Reinstalling Exchange (best way to restore/recreate user accounts)

[hillboy]

I need to reinstall Exchange 5.5. on my one server. I have approximately 300 user accounts that I will need to restore.

What is the best way to do this? Can I restore the accounts by using my backup tapes (I use Veritas BackupExec 8.0)?

 

[egodette]

You should have no problem with a restore from BackupExec.

1. Give the new box the exact same name as the old box. (old box must be off the network).
2. Join the domain.
3. Install Exchange with the EXACT same setting as before. (same organization name and site name)
4. Setup mail connector(s).
5. Restore tape from backup.

I do this on a quarterly basis to keep current with the disaster recovery standards for the company.

 

[hillboy]

Thanks for the response...my only problem with your recommendation is that the "site" configuration is going to change. Basically, we will be breaking our company in two. We currently have two Exchange servers, one at our site, the other at the other division's site. We suspect that all of our mail is filtered through the other division's server....a consultant set up the current scheme and no one from either division is able to figure it out. Rather than pay for the consultant to come back in and "break" this configuration I'd rather just reinstall Exchange and recreate my user's mailboxes if there is a good way of porting their data.

 

[motor135]

Are the two servers in the same organization? Is the server that email is being filtered through providing IMC service?

 

[egodette]

You will not be able to use the veritas software to restore the mail boxes if the site or organizational names have changed. You could always install a new Exchange server simultaniously and copy the mail boxes from one system to the other but the tape will not work to my knowledge.