Urgent please - Exchange down

[guinnessman]

I have a customer with Exchange 2000 and as MCSEs go, I'm not the best with M$ Exchange. Last night this Exchange server which was seemingly upgraded from 5.5 a few years ago, fell over. It ran out of space. Worse again, he has no viable backup. The in-house Administrator tried various tricks to revive the stricken server but to no avail. He tells me the "M:" drive has disappeared.
He has re-applied Service pack 3 (for some reason) and he has freed-up a load of space on the C: drive (where Exchange resides). The server itself will now boot fine but the Store will not start.

I am wondering if I go in and simply take that machine off the network and build a new exchange server 2003 and call it the same name as the 2000 exchange server, then import the mailboxes from the old 2000 Exchange (Exmerge), will everything be hunky-dory? (I know that sounds just tooo optimistic)
If not, any suggestions on what I should do to try to revitalise this Exchange server.


Remember, it's all just ones and zeros!

 

[Zelandakh]

You need to find out how this super admin freed up the space. I'd probably put money on him deleting *.log.

There is a CHANCE you can build a 2003 and use RSG and resurrect it.

M drive vanishing means the store isn't started so that's ok. Look for the *.log in mdbdata folder. If there aren't any, he's deleted them.

If you name a box the same as the old one you'll need to remove the machine account and then you'll have to think about the Exchange server existing in the domain.

Good luck...

 

[guinnessman]

I don't think he has deleted, well hopefully not, I think he simply moved stuff to another server.

What's RSG?

Removing the old machine account and then joining a new EX2003 with the same name as the old Ex2000 box is no biggy but will simply ipmorting all of the old mailboxes into the new Ex2003 server work?
A buddy of mine has just texted me suggesting that I import the 2000 store and try to mount it to the new Ex2003 box that I build.

What do you think?

Remember, it's all just ones and zeros!

 

[Zelandakh]

RSG - recovery storage group. It is rather good.

Build the new server, patch it and copy the EDB and STM files over and start the services. If they are copies, the worst that can happen is that it won't do much.

 

[guinnessman]

Do you mean copy the mailboxes over (exmerge) and then copy the EDB and STM files over and start the services?

What essential components does the EDB and STM files have than just importing the mailboxes on their own, won't solve?

Remember, it's all just ones and zeros!

 

[Zelandakh]

you can't exmerge a downed store.

Install the server, then read this

http://www.outlookexchange.com/articles/HenrikWalther/RSG.asp

 

[RRM]

Hi,

1. Is your the Microsoft Exchange Information Store running?
I'll assume it is
2. If you check in ESM do your stores show up?
I'll assume they are there but down.
3. locate the folder, usually c:\program files\exchsrvr\mdbdata, and rename or move the file E00.log and *.chk
4. Attempt to mount the store.
5. If your store does not mount post the error message here with any information found in the server logs.

A further note, store.exe versions are incompatible i.e. Exchange 2000 no service pack will not mount a Exchange 2000 service pack 3 database. If your server had the post SP3 rollup, plus other patches you should try putting those on as well.

The log files are in the folder are referenced by Exchange during startup and if the *.chk file contains information of how many log files to replay and what file name to start from. If your admin person has moved or removed these files Exchange will not mount the store.

Good luck

RRM

 

[RRM]

Sorry some errors, this is what I meant...

1. Is your Microsoft Exchange Information Store running?
I'll assume it is
2. If you check in ESM do your stores show up?
I'll assume they are there but down.
3. locate the folder, usually c:\program files\exchsrvr\mdbdata, where your logs are stored and rename or move the file E00.log and *.chk. if there are other log files there you may want to move those as well. Rememer if these logs have not been comitted to the Exchange Databases then you will lose some mail.
4. Attempt to mount the store.
5. If your store does not mount post the error message here with any information found in the server logs. Maybe worth increasing your Error Logging on the server also.

RRM

 

[guinnessman]

The store will not start.
I have moved the MDBDATA directory to another drive and renamed it. I uninstalled IIS and then reinstalled.
Tomorrow I plan to reinstall EX 2000 and Service pack 3, then move the backed up MDBDATA directory to the new installation and hopefully it will start ok. Any further ideas?

Remember, it's all just ones and zeros!

 

[RRM]

If you moved the MDBDATA manual it will not start.
Exchange uses ESM to reference where it's DB and Logs are. If you need to move the logs / Databases it must be done within ESM.

RRM

 

[guinnessman]

I did what I suggested to day and HEY Presto! IT WORKED!!! My Exchange is bck up.

Thanks for all your input people, I really do appreciate it.
RRM, it seems manually moving reinstalling exchange and then moving it back actually works. I'm not being smarmy cos I'm as surprised as anyone but hey, thanks anyway for taking the time to offer me some help.

Steve


Remember, it's all just ones and zeros!

 

[RRM]

Well done.
I'm glad it worked for you.
Replacing the databases / logs to the original locations would resolve any path issues.

RRM