asked on

Mails stuck in queue

I have a windows 2000 server running windows 2000 exchange sp3. Up till yesterday morning it was working fine now its not and nothing has changed on the server as far as i can see.
Any mail sent in from outside goes into the domain.local (local delivery) queue and does not get delivered to the users. Internal mail seems to be working ok except it appears to be much slower to deliver than usual. Mail sent from within the domain to outside just does not arrive.

What i have done.
1. Panicked
2. Restarted the server
3. Stopped GFI Mail Essentials and AV software / services
4. Phoned microsoft and hung up when they told me it would be £200 to talk to a tech support
5. Panicked again
6. Installed all the available exchange updates

I just dont get it, 24 hours ago it was fine, nothing has changed on the server since then.
If anyone can save me £200 ms bill and more panicking i would be for ever grateful!
andy

Irwin Santos

....alright...a person with a sense of humor.. :-)

Go into SERVICES and see if anything did NOT start. Also if you are running POP3 via Exchange make sure that protocol is started.

Lastly, check the event viewer for any errors that may have occurred.

Sembee

Stopping GFI is not enough. If you suspect that is the cause of the problems, then you have to remove it, due to the way that the application hooks in to the OS.

Simon.

activateahsd

ASKER

Hi

Additional information, I think I have found the cause of the problem but I am not sure what to do about it!
In the application event viewer it says that the Exchange database has reached its size limit of 16gb.
Am attempting to backup the database now.

Any ideas on how to proceed, I know that SBS 2000 has this limit and it cant be increased so what are my options?

thanks, andy

Irwin Santos

How about having users archive their mailbox information, get rid of old info, especially attachment items.

SOLUTION

amaheshwari

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r-k

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activateahsd

ASKER

thanks all, i have done the temp increase to get out of jail!
some proper housekeeping neede i think,
is there anyway of finding out how big the exchange database is (other than looking at the mbd size in explorer as that is not compressed)

thanks

Sembee

The size of the two files in Windows Explorer is the only way of knowing the size. You shouldn't try and compress the files using any utilities as that will break the database. The Exchange database is actually very efficient at storing data.

You could also look for event ID 1221 in the overnight event logs to see how much white space is in the database.

Simon.

activateahsd

ASKER

the files sizes in explorer come to 18 gb which cant be what exchange sees as it has a max limit of 17gb. Is there no way to tell how big the db is in exchange terms?

amaheshwari

You need to defrag the exchange database:

Please refer any of these:

How can I defragment Exchange 2000/2003 Server databases
http://www.petri.co.il/defragment_exchange_2000_2003_server_databases.htm

How to defragment with the Eseutil utility
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=192185

Using the Exchange tools ISINTEG and ESEUTIL to Ensure the Health of your Information Store
http://www.msexchange.org/tutorials/Exchange-ISINTEG-ESEUTIL.html

Defrag Exchange
https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21484234/Defrag-Exchange.html

Thanks
Ashish

Sembee

There is always a little bit of mismatch between the file size shown in the Explorer and what Exchange sees.
Before you start looking at doing the offline defrag, you need to see what Event ID 1221 shows. This is how much space you will gain. If you will only get a few mb of space, then the process is pointless until you have more space in the database.

Long term you will have to upgrade to Exchange 2003, as once you have hit the 16gb limit you will constantly be hitting your head against it.

Simon.

activateahsd

ASKER

Hi - I want to do an offline defrag but am not sure on one point, in serveral places i have seen that you must have 110% free disk space available so that the temp database can be built - i dont have 110% free disk space available, is it possible to have the temp database rebuilt in another location that does have the required disk space available?

amaheshwari

Hi,

Please check this you can use different disk for temp database location:

http://www.exchangerecovery.org/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=20

How to defragment Exchange databases
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=328804

Thanks
Ashish