Restore Exchange 5.5 data to Exchange 2000

No you cannot restore a Exchange 5.5 database onto a Exchange 2000 server. These are in different formats.

You can use Ontrack's Power Controls software to extract the data to PST files, but this is fairly expensive.

I would try to restore the backups you have. Use the following steps:
1. Install Exchange 5.5 on a server that has the same name as the original server. When Prompted, use the same sevicea account as was used originally. Apply the same Exchange Service Pack as was on the original.
2. Stop the Exchange Directory Service.
3. Rename the DSADATA folder(s) on all drives to DSADATA-ORG. Everywhere you renamed a DSADATA folder create a new one.
4. Rename the MDBDATA folder(s) on all drives to MDBDATA-ORG. Everywhere you renamed a MDBDATA folder create a new one.
5. Now restore your Exchange aware backup. You should choose to restore the Directory and Information Stores. You should then be able to start the services without doing anything else.

If you were not able to install Exchange using the same Service Account then skip step 3 above and follow the steps below.
6. 5. Now restore your Exchange aware backup. You should restore ONLY the Information Store.
7. Start the Directory service.
8. Start the Information Store service. Start the MTA.
9. Now run a DS/IS. Place a check mark for all inconsistencies. This will create the entries in the DIR.EDB for all the mailboxes.
10. Go to the properties of each mailbox and assign the proper NT account.

I noticed .pst files in one of the Exchange data repositories that was backed up as part of the Exchange/Veritas backup - on tape. Aren't .pst files universal? Could I take those and bring them to a local machine to be loaded?

"Aren't .pst files universal? Could I take those and bring them to a local machine to be loaded?"
Yes you can.
If this is so then this would probably be the best way.

You also have the option of running ExMerge in the utilities of the Exchange service pack. It will automatically import users with correctly formatted names into their AD accounts.

I'd go with eeldee's option for the exmerge. Does anybodu know if Exmerge actually works if you only have the Priv.edb?? I thought this should work to, so you only need to have the priv.edb file and Exmerge.

Also something to take into consideration, make sure that the .pst files you would like to import with Exmerge need to have the same names as the aliasses they need be imported to. If a users alias was jdoe and now it johnd, you have to rename the pst file johnd, else it will not be imported..

Also make sure to import the files as an admin and make sure that the admin has Send As and Recieve As rights to all the mailboxes, this is required for Exmerge to work.....

I'll expand on Rhandels point by adding that in Exch2k+ you need to set the registry HKEY_local/software/microsoft/exchange/ExAdmin add new String Value ShowSecurityPage with value 1. Then you can add an account to all rights for send/receive.

Ok guys - you lost me a bit towards the end there. Here's what I have. I have a tape backup with old Exchange 5.5 information. I noticed in a folder that was named something with "exmerge" in it - perhaps exmergedata or something - that there were a bunch of .pst files in it for a few users. I dont' understand why there were only about 9 users .pst files there out of a total of 15.

What would be the best way to restore those .pst files? You mentioned an exmerge utility. Where is that? Is it included with Exchange 2000? Do I need a service pack?

Can I just literally move the .pst file to a users workstation, load it in a personal folders, then copy over that data to their active Exchange account via Outlook?

I looked at those .pst files in the EXMERGEDATA folder and they are from 2000 and 2001! Am I missing something here? Isn't there a folder in Exchange 5.5 that I can access which contains .pst files with the latest data in it??

By default Exchange does not create PST files. This applies to any version.
All the latest data will be in the PRIV.EDB and PUB.EDB files.

The only way that PST's would have been created is if EXMERGE was run or a brick-level type backup was done. Also the users could have exported the contents of their mailboxes to a PST file.

An no you cannot run EXMERGE against the PRIV.EDB file unless the Exchange 5.5 Information Store service is running.

As I said before, you can use Ontrack's Power Controls software to extract the data to PST files with out having the Exchange 5.5 services running.

Ok. So, besides setting up another NT server and restoring Exchange 5.5 to it, my only option is to run Power Controls. I did find the PRIV.EDB on the tape backup, so I guess that is good. Once that is extracted to .pst files, I assume I can bring them into Outlook from there?

Can you suggest any other utilities that can perform the same duties?

"Once that is extracted to .pst files, I assume I can bring them into Outlook from there?"
Correct.

"Can you suggest any other utilities that can perform the same duties?"
Don't know of any.

If you have the extra hardware, it will save you alot of time and money to perform a restore to a 5.5 Exchange server. There are lots of articles on how to get it done and it's not terribly difficult once you understand the concept. Paying a 3rd party company for the priv.edb extraction should only be considered if you have no options, or time contraints force you to get the work done immediately.

I think this 3rd party option might work best. They (my client) do not have any more hardware that can be used. I'd have to spend a significant amount of time on this, which will rack up the billing hours. In the end, the billed hours will equal the price paid for the 3rd party software. Not that I don't want the hours, but I've already spent almost a week straight restoring their network/servers/files back to normal after the crash.

We'll see - maybe they won't want to pay the $1000 for the third party software. Who knows.

Well if it's only $1000 that's not so bad. A full day of building a new server and doing the restore, then exmerge, etc, could easily add up to that much in labor.