Technet-Exchange FAQ

 

#1 Issue description:

 

Store.exe process uses almost 100 percent of CPU resources

 

Troubleshooting steps

 

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

 

 

#2 Issue description:

How to redirect default web site to OWA virtual directory

 

Troubleshooting steps

 

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.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#3 Issue description:

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#4 Issue description: 

 

How to reset OWA related virtual directory?

 

When we just cannot move on troubleshooting OWA related issue, we recommend you to reset OWA related virtual directory.

 

Note: Before that, please backup the internal URL, External URL and some other settings that you have done on Client Access Server/Front-end Server.

 

For Exchange 2007:

 

Reset OWA related Virtual Directory

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/941201/en-us

Besides, you can try to uninstall CAS and re-install to get back the default settings.

 

For Exchange 2003

 

How to reset the default virtual directories that are required to provide Outlook Web Access, Exchange ActiveSync, and Outlook Mobile Access services in Exchange Server 2003

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/883380

How to create and manage configuration backups in Internet Information Services 7.0

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/954872

How To Create a Metabase Backup by Using IIS 6.0 in Windows Server 2003

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/324277

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 #5 Issue description:

 

How to troubleshoot on password related issue

 

A.   Password does not meet the complexity requirement.

1. You may run “RSOP.msc” from a command prompt and wait for a while.

2.  In the “Result Set of policy” ,please expand “Computer Configuration-Windows Settings-Security Settings-Account Policy”.

3.  In the right result pane, please find “Password must meet complexity requirements” and check whether it has been enabled. Please note the “Source Policy”

4.  If it has enabled this policy, then please right click on “Password must meet complexity requirements” and select “Properties”.

5.  In the properties window, please find “Explain This Setting” tab and to check the requirement for password.

6.  After that, please try to meet these requirements to change the password.

 

If you do not want to deploy this “Password must meet complexity requirements” settings in your environment ,then we need to change this settings. I recommend you to install GPMC on domain controller to edit GPO.

1. Open “Active Directory Users and Computers” from “Administrative Tools”.

2.  Right click on domain name and select “Properties”.

3.  Find “Group Policy”, and then find the GPO which we have found in “source policy” before, then click “edit”

4.  Please expand “Computer Configuration-Windows Settings-Security Settings-Account Policy-Password Policy”, find “Password must meet complexity requirements” in the right result pane.

5.  Right click on it and select “Properties”.

6.  In the “Security Policy Setting”, you can specify to enable it or disable it.

 

Users Receive a Password Complexity Requirements Message That Does Not Specify Character Group Requirements for a Password

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/821425

   

 

B.   Implementing the Change Password feature

 

1.    With Outlook Web Access for OWA 2003 and OWA 2007

We can run Set-CASMailbox -identity adam@contoso.com - OWAChangePasswordEnabled:$True to enable password changing feature for OWA 2007.

 

Note: After that, please check if other features have been disabled. We may need to enable other features again.

 

If that do not work, then we can follow the article below to implement IISADMPWD virtual directory for OWA 2003 and OWA 2007.

 

Implementing the Change Password feature with Outlook Web Access

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/297121/

 

Besides, please note and select "Active Server Pages" as a web extension.

 

2.    With OWA published via ISA

 

The change password feature is supported when clients input credentials using forms-based authentication, and ISA Server validates credentials using Windows (Active Directory) authentication or Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) authentication.

 

In the property pages of the Web listener you create for use in the rule that will publish Outlook Web Access, configure the option for users to change their password. Additionally, configure an expiry countdown warning.

 

Configuring and Troubleshooting the Password Change Feature in ISA Server 2006

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc514301.aspx

 

Password Change with FBA
https://blogs.technet.com/isablog/archive/2007/08/23/password-change-with-fba.aspx

 

C.    Password Notification

 

1.    In the “Security Policy Setting”, you can specify to enable it or disable it.

2.    In Microsoft Internet Information Services 6, the PasswordChangeFlags metabase property contains values that control password expiration and password change processing between the server and a client. By default, the PasswordChangeFlags metabase property may be set to 6

 

Note: 6 Password changing and password expiration notification are disabled

 

The PasswordChangeFlags metabase property may be set to 6 in IIS 6

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/920723

 

3.    We use useraccountcontrol flag to control user account properties. So please check value on userAccountControl property.

 

How to use the UserAccountControl flags to manipulate user account properties

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/305144

 

 

#5 Issue description: 

 

 

Outlook general troubleshoot steps.

 

#1 Safe Mode

 

Please try to start Outlook in safe mode, thus the below features will not be included.

Ø  Toolbar customizations are turned off/disabled.

Ø  Exchange Client Extensions are turned off/disabled.

Ø  Polling for new mail is turned off/disabled.

Ø  Preview Pane is turned off/disabled.

Ø  Wordmail is turned off/disabled.( This is applicable to versions prior to office 2007)

Ø  No custom dictionaries are used.

To start outlook in safe mode: Please start outlook with Ctrl pressed and select safe mode.

If the issue disappear if you use outlook in safe mode So you can follow the below steps to troubleshoot this issue.

1.    Rename the following files:
outcmd.dat
views.dat
frmcache.dat
extend.dat

 

2.    Disable any coms addins or items in the addin manager.

1)    Start Outlook 2007.

2)    On the Tools menu, click Trust Center.

3)    In the Trust Center dialog box, click the Add-ins tab.

4)    On the Manage list, click COM Add-ins, and then click Go.

5)    In the COM Add-Ins dialog box, un-tick all the add-ins.

6)    Please re-start outlook and then check the issue.

 

3.    Backup the registry then remove any outlook addin SUBkeys which are at the following locations:

HKCU/Software/Microsoft/Office/Outlook/Addins/
HKLM/Software/Microsoft/Office/Outlook/Addins

 

4.    Check task manager (run “taskmgr” to open)to see if any processes are loading with outlook if so removed related software.

 

5.    Please try to perform a clean boot to disable third party application.

Let's perform a Clean Boot. A Clean Boot will allow us to isolate any device drivers or programs that are loading at startup that may be causing a conflict with other device drivers or programs that are installed in your computer.

 

1)    Run MSCONFIG.EXE. (MSCONFIG is a built-in tool for Windows XP/2003 systems.)

2)    In the Services tab, click "Hide All Microsoft Services" and click "Disable All".

3)     In the Startup tab, click "Disable All". Click OK. (This will temporarily prevent third-party programs from running automatically during start-up.)

4)    Restart the computer. Does the problem still persist?

 

If the problem does not occur, it indicates that the problem is related to one application or service we have disabled. You can use the MSCONFIG tool again to re-enable the disabled item one by one to find out the culprit.

 

6.    You can use listdlls to compare the dlls in normal mode and safe mode.

 

Listdlls

http://www.sysinternals.com/utilities/listdlls.html

Create a folder Listdlls under c drive. Unzip the utility in this folder

 1). Open Outlook 

a. From command prompt, change directory to c:/listdlls 

b. Type listdlls.exe Outlook.exe > Outlooknormal.txt

It will create output to Outlooknormal.ext

 2). Re-run step a, b to get dll list in safe mode.

 3).Compare to see whether any difference between these txt files.

 

7.    Disable Microsoft Word as the email editor. You may uncheck "Use Microsoft Office Word 2003 to read and edit e-mail messages." please also uncheck "Use Microsoft Office Word 2003 to read Rich Text e-mail messages" Under Mail Format and click OK.(Sometimes, when email format do not normal, then you can try to check these items to test the issue. )

 

8.    Try "outlook /nopreview". If this works then may be a corrupted message in the inbox.

 

#2 Data Scanning

 

1.    Please exclude location of *.pst and *.ost (all outlook data file) from the anti-virus application. Also, you can temporally disable anti-virus application or uninstall it.

 

Note: Location is “C:/Documents and Settings/user/Local Settings/Application

Data/Microsoft/Outlook”. You may Enable ”Show Hidden files and folders” from “Folder Option” first.

 

2.    Then you can use SCANOST.EXE or SCANPST.EXE to check error in Outlook data file. It can be found under …/Program Files/Microsoft Office/Office11,you can choose folders that in the outlook to scan and fix the problem.

 

Note: Please backup ost and pst before you use tools to perform any action. We cannot rollback if we lose data during the operation.

 

#3 Re-create profiles

 

Please try to re-create a outlook profile. If that do not work, then please create a new Windows Profile and then create a new outlook profile to test the issue.

 

#4 If all the steps do not help, then please try to use MFCMapi to check the issue.

 

Microsoft Exchange Server MAPI Editor

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=55FDFFD7-1878-4637-9808-1E21ABB3AE37&displaylang=en