Hi All, This thread is a summary of the Frequently Asked Questions on Exchange forums; we consolidate them and post it here for your reference. If you have any further questions, please kindly start a new thread in that other community members and we can easily attend to your question and reply. Thanks for your cooperation. 1. What is Relay? 2. How does the Exchange 2003 server know your authorized SMTP domain? 3. What is Open Relay (Anonymous relaying)? 4. What options in Exchange 2003 help us control Relay? 5. How to troubleshoot NDR message 5.7.1 unable to relay issue? 6. How many common Routing Components are there in Exchange servers 2003? 7. What are the minimum requirements for receiving Internet mail flow in Exchange server 2003? 8. What is the basic process for inbound mail flow? 9. What is the basic process for outbound mail flow? 10. How do External DNS Queries work? 11. How to Use Nslookup to Verify MX record configuration? 12. How to redirect default web site to OWA virtual directory? 13. How to achieve login OWA without Domain Name 14. How to access email, free/busy, folder via URL directly? ---URL format for OWA 2007 has been changed? 15. Can I synchronize other folders in addition to the Inbox? 16. Can I synchronize multiple calendar or contacts folders? 17. Can I synchronize one device with multiple Exchange accounts at the same time? 18. How to deploy Exchange ActiveSync feature in my company? 19. How to troubleshoot the Exchange server 2007 NLB issue? 20. How to troubleshoot Store.exe process uses almost 100 percent of CPU resources?

1. What is Relay? Relaying is the ability to forward mail to domains other than your own. More specifically, relaying occurs when an inbound connection to your SMTP server is used to send e-mail messages to external domains.

2. How the Exchange 2003 server know your authorized SMTP domain? The Recipient Policy setting is used by Exchange Server 2003 in order to know your authorized SMTP domain. The This Exchange Organization is responsible for all mail delivery to this address option allows you to control how your Exchange Server 2003 processes the inbound email. For more information, you can refer to following article: Setting up SMTP domains for inbound and relay e-mail in Exchange 2000 Server and in Exchange Server 2003 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/260973

3. What is Open Relay (Anonymous relaying)? Open relaying allows any user to connect to your Exchange server and use it to send mail outside your Exchange organization. By default, Exchange 2003 only allows your internal users to send mail to domains outside of your Exchange organization, but requires authentication before the mail is sent. 4. What options in Exchange 2003 help us control Relay? Exchange 2003 control relay setting based on two options of the SMTP Virtual Server and an option in SMTP Connector: 1) ESM->Administrative Group->Server->Protocol->SMTP->Virtual Server->Access Tab->Relay Button Option: Select which computer may relay through this virtual server. The option controls which computer may (or may not) relay email through the SMTP virtual server 2) ESM->Administrative Group->Server->Protocol->SMTP->Virtual Server->Access Tab->Relay Button Option: Allow all computer which successfully authenticate to relay, regardless of the list above The option controls whether the authenticated user is able to relay email through the SMTP virtual server. If you unselect the option, even the authenticated user is not able to relay email through the SMTP virtual server. After unselect the option, the Users button is available and you can select specific user to relay email through the SMTP virtual server 3) ESM->Administrative Group->Routing Group->Connectors->SMTP connector->Address Space tab Option: Allow message to be relayed to these domains If you select the option, the email send to the Address Space configured in the SMTP connector is allowed to be relayed regardless the user is authenticated or not. Therefore, if you have a SMTP connector with * as its Address Space, please remember not select the Allow message to be relayed to these domains option. Otherwise, your Exchange Server is open relay. 5. How to troubleshoot NDR message 5.7.1 unable to relay issue? To troubleshoot the issue, please refer to the following general process: 1) We need to know which server generated the NDR message. We are able to get the information from the NDR message header or through the Message Tracking Log. Please understand the NDR message is generated on the server which lastly received the message. 2) After locate the server which lastly received the message, you need to enable SMTP Protocol logging on SMTP Virtual server. After that, please reproduce the issue and check SMTP protocol log to ensure the server is able to successfully authenticate to the remote server in order to relay email. 3) If the server is able to successfully authenticate to the remote server but fail to relay email, you need to check the relay setting on the remote server. Note: If you received the 5.7.1 unable to relay error immediately when attempting to submit message from you client, you can also enable SMTP Protocol log on the Exchange Server SMTP virtual server which the Client connects to check whether client is able to authenticate to server successfully.

6. How many common Routing Components are there in Exchange servers 2003? Routing components make up of the topology and the routes that are used to deliver mail internally and externally. Routing relies on the following components that you define within your routing topology: Routing groups Logical collections of servers that are used to control mail flow and public folder referrals. Routing groups share one or more physical connections. Within a routing group, all servers communicate and transfer messages directly to one another. Connectors Designated paths between routing groups, to the Internet, or to another mail system. Each connector specifies a one-way path to another destination. Link state information Information about routing groups, connectors, and their configurations that is used by routing to determine the most efficient delivery path for a message. Internal routing components Internal routing components, in particular, the routing engine, that provide and update the routing topology for Exchange servers within your organization 7. What are the minimum requirements for receiving Internet mail flow in Exchange server 2003? There is a constant connection to the Internet. The external Domain Name System (DNS) servers for your domain must have mail exchanger (MX) resource records pointing to your mail servers, or, if you are using an Internet service provider (ISP) or an external system, this external system must have an MX record for your domain and a mechanism to forward mail to your Exchange servers. Your mail server must be accessible to other servers on the Internet. If you are using an ISP or external system to receive your mail, this external system must be able to contact your Exchange servers to deliver your mail. Your recipient policies must be configured correctly. To receive Internet mail, you must configure a recipient policy that contains an address space matching the SMTP domain. Also, your Exchange organization must be responsible for delivering mail to this address (this is the default setting). For example, to accept Internet mail for ted@example.com, you must have a recipient policy that contains @example.com. However, there are some exceptions to this rule. 8. What is the basic process for inbound mail flow? 1) The sending SMTP server queries Domain Name System (DNS) to locate the mail exchanger (MX) resource record of the recipient's SMTP mail server. This MX record resolves to a corresponding host (A) record that resolves the IP address of the recipient's SMTP mail server. 2) The sending SMTP server initiates a conversation on the recipient's SMTP server (using port 25). On an Exchange Server gateway, the recipient's SMTP server is the SMTP virtual server on the Exchange server that is configured to accept inbound mail. 3) If the message is destined for a recipient of its SMTP mail domain, the SMTP server accepts the inbound message, as defined by recipient policies. 4) When the message is accepted, the message is persisted in the \Queue folder on the Exchange server. The SMTP virtual server submits the message to the Advanced Queuing Engine, which then submits the message to the message categorizer. 5) The message categorizer validates the recipients of the message, checks for proper recipient attributes, applies limits and restrictions, flags the message for local delivery, and then returns the message to the Advanced Queuing Engine. 6) The Advanced Queuing Engine submits the message to the Local Delivery queue. 7) The Exchange store receives the message from the Local Delivery queue. 8) Mail messages are delivered to the client (for example Outlook, Outlook Express, or Outlook Web Access).

9. What is the basic process for outbound mail flow? Outbound mail flows through an Exchange Server deployment in the following manner: 1) Mail messages are sent from a client (Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express, or Outlook Web Access, for example) and are submitted to the local Exchange store. 2) The Exchange store submits the message to the Advanced Queuing Engine. 3) The Advanced Queuing Engine submits the message to the message categorizer. 4) The message categorizer validates the recipients of the message, checks for proper recipient attributes, applies limits and restrictions, flags the message for local or remote delivery, and then returns the message to the Advanced Queuing Engine. 5) If for local delivery, the Advanced Queuing Engine submits the message to the Local Delivery queue, and the Exchange store receives the message from the Local Delivery queue. 6) If for remote delivery, the Advanced Queuing Engine submits the message to the Routing Engine. The Routing Engine determines the most efficient route for mail delivery, returns the message to the Advanced Queuing Engine, and, in turn, submits the messages for remote delivery. The messages are then sent via SMTP to a remote SMTP host or to the Internet. 10. How do External DNS Queries work? When a DNS client needs to resolve the name of a server, it queries the DNS servers. Each query that the client sends essentially asks the DNS server to provide the information. The client specifies the query type, which can either indicate a resource record by type or a specialized type of query operation. For example, to find SMTP mail servers from the Internet, specify the query type MX (mail exchanger resource record). For example, the name that is specified could be an external domain, such as example.microsoft.com., and the query type that is specified to look for could be an MX record by that name. Think of a DNS query as a client asking a server a two-part question: First, "Do you have any MX resource records for a domain named 'example.microsoft.com.'?" followed by "If so, can you resolve this MX record to an A (host) record and resolve its IP address?" When the client receives an answer from the server, it reads and interprets the MX record and gets the A record, thereby resolving the computer's IP address. 11. How to Use Nslookup to Verify MX record configuration? 1. At a command prompt, type nslookup, and then press ENTER. 2. Type server <IP address>,where IP address is the IP address of your external DNS server. 3. Type set q=MX, and then press ENTER. 4. Type <domain name>, where domain name is the name of your domain, and then press ENTER. The MX record for the domain you entered should be displayed. If the MX record is not displayed, DNS is not configured properly. The example below shows how MX records appear for the fictitious domain, example.com. C:\> nslookup Default Server: pdc.corp.example.com Address: 192.168.6.13 > server 172.31.01.01 Default Server: dns1.example.com Address: 172.31.01.01 > set q=mx > example.com. Server: dns1.example.com Address: 10.107.1.7 example.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = mail1.example.com example.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = mail2.example.com example.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = mail3.example.com example.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = mail4.example.com example.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = mail5.example.com mail1.example.com internet address = 172.31.31.01 mail2.example.com internet address = 172.31.31.02 mail3.example.com internet address = 172.31.31.03 mail4.example.com internet address = 172.31.31.04 mail5.example.com internet address = 172.31.31.05 In this example, the preconfigured DNS server is behind a proxy server. Therefore, an external or Internet DNS server with a known IP address of 172.31.01.01 was used to perform the query. Next, the query type was set to MX to locate the mail exchangers for example.com. In this example, five SMTP servers are equally balanced, each with its own IP address. However, your domain might only have a single entry, as seen in the following example: contoso.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = mailbox.contoso.com mailbox.contoso.com internet address = 10.57.22.3

12. How to redirect default web site to OWA virtual directory? For IIS6.0 1. Open IIS Manager. 2. Find Web Site-Default Web Site. 3. Right click on Default Web Site and select Properties. 4. Navigate to Home Directory Tab. 5. Check A redirection to a URL. 6. Type /OWA in Redirect to: 7. Check a directory below this URL. 8. Run iisreset /noforce(without quotation) from a command prompt. For IIS7.0 1. Open IIS Manager. 2. Find Web Site-Default Web Site. 3. Find HTTP Redirect from Default Web Site Home (right area). 4. Click on HTTP Redirect. 5. Check redirect requests to this destination: 6. In the below blank, type / OWA 7. Click Apply in the right Actions pane. 8. Run iisreset /noforce(without quotation) from a command prompt. For ISA 1. Open ISA. 2. Find OWA Web Publishing Rule. 3. Right click on the rule and select to Properties. 4. Find Path tab. 5. Click Add to open Path Mapping Window 6. Type / OWA \ for Internal Path. 7. Type /* for External Path. 13. How to achieve login OWA without Domain Name? In Exchange 2003: When users try to log on to Outlook Web Access, they receive a logon dialog box that requires them to enter a user name and a password. By default, the user name should be entered in the following format in the Exchange Server 2003 logon dialog box: Domain Name\User Name In fact, we can customize Exchange Server 2003 so that users can access Outlook Web Access without entering the domain name. The detailed steps we can refer to the below KB: http://support.microsoft.com/?id=903942 In Exchange 2007: 1), Expand EMC 2), Select Client Access in Server Configuration & click on the Outlook Web Access tab. 3), Select owa (Default Web Site) and click the Properties. 4), Select Authentication tab. 5), Under Use forms-based authentication: select User name only 6), Click Browse and select the domain name, such as mycompany.com 7), Click OK. 8), Click Apply & OK, you get a warning that you need to restart the IIS to make these changes effective. 9), Issue IISRESET /NOFORCE command in cmd prompt or in PowerShell to restart IIS. 14. How to access email, free/busy, folder via URL directly? ---URL format for OWA 2007 has been changed? For OWA 2003 https://server name/exchange/username or SMTP address/calender For OWA 2007 https://<server name>/owa/?cmd=contents&module=calendar Reference articles: How to Use Outlook Web Access Web Parts http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb232199(EXCHG.80).aspx How to grant other users to access the exchange account, please view the instruction based on the below link: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb676551(EXCHG.80).aspx

15. Can I synchronize other folders in addition to the Inbox? After you synchronize the Inbox for the first time, you can select other folders in your mailbox for synchronization. You can configure synchronization of the Inbox and other folders by using Exchange ActiveSync on your desktop or mobile device. To select other folders for synchronization, navigate to your Outlook e-mail on your mobile device. Select the Menu option, and then the Tools option. Then select Manage Folders to display the following screen. 16. Can I synchronize multiple calendar or contacts folders? You can only synchronize your default calendar folder, contact folder, and tasks folder. 17. Can I synchronize one device with multiple Exchange accounts at the same time? No. You can synchronize a device with only one Exchange mailbox. 18. How to deploy Exchange ActiveSyncfeature in my company? Deploying Windows Mobile 6 Devices with Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc182308.aspx Step-by-Step Guide to Deploying Windows Mobile-based Devices with Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 SP2 http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc182239.aspx 19. How to troubleshoot the Exchange server 2007 NLB issue?? 1) Please ensure the NLB is deployed properly [CAS NLB; HUB NLB] 2) Make sure that NLB uses layer 2 switch [KB 193602] 3) Try to turn off the default SNP feature to eliminate network-related problem [KB 948496] 4) Check if we can telnet port 25 & ping through NLB Virtual IP [VIP] 5) Try to use outlook to send mail, then check the mail flow by using Message Tracking 6) Collect related data for further analysis: Check the log both in your NLB Manager and the application log of event viewer Run command <Start->Run->NLB display> on all NLB nodes and check the output Run command <Start->Run->Net start WLBS>, check if theres error Network Load Balancing - Concept and Notes

20. How to troubleshoot Store.exe process uses almost 100 percent of CPU resources? Exchange will consume available memory in an effort to create an efficient cache to improve performance. If other processes require memory, Exchange will reduce the size of the cache, reducing the amount of memory it requires. 1) First please use Process Explorer to check if store.exe is used by Exchange Server. You can download the Process Explorer from the following link: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/ProcessesAndThreads/ProcessExplorer.mspx 2) Then please try to modify maximum size of the database cache. Detail steps to modify maximum size of the database cache, you can refer to the article below: Settings on maximum size of the database cache http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb691304(EXCHG.80).aspx 3) With Windows 2003 Scalable Networking pack, performance will be affected. Some of the new architectural additions that were introduced with the Scalable Networking Pack are TCP Chimney Offload, Receive-side Scaling (RSS) and NetDMA, they do affect the performance. Detail information you can refer to the article below: Windows 2003 Scalable Networking pack and its possible effects on Exchange http://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2007/07/18/446400.aspx 4) Please try to check whether McAfee anti-virus is installed on the same machine. You may need to exact the data file location from being scanned by anti-virus application. 5) If all the above steps do not help, then we recommend you to run ADPlus to get dump file and contact Microsoft support to get further help. How to use ADPlus to troubleshoot "hangs" and "crashes" http://support.microsoft.com/kb/286350 Related information: The Store.exe process uses almost 100 percent of CPU resources, and the size of the public folder store increases quickly in Exchange Server 2007 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/925252/en-us Why is Exchange Store.exe so RAM hungry? http://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2004/08/02/206012.aspx

Jeff thank youSachin

Jeff thank youSachin

This was fantastic. What a find! Thanks!Nothing

20. How to troubleshoot Store.exe process uses almost 100 percent of CPU resources? Exchange will consume available memory in an effort to create an efficient cache to improve performance. If other processes require memory, Exchange will reduce the size of the cache, reducing the amount of memory it requires. 1) First please use Process Explorer to check if store.exe is used by Exchange Server. You can download the Process Explorer from the following link: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/ProcessesAndThreads/ProcessExplorer.mspx 2) Then please try to modify maximum size of the database cache. Detail steps to modify maximum size of the database cache, you can refer to the article below: Settings on maximum size of the database cache http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb691304(EXCHG.80).aspx 3) With Windows 2003 Scalable Networking pack, performance will be affected. Some of the new architectural additions that were introduced with the Scalable Networking Pack are TCP Chimney Offload, Receive-side Scaling (RSS) and NetDMA, they do affect the performance. Detail information you can refer to the article below: Windows 2003 Scalable Networking pack and its possible effects on Exchange http://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2007/07/18/446400.aspx 4) Please try to check whether McAfee anti-virus is installed on the same machine. You may need to exact the data file location from being scanned by anti-virus application. 5) If all the above steps do not help, then we recommend you to run ADPlus to get dump file and contact Microsoft support to get further help. How to use ADPlus to troubleshoot "hangs" and "crashes" http://support.microsoft.com/kb/286350 Related information: The Store.exe process uses almost 100 percent of CPU resources, and the size of the public folder store increases quickly in Exchange Server 2007 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/925252/en-us Why is Exchange Store.exe so RAM hungry? http://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2004/08/02/206012.aspx Hi This is really use ful for us, i appreciate ur efforts

Thanks a lot Jeff. It is very very useful...

Hi Jeff Feng, I am working one of leading company as System Engineer in Desktop Position. I would like to work in Exchange Domain and i am having knowledge Exchange 2003 as well as 2007. I dint get proper chance to work Exchange Domain. Now I am preparing Exchange System Admin interview so i need interview point of view Questions for Excahnge 2007 and how can i prepapre for that interview plz help me.I need your suggestion also.Help me anybody. Ubaithu Rahuman

Thanks a lot Mr Jeff!!!!You have provided useful information.RegardsAlissaData Recovery

Appreciate the effort. Post is lucid and clear. Please continue the great effort.

1 Relaying is the ability to forward mail to domains other than your own. More specifically, relaying occurs when an inbound connection to your SMTP server is used to send e-mail messages to external domains.Recommend a websitehttp://www.disk-recover-data.in