Hosting Exchnage on remote site

[julianf]

Hi,

Exchange 5.5 runs on my main site with a remote site connecting to us via 64K diginet line. The remote site is on the same domain and utilizes our exchange server. The email performace at the remote site is not always good, especially when trying to open attachments. (The file obviously needs to travel accros the line before it can be accessed.) (Wins and DNS is enabled)

I have decided to install exchange at the remote site and join it to the main exchnage server at the main site. I want to configure the remote exchange server to manage all the mailboxes of the users at that site. They will then be able to access their mail locally, thus improving the performance.

I installed exchange and connected it to the main exchange server.After completion of the installation, I could see that there were 2 servers within the Exchange Admin. But I thought that I would have to move the mailboxes from the main server to the remote server. Under the remote server's Recipients list, I can see all the mailboxes. And It seems as if the 2 exchange servers were trying to synchronise their databases completely...I had to cancel, because it would have tried to synchronise over 6GB of data accross the line.

How do I set it up in such a way that I can move only the mailboxes that I want hosted on the remote server? Or do both exchange servers need to host an identical copy of the mailboxes and the e-mail database?

Please could someone assist or point me to some relative documentation.

Regards,

Julian

 

[Guest_imported]

It is the directory that was being replicated. The directory just tells both servers what's what and where everything is. The mailboxes themselves would stay where they were. Afterwards, you can use Move mailbox from the Tools menu in Exchange admin.
Since you have installed the new server in the same site as the old, directory replication is automatic. These 2 servers will talk to each other constantly via RPC - your 64k connection will be busy.
Catch-22 if you put them in different sites is, you can't use Move Mailbox, though there are other ways of moving mailboxes.

 

[gcracker]

Instead of copying the mailboxes between the 2 servers over your 64K line, if possible, you might find it easier to bring the remote server back to your local location and move the mailboxes over your LAN segment, then transport your server back to the remote location.

I guess this depends upon the distance between the local and remote offices?

Graeme

 

[julianf]

Hi Guys, Thanx for all the advise.

I reckon it would be best to take the remote server to the main site and install exchange there. It would synchronise a lot faster!

What bugs me is the fact that I did not move any mailboxes on the 1st try. All I did was install exchange on the remote server and connect it to the main one. It started synchronising, and when I went into the Exch Admin, I could see the whole list of recipients. Should it not be empty? (Or is that part of the necessary info that the 2 exchange servers replicate by default?)

Well, when I realised that the synchrnisation was gonna clog the line, I stopped the services and uninstalled exchange. I then went back to the main site and checked out Exch Admin. I could still see the remote servers name listed under servers. So I deleted it and it asked if I wanted to delete it without 1st moving mailboxes. (Could it be that the 2 exchange servers had started replicating the mailbox database???)

Well, this is the 1st time I am attempting this, so that is why I don't really know what to expect.

I'm concerned that if I install the exchange server, it will try and replicate the whole mail database to the remote site. This would be problematic because the 2 servers would contantly try asnd replicate all the mailboxes via the line on a daily basis...I only want the 25 mailboxes on that server.

Any further advise would be much appreciated.

Regards,

Jules