toolbar icon that is a green plus sign
(+). The Add Counters dialog box opens. In the left pane, scroll to BranchCache, and
click the arrow to expand the list of BranchCache counters. Click Retrieval: Bytes from
cache, hold down the Ctrl key, and then click Retrieval: Bytes from server. Both
counters are now selected.
4. Click Add, and then click OK. Note that the values for both BranchCache counters
are zero.

5. On Client-02, click Start, click Search programs and files, type http://content-01,
and then press ENTER.
6. Internet Explorer opens with the Set Up Windows Internet Explorer 8 dialog box in
 the foreground. To close the dialog box, click Ask Me Later. In Internet Explorer, the
default Web site on your Web server with the II7 welcome Web page is displayed.
7. Return to Performance Monitor to review the statistics in Report view. Note that
Client-02 obtained the Web page and the content information from the content server.
The counter Retrieval: Bytes from cache maintains a value of zero bytes, while the
counter Retrieval: Bytes from server has a changed value of 185,144.000 bytes.

Access Web content on Client-03

You can use this topic on Client-03 to monitor BranchCache performance as you access Web
content. Before accessing the content, you must configure Performance Monitor with
BranchCache counters to record BranchCache activity.

To configure Performance Monitor and access BranchCache content

1. On Client-03, click Start, click Search programs and files, and type perfmon. In
Search results, in Programs, click perfmon.exe. Windows Performance Monitor opens.
2. In Monitoring Tools click Performance Monitor to view the Performance Monitor
graph. To change the performance monitor graph to report view, click the graph toolbar
icon that displays an arrow to reveal the drop-down list, and then click Report.
3. To add BranchCache counters, click the graph toolbar icon that is a green plus sign
(+). The Add Counters dialog box opens. In the left pane, scroll to BranchCache, and
click the arrow to expand the list of BranchCache counters. Click Retrieval: Bytes from
cache, hold down the Ctrl key, and then click Retrieval: Bytes from server. Both
counters are now selected.
4. Click Add, and then click OK. Note that the values for both BranchCache counters
are zero.
5. On Client-03, click Start, click Search programs and files, type http://content-01,
and then press ENTER.
6. Internet Explorer opens with the Set Up Windows Internet Explorer 8 dialog box in
the foreground. To close the dialog box, click Ask Me Later. In Internet Explorer, the
default Web site on your Web server with the II7 welcome Web page is displayed.
7. Return to Performance Monitor to review the statistics in Report view. Note that
Client-03 obtained content information from the content server, and obtained the Web
page from the local cache.
Calculate overall BranchCache results
On Content-01, open Windows Performance Monitor to review statistics after performing all of the
tests in this guide. In the topic Configure Content-01 with BranchCache performance counters,
you added the following BranchCache kernel mode counters:
• Client Cache Miss Bytes. This counter specifies the number of bytes of content provided
by the content server because a client was not able to find the content within the local branch.
In other words, this counter increases when the content server sends content information to
client computers and the client cannot find the content in the branch office.
• Hash Bytes. This counter specifies the number of bytes of content information (also
called hashes) that the content server has provided to client computers.
• Projected Server Bytes Without Caching. This counter specifies the number of bytes that
the content server would have provided to client computers if not configured as a
BranchCache content server.
• Server Cache Miss Bytes. This counter specifies the number of bytes of content that the
server provided to client computers because the server did not have content information (also
called hashes) available for that content. In other words, this counter increases when the
content server cannot send content information to the client because the content information
has not yet been generated by the server. For example, when Client-01 requests content
from the server, the server has not yet generated content information. The content server
sends the actual content to the client, the Server Cache Miss Bytes counter value increases,
and the server then generates the content information for the requested content. The next
client to request the same content (Client-02) will then receive both the content information
and the content from the content server.
You can calculate the total WAN bandwidth savings – or the amount of content accessed from the
client cache rather than from the content server - across all BranchCache-enabled client
computers that accessed content on Content-01 during your tests by using the following formula:
Total bytes saved = Projected Server Bytes Without Caching minus Client Cache Miss
Bytes minus Server Cache Miss Bytes minus Hash Bytes.
Example calculation using BranchCache kernel mode performance counters
The illustration below provides example statistics for these counters after running the tests in this
guide.
Using these statistics as the basis for the calculation, you can discover how much content that
client computers accessed from each other rather than over the WAN link from the server:
554,838.000 (Projected Server Bytes Without Caching) – 184,946.000 (Client Cache Miss Bytes)
= 369,892.000 (Subtotal 1)
369,892.000 (Subtotal 1) – 184,946.000 (Server Cache Miss Bytes) = 184,946.000 (Subtotal 2)
184,946.000 (Subtotal 2) – 396.000 (Hash Bytes) = 184,550.000 (Total bytes saved)

Optional - Reset computers to rerun tests

You can use the following procedure to reset the content server and three client computers so
that you can rerun the tests in this guide and achieve the expected results.

To reset all computers

1. On Content-01, to automatically delete all content information that BranchCache
created during previous tests, restart the BranchCache service by stopping and then
starting the service using the following commands at the command prompt:
a. To stop the BranchCache service, type net stop peerdistsvc, and then press
ENTER.
b. To start the BranchCache service, type net start peerdistsvc, and then press
ENTER.
2. On all three client computers, open Internet Explorer, then click Tools and Internet
Options. On the General tab, click Delete. Delete all content in the Browsing History.
This action prevents Internet Explorer from loading the IIS 7 Welcome page from the
Internet Explorer cache, because the Web page is deleted from the cache.
3. On all three client computers, delete all BranchCache cached content by using the
following command at the command prompt: netsh branchcache flush.
4. On all three client computers, restart the computer to reset the counters in
 Performance Monitor.

Additional Resources
For more information about the technologies in this guide, see the following resources:
• BranchCache Design Guide
• BranchCache Deployment Guide
• Network Shell (Netsh) Commands for BranchCache
• IIS 7 Deployment Guide
• WINS Product Help (Windows Server 2003)

Note

The documentation for WINS is not updated for Windows Server® 2008 R2. Aside
from some software engineering changes that make WINS less vulnerable to
malicious attack, WINS functionality is not changed from that available in the
Windows Server® 2003 operating systems.