Tech Tips for Exchange Administrators

Tasks and Tools:

Moving Exchange Server to a new
computer, part 1

Is the ol' Exchange Server starting to get a little sluggish? You can move Exchange Server to a new computer with the same name as the original computer.

To back up information from the original computer, follow these steps:

            At the original computer, make a note of the organization and site names. (Write down the configuration parameters of any connectors that are installed. Also, note the drive configuration of the original computer.)

            Stop all of the Exchange services.

            Copy the Exchsrvr directory to another computer on the network or back it up to a tape drive. (If you have the log, database, and working directories on different drives, be sure to copy the Exchsrvr directories from each of the drives.)

            Start the Exchange Server Performance Optimizer and note the locations of the directory service, information store, MTA, and Internet Mail Service files. (Be sure to note the version and service pack number that's installed.)

            If the KM server service is installed, stop it, and then back up the Security directory. (If the original computer is running Exchange Server version 5.5, there's no Security directory because the KM server information is stored in the Exchsrvr\Kmsdata directory.) Also, back up the KM server Startup disk.

            Shut down the original computer and turn it off. Make sure there's an operational domain controller in the Windows NT domain.

Moving Exchange Server to a new
computer, part 2

Once you’ve backed up the information from your old Exchange server, you can install Windows NT and Exchange Server on a new computer. To do so, follow these steps:

   1.  Use Server Manager to remove and re-add the machine account for the original computer.

   2.  Install Windows NT on the new computer using the same name as the original computer. If necessary, make the new computer a BDC.

   3.  Reconfigure the drives on the new computer exactly as they were configured on the original computer.

   4.  Run the Exchange Server setup program to install Exchange Server. Use the same Organization and Site names. Be sure to select the Create A New Site check box. Also, install all of the connectors that were installed on the original computer (select the Custom check box). Use the same service account as the original computer.

   5.  Start the Performance Optimizer and move the files to the same locations that they were in on the original computer.

   6.  Apply the appropriate service pack number that was installed on the original computer.

   7.  Install and configure the appropriate connectors using the notes taken from the original server.

   8.  If KM server was used on the original computer, install KM server on the new computer.

            9.  Select the Create A Startup Disk check box.

            After the installation finishes successfully, stop the KM server service on the new computer. (Make sure none of the Exchange Server services are running.)

Moving Exchange Server to a new
computer, part 3

As we mentioned previously, you can move Exchange Server to a new computer with the same name as the original computer.

Restoring Exchange Server data to the new computer

After you've installed Windows NT and Exchange Server on the new computer:

1.      Copy the Exchsrvr directories that you backed up from the original computer over the Exchsrvr directories on the new computer. (Make sure that the directories are on the correct drives.)

2.      Start the system attendant and directory services.

3.      Start the information store service. (If the application event log states that you need to run the isinteg –patch when you start the information store, run it at a command prompt and restart the information store service.)

Configure KM server

1.      Stop the KM server service on the new computer.

2.      Copy the kmspwd.ini file from the KM server Startup disk for the original computer to another disk. Label the disk “KM Server Startup Disk—New Computer.”

3.      For Exchange Server version 5.5, rename the Exchsrvr\kmsdata directory to the Exchsrvr\kmsdata.original directory. Copy the Exchsrvr\kmsdata directory from the backup of the Exchsrvr directory of the original computer to the Exchsrvr directory on the new computer.

4.      Place the new KM server Startup disk (for the new computer) into the disk drive of the new computer.

5.      Start the KM server service on the new computer.

6.      Use the Performance Optimizer utility to make any desired changes.

7.      Start all of the Exchange Server services.

Restoring and reconfiguring connectors

Restore all of the information that relates to site connectors and x.400 connectors on the new computer. You need to reconfigure any Internet Mail or Dynamic RAS connectors. You might also need to reconfigure third-party connectors.

After you complete the steps, Exchange Server will run on the new computer just like it did on the original machine. This means that Exchange clients can connect to the new Exchange Server computer the same way they connected to the original computer.

Restricting the size of SMTP messages

Although sometimes it may be a good idea to restrict the size of messages sent through the Internet Mail Service (IMS), it may not always be advisable to limit message size in general. Such is often the case with small companies that don't have problems with their internal network traffic but use a dial-up connection to connect to an ISP for external mail. A dial-up connection might be tied up for hours if multi-megabyte attachments are allowed. Or even worse, messages can get stuck in a loop when the dial-up times out and retries repeatedly.

Educating users about this problem may help, but you may find the need to make it a systematic restriction. Here's how to do that:

1.  Open the IMS Properties sheet in the Exchange Administrator      program.

2.  Click the General tab. In the Message Size dialog box (which allows you to set a size restriction on mail sent through the IMS), click the Maximum K button and enter a size limit.

3.  Click OK and then restart the IMS.

Now your client's messages cannot be larger than the size you specified. Since users will get a non-delivery report (NDR) if they attempt to send a message that exceeds this limit, you should communicate this change before implementation.