Category: Exchange 2010

Exchange 2010

Exchange 2010 Free space within a Mailbox Database

In previous versions of Exchange Server there was a process called "online maintenance". This process ran at night and one of the tasks was to an online defragmentation to do within the database. The task was that the empty spaces are grouped together resulting in more efficient use of the Mailbox Database.

In Exchange 2010 has changed and there is a 24×7 online process. There is also the option of online, direct to see how much space is available within the databases with the Powershell command:

Get-MailboxDatabase –Status | fl Name,AvailableNewMailboxSpace

Output:

image

If we were to do an offline defragmentation on the Mailbox Database the mailbox database would be approximately a 90MB smaller.

This is on my test Exchange 2010 server with only a few mailboxes. In normal production enjoinment this will  be a lot more.

In Exchange 2010 you can you a online mailbox move. There fore you can
better create a new mailbox database en move all the mailboxes to the new mailbox database.
Then you have the same result with no down time.

Rollup 5 for Exchange Server 2010

Microsoft has released rollup 5 for Exchange Server 2010:

This update rollup is highly recommended for all Exchange Server 2010 customers.

For a list of changes that are included in this update rollup, see KB2407113.

The is only one fix:

You cannot uninstall Exchange Server 2010 RTM after you install Update Rollup 2, Update Rollup 3, or Update Rollup 4 for Exchange Server 2010

Download the rollup here. 

Note to Forefront users:

If you don’t disable Forefront before installing a rollup or service pack, and enable afterwards, you run the risk of Exchange related services not starting. You can disable Forefront by going to a command prompt and navigating to the Forefront directory and running FSCUtility /disable. To enable Forefront after installation of a UR or SP, run FSCUtility /enable.

Publishing Outlook Anywhere Using NTLM Authentication With Forefront TMG or Forefront UAG

This white paper provides detailed information about publishing Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 using Forefront TMG or Forefront UAG to secure access for Outlook Anywhere when using NTLM Authentication.

When you publish Exchange, Microsoft offers two software-based options: Microsoft Forefront Threat Management Gateway 2010 and Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010. Both options offer publishing wizards and security features to provide secure access to Exchange when it’s accessed from outside the safety of the corporate network.

This white paper provides detailed information about publishing Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 using Forefront TMG or Forefront UAG, including how to choose between them for different scenarios, and provides specific steps you can take to configure Forefront TMG and Forefront UAG to publish Exchange 2010 while using NTLM authentication for Outlook Anywhere access.

Download details Publishing Outlook Anywhere Using NTLM Authentication With Forefront TMG or Forefront UAG

Microsoft Certified Master Exchange Video Preview

There is one Microsoft exam that I find very interesting. That is the Microsoft Certified Master for Exchange program.

I found a nice video what tells what we actually do in the classroom during Microsoft Certified Master rotations?  Well, here is a 30 minute summary of the Exchange 2010 header firewall from  Brian Reid, one of our regular MCM instructors.  Brian covers the header firewall and much more during his two and a half day delivery of instruction and labs on Exchange Transport.

You can find the video HERE

Exchange 2010: An Active Manager operation failed with a transient error. Please retry the operation. Error: Database action failed with transient error. Error: A transient error occurred during a database operation. Error: An error occurred while preparing to mount database

Failed to mount database ‘Mailbox Database 1’. After recovering a Exchange 2010 SP1. I had no Database Backup. Because I am only using this exchange server for test only. I would use the recovered database but I get the following error:

Error:

Couldn’t mount the database that you specified. Specified database: Mailbox Database 1; Error code: An Active Manager operation failed with a transient error. Please retry the operation. Error: Database action failed with transient error. Error: A transient error occurred during a database operation. Error: An error occurred while preparing to mount database ‘Mailbox Database 1’. Error: Could not find a part of the path ‘D:\Exchsvr\Mailbox\Mailbox Database 2133499474’. [Database: Mailbox Database 1, Server: WARD-EX01.wardvissers.local].

An Active Manager operation failed with a transient error. Please retry the operation. Error: Database action failed with transient error. Error: A transient error occurred during a database operation. Error: An error occurred while preparing to mount database ‘Mailbox Database 1’. Error: Could not find a part of the path ‘D:\Exchsvr\Mailbox\Mailbox Database 2133499474’. [Database: Mailbox Database 1, Server: WARD-EX01.wardvissers.local]

An Active Manager operation failed with a transient error. Please retry the operation. Error: An error occurred while preparing to mount database ‘Mailbox Database 1’. Error: Could not find a part of the path ‘D:\Exchsvr\Mailbox\Mailbox Database 2133499474’. [Server: WARD-EX01.wardvissers.local]

An error occurred while preparing to mount database ‘Mailbox Database 1’. Error: Could not find a part of the path ‘D:\Exchsvr\Mailbox\Mailbox Database 2133499474’.

Could not find a part of the path ‘D:\Exchsvr\Mailbox\Mailbox Database 2133499474’.

Screenshot:

image
Solution:
Make sure that all folders exist that are given with the error.

Recover an Exchange 2010 SP1 Server

Recover a Lost Exchange Server

1. Install the proper operating system and name the new server with the same name as the lost server. Recovery won’t succeed if the server on which recovery is being performed doesn’t have the same name as the lost server.

2. Join the server to the same domain as the lost server.

3. Install the following 2008 R2 HotFixes

The following hotfixes are required for the Client Access server for Windows Server 2008 R2:

4. Set-Service NetTcpPortSharing -StartupType Automatic

5. RUN –> E:\Setup.com /m:recoverserver /InstallWindowsComponents

image

image

Exchange 2010 Client Access Throttling

Environment:
Windows 2008 R2 – Exchange 2010 RTM 
Later  I installed SP1 & Rollup 2 for SP1

Outlook 2003 Service Pack 3 Clients
Issue:
During normal working hours users randomly was unable to access their mailboxes when they launched their Outlook client.

The users were receiving the following Outlook message:
Outlook error

“Unable to open your default e-mail folders. The Microsoft Exchange Server computer is not available. Either there are network problems or the Microsoft Exchange Server computer is down for maintenance.”
It was also reported that some users had issues expanding additional mailboxes. (Delegate Mailboxes )
The following Outlook message appeared.

set of folders

Or users have issues opening Shared Calendars.

Solution:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2299468

With Get-ThrottlingPolicy you can see the value of RCAMaxConcurrency

(Exchange 2010 RTM default value 20) (Exchange 2010 SP1 default value 214748364)

I changed RCAMaxConcurrency to 214748364 and the problem is fixt:

Get-ThrottlingPolicy | set-ThrottlingPolicy -RCAMaxConcurrency 214748364

Infrastructure Planning and Design (IPD) Guide for Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 with Service Pack 1

The Infrastructure Planning and Design (IPD) Guide for Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 with Service Pack 1 is very handy for successfully designing an Exchange Server 2010 infrastructure. The guide will help consultants make informed decisions about the design of fault tolerance and scalability so that their overall requirements are met.

The guide covers these key steps in the Exchange Server 2010 infrastructure design process:

  • Defining the project scope by identifying your individual business and IT requirements for a messaging infrastructure.
  • Mapping features and functionality based on the defined scope to develop the appropriate Exchange Server 2010 design.
  • Designing the infrastructure and role requirements for the proposed Exchange Server 2010 architecture.
  • Determining the sizing, fault tolerance, and physical placement of Exchange Server 2010 roles.

The Exchange Server 2010 Guide includes the following content:

  • Step 1: Define the Business and Technical Requirements
  • Step 2: Define the Instances of Exchange Server 2010
  • Step 3: Design the Mailbox Server Infrastructure
  • Step 4: Design the Client Access Server Infrastructure
  • Step 5: Design the Hub Transport Server Infrastructure
  • Step 6: Design the Edge Transport Server Infrastructure
  • Step 7: Design the Unified Messaging Server Infrastructure
  • Step 8: Define the Active Directory Domain Services Requirements

Launch the download of the IPD Guide for Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 with Service Pack 1.

Launch the download of the entire Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide series.

Publish Exchange 2010 With TMG (Forefront Threat Management Gateway)

When you want you use Forefront Threat Management Gateway to publish Exchange 2010 you must do the following things

1. Get a SAN Certificate.

I my case I have the following URL’s registered with the certificate.
webmail.wardvissers.nl
autodiscover.wardvissers.nl
legacy.wardvissers.nl
casarray.wardvissers.local

image

2. Import the Certificate in to Exchange 2010. 
How to check HERE

3. Create on the Exchange 2010 Server a Client Access Array.
How you must do it I spoke it Configuring Client Access Array. I this case a used casarray.wardvissers.local for the client acces array.

4. Setting the internal & external url’s

Set-ClientAccessServer -Identity ward-ex01 -AutoDiscoverServiceInternalUri https://casarray.wardvissers.local/Autodiscover/Autodiscover.xml

Set-WebServicesVirtualDirectory -Identity “ward-ex01\EWS (Default Web Site)” -InternalUrl https://casarray.wardvissers.local/ews/exchange.asmx -ExternalUrl https:// webmail.wardvissers.nl/ews/exchange.asmx

Set-OABVirtualDirectory -Identity “ward-ex01\oab (Default Web Site)” -InternalUrl http:// casarray.wardvissers.local/oab -ExternalUrl https://webmail.wardvissers.nl/oab

Enable-OutlookAnywhere -Server ward-ex01 -ExternalHostname “webmail.wardvissers.nl” -ClientAuthenticationMethod “Basic”-SSLOffloading:$False

Set-ActiveSyncVirtualDirectory -Identity “ward-ex01\Microsoft-Server-ActiveSync (Default Web Site)” -InternalURL https://casarry.wardvissers.local/Microsoft-Server-Activesync
-ExternalURL https://webmail.wardvissers.nl/Microsoft-Server-Activesync

Set-ECPVirtualDirectory –Identity ward-ex01\ECP (default web site) -InternalURL https://casarry.wardvissers.local/ECP -ExternalURL https://webmail.wardvissers.nl/ECP

5. Configure Exchange 2010 for basic authentication

Set-OwaVirtualDirectory -id ward-ex01\* -BasicAuthentication $true -WindowsAuthentication $true -FormsAuthentication $false

set-WebServicesVirtualDirectory -Identity “ward-ex01\EWS (Default Web Site)” -WindowsAuthentication $true -BasicAuthentication $true

set-EcpVirtualdirectory –Identity ward-ex01\ECP (default web site) -BasicAuthentication $true -WindowsAuthentication $true -FormsAuthentication $false

set-OabVirtualDirectory -Identity “ward-ex01\oab (Default Web Site)” -WindowsAuthentication $true -BasicAuthentication $true

set-ActiveSyncVirtualDirectory -Identity “ward-ex01\Microsoft-Server-ActiveSync (Default Web Site)” -BasicAuthentication $true

6. Import the SAN certificate in to the TMG server.

1. Click Start –> Run –> Type MMC
2. Click File –> add remove Snap-in –> Certificates –> ADD –> Computer account-> Next –> finish-> ok
3. Click Personal –> certificates
4. Right Click certificates –> all task –> import –> next –> select the *.pfx file –> next –> Password –> next –> next –> Finish

7. Publish OWA

1. Publish Exchange Web Client Access

2. Exchange Publishing rule name: OWA 2010
image

3. Choose Exchange Server 2010 & Outlook Web Access

image

4. Next ( I have only Single TMG Server)
image

5. Next
image

6.Internal Site Name: Client Access Array name. My Case casarray.wardvissers.local
image

7. Public Name: webmail.wardvissers.nl
image

8. At this moment I have no Web Listener so we gone create them

image

9. Weblister Name: HTTPS
image

10. Next
image

11. I choise for All Networks (and local host) because the Server has one NIC.
image

12. Select the Certificate that you just imported.
image image
image
13. Choise for LDAP (Active Directory)
image
14. SSO Domain name: my case wardvissers.nl (External Domain name)
image
15. Finish
image

16. Next
image

17. Next
image

18. Next
image

19. Finish
image

8. Publish Active Sync

1. Publish Exchange Web Client Access

2. Exchange Publishing rule name: Active Sync 2010
image

3. Exchange Server 2010 & Exchange ActiveSync
image

4. Next
image

5. Next
image

6. Internal Site name: CasArray name
image

7. Public Name: I my case webmail.wardvissers.nl
image

8.Choise the HTTPS web listerner
image

9. Next
image

10. Next
image

11. Finish
image

Next Time I will publish how to deploy a Legacy Exchange Server 2003 & 2007 with TMG

Exchange 2010 Tested Solutions

image_thumb

Microsoft provides some documentation examples of well-designed, cost-effective Exchange 2010 solutions deployed on hardware offered by some partners from Microsoft.

9000 Mailboxes in Two Sites Running Hyper-V on Dell M610 Servers, Dell EqualLogic Storage, and F5 Load Balancing Solutions

16000 Mailboxes in a Single Site Deployed on IBM and Brocade Hardware 

500 Mailboxes in a Single Site Running Hyper-V on Dell Servers

It’s really nice info to read Smile if you designing a Exchange 2010 Solution for your company or customer.

Translate »