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exchange server died ..... no bkups .... need new server building ...need advice re: failed exchange

Hi. I've got a client who has 3x servers.

This may be incorrect place.

a) 1x server 2003 (First DC .. file storage) DC
b) 1x server 2003, Exchange 2003 (dont know if sp1) DC
c) 1x server 2003, apps server.

b server is dead. WELL and truly. Disk failure, no change of resurrecting. No bkups of system state or IS.

I have built a new server that is member of the domain at the mo.

I have NOT promoted to DC or installed exchange yet.

Any suggestions as b serverhas gone down without EXCHANGE being uninstalled.

Shall i just promote this new server.install exchange and manually create mailboxes all over again in ADUC.

please respond asap..Client has NO EMAIL at mo.

thanks

@@@@@@@

Just to be straight.

DISKS and ARRAY are dead. NO BKUPS of B server at all

I am creating A NEW B SERVER.
romolo
 
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Sembee
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I wouldn't DCPROMO it in.
Exchange is a lot happier on a member server.
As there is no backups, I would give the new server a new name, install Exchange.
Then remove the Exchange attributes of all users and recreate their mailboxes on the new server.

That will give access back.

Then you can look at cleaning up the mess from the failed Exchange server and domain controller.

Simon.
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what mess do you think i need to clean up

romolo
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What needs to be cleand up

should I make servername and IP the same

i was thinking of brand new.. REMEBER im NOT restoring exchange,

thanks

romolo
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sorry sembee you answered SERVER name q.

what needs to be cleaned up

thanks

romolo
You have a domain that used to have a domain controller and used to have an Exchange server. It doesn't have either of those now, but the rest of the domain is intact. However because those two services died, the domain will still think they are there. When you install Exchange on the new server it will pick up the remains of the old server from the domain. You will then have to move some roles on tot he new server - routing group master, offline address book a few others. Then you can delete the old server from ESM which should remove most of it from the domain.

On the domain controller side, there are various articles on the MS KB about removing a dead domain controller.

Simon.
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im looking at google/ ms KB's now...a lot refer to just a dead dc..

im removing the ONLY exchange DC

can you point me at a good article for my situation

How do I change the roles you mention

Thanks

romolo
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Sembee
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trouble is

I DONT HAVE... the original box...

so i cant change as per the KB article above.

what now

Romolo
To best of my knowledge there is no KB article that explains what you have to do in your exact scenario. If there is, then I haven't seen one.

Therefore you have to adapt what is available to the scenario you are working in. While you don't have the old server that article explains what would have to be moved. When the new server is installed you check what you can to ensure that it is on the new server.

Otherwise your best bet is to call Microsoft who will sit you through every stage of the recovery.

Simon.
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i have installed member server and installed exchange

made some changes

exchange seems to work.

can see emails addresses etc for ALL usres

can i manually change home server so i do not need to recreate all addresses again
 IT IS greyed out at the mo.

i simply want to chage in ADUC the server. create new mailboxes and then reattach AD info like email adds delivery forwarding rules etc...
many thanks

romolo
having had this situation before, the article Sembee gave is the correct one. You still have to move all that to the new server. As long as the new server has a DIFFERENT name, this should go fairly smoothly. Users who didn't have an ost will be totally screwed. Those that do have one needs to start outlook in offline mode (not connected to the new server) copy all their stuff into a PST. Then connect to the server by going online (naturally disable that auto online thing). Once connected to the new server, transfer the mails from the PST to the server. Sync the folders and all is well.

Users without an OST will have that welcome message and NOTHING else.

You may have to delete the old server out using ADSIEdit or LDP, etc. But that bridge is not up yet, just get the new server running.

Not to be rude, but are the one who let the client run without backups? That is one boneheaded move for whomever did it.
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no

I have been called in to resolve this. I am not bothered about MAIL or anything at all..... All mail is pulled into their CRM system. NOTHING is held in the IS once downloaded.

I LITERALLY just want to receive email again.

I know I can drop exchange attributes on the users and recreate BUT

I have noticedthat ALL of the email add's and delivery options are already setup.. but greyed out.

Can I literally only change the home server to reactivate the exchange attributes on the new server

ie. current is server1/first admin group (server1)

i want to change to server2/first admin group (server2)

thanks everyone

romolo
:) sounds like an interesting idea. I've never tried it, and if the server recreates the mailboxes, then I definitely want to know.
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can someone answer...

can i do what  isaid in my previous post

adsiedit .... many exchange features it seems

thanks

romolo
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it does not seem to work and I CANNOT connect to any new exchange mailboxes on my new server.

I am going to uninstall exchange....this time make it a DC then install exchange

thanks

Romolo
If you built the new exchange just like the old, then just changing the homeMDB and msExchHomeServerName should do it. If not, then the StorageGroupName and StoreName must match the new stuff. Wish I had a test environment to try this out.
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i wad advised to build this with a different name and ip

i now need to completely remove the exchange organisation as it thinks i still have an exch server here (maybe)

but /removeorg switch does not work.

It says that I am not a full exchange admin???

I have installed exch tools and gone to the delegation wizard as instructed.... I am already a full exchange admin. I am using the administrator of the domain.

confused now

what next to RIP OUT all exchange in domain i think.

thanks

romolo
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I cant run a forestprep or install etc.. due to the above error too

urgh

Romolo
You need to have enterprise exchange, schema admin, schema admin, I believe one other right, but coffee hasn't kicked in yet!
Are you logged in as THE administrator account or an equivalent account?
If you are using an equivalent account, change to THE administrator account.

Otherwise, do a custom installation and install the system tools only. That will let you get access to the permissions of the Exchange org.

Simon.
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I tried that SImon.

However, the delegation wizard told me that i had ful exchange administrator acces for the administrator acount. As in THE administrator.

I was using the administrator account. I tried making a sper administrator accounts and delegate etc... Everything appeared to work, but everything I did just errored that I did not have permission.

In the end without exchange on I tried to demote fromDC. This turned up DNS errors. DNS wsa fine. I checked everything wsa good. The same as when it became a Dc ?!?1?

SO I have resorted to formatting NEW BOX.
Attempting to clean AD as much as I can with http://www.petri.co.il/delete_failed_dcs_from_ad.htm

Buiding COMPLETELY new domain. I have manually created all exchangemaioxes and users on now completely NEW box.

I installed exchange system tools on original PDC so that I could see exchange attributes, emails, delivery options etc...

Copied painstakingly.

At the moment I ham backing up system state before my first reboot after all my AD work.

I'l let you know the outcome... This solution will be alright as teh client will use CRM to collect email via POP3.

Then I will buld new forest within NEW domain. We are due to change over anyway.

Thanks.... wil update soon

Romolo
You could have either scripted, CSVDE, lfi??? to export the users from the old box. Wash the info, and import them into the new box.
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I do understand that there are tools available for doing this on mass.

However, the problems I have had for the last couple of days and last night ( I Have not gone home yet :) , doing a long one), I think for the 30 accounts (and delvery options) and 2 groups, it wsa worth creating again as there was stil SO much stuck in AD.

I will investigate the tools on the soure domain and test destination as this would obviously great facility.

Still backing up. All looks ok so far, but, IS would not backup on ntbackup. I have dismounted stores, switched services off and doing a disk backup before my first reboot.

:)

Thanks

Romolo
Sembee put more effort than I did in it, give him the points.