Managing Mailbox Database in Exchange Server 2010 Posted on February 16, 2012 by dpejic Lot of changes has been introduced in the server level architectures of Exchange Server 2010, but Microsoft continues to use the Exchange Store as the storage platform and the .edb file as the database file for exchange server 2010 Also, this Topic Includes How to Create a New Mailbox Database How to Mount and Dismount a Mailbox Database How to Remove a Mailbox Database How to Set Mailbox Size Limits for a Mailbox Database Hot to Manage Mailbox Properties Exchange Server store has two logical components, they are Mailbox Database – contains the data definitions, indexes and other information that comprise mailboxes Public Folder Database – central repository for documents to share File Structures in Exchange Server 2010 Database (.edb) files – Repository for mailbox data. Accessed by exchange storage engine to have quick access of any page of a data Log (.log) files – exchange 2010 writes operation in log file, committed database are written to databse file. This approach is to guarantee that all completed and in-progress transactions are logged. Eoo.log Check point (.chk) file – store information that indicates, when a transaction is successfully saved to the database files on the hard disk Storage features in Exchange 2010 Enterprise and Standard Editions Both the standard and enterprise editions are supporting the same function except the no of database support Exchange Server 2010 Standard Edition will support up to 5 databases and Exchange Server 2010 Enterprise edition support up to 100 databases Both the edition will support clustering Database size limit is 16 TB for both the editions subject to hardware limit Managing Mailbox Database Creating a Mailbox Database Using Exchange Management Console Using Exchange Management shell Note: when using Exchange Management shell, we have to mount the database after creating the Mailbox database New-MailboxDatabase -Name “MailboxDatabase01″ -EdbFilePath D:\DatabaseFiles\MailboxDatabase01.edb -LogFolderPath D:\DatabaseFiles\LogFolder To Mount the Database Mount and Dismount a Database Using Exchange Management Console Using Exchange Management Shell Mount-Database –identity “Database Name” Dismount a Database Using EMS dismount-database –identity “mailbox database name” Remove a Mailbox Database Using Exchange Management Console Using Exchange Management shell Remove-MailboxDatabase – identity “Mailbox Database Name” Modify a Database Size Limit Use Registry editor to modify the setting HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\MSExchangeIS\<SERVER NAME>\Private-<database GUID> To know the Database GUID – use this Exchange Management shell Command Exchange Management Shell: Get-MailboxDatabase -Identity "<server name>\<storage group name>\<database name>" | Format-Table Name, GUID Move the database Path Using Exchange Management Console Using EMS Move-DatabasePath -Identity a0ec9f03-12a9-4e40-9310-43f9105fd4d2 -EdbFilePath C:\NewFolder\MyDatabase.edb Configure Mailbox Properties General Database path This field displays the full path to the Exchange database (.edb) file for the selected mailbox database. To view the entire path, you may have to click the path and use the RIGHT ARROW key. You can’t use this field to change the path. To change the location of the database files, close Properties, right-click the database, and then click Move Database Path. You can also change the location by using the Move-DatabasePath cmdlet. Last full backup This is a read-only field that displays the date and time of the last complete backup of the mailbox database. Last incremental backup This is a read-only field that displays the date and time of the last incremental backup of the mailbox database. Status This is a read-only field that displays whether the mailbox database is mounted or dismounted. Mounted on server This is a read-only field that displays which server the database is mounted on. Master type This is a read-only field that displays the master server. Modified This is a read-only field that displays the date and time the database was last modified. Servers that have a copy of this database This is a read-only field that displays the other servers that have a copy of this database. Maintenance · Journal recipient Select this check box to enable transport journaling of e-mail. · Maintenance schedule Use this list to select one of the preset maintenance schedules. You can also configure a custom schedule. To configure a custom schedule, in the Maintenance schedule list, select Use Custom Schedule, and then click Customize. · Don’t mount this database at startup Select this check box to prevent Exchange from mounting this mailbox database when it starts. · This database can be overwritten by a restore Select this check box to allow the mailbox database to be overwritten during a restore process. · Enable circular logging Select this check box to enable circular logging Limits · Issue warning at (KB) Select this check box to automatically warn mailbox users that their mailbox is approaching its storage limit. To specify the storage limit, select the check box, and then specify in kilobytes (KB) how much content can be stored in the mailbox before a warning e-mail message is sent to the mailbox users. You can enter a value from 0 through 2,147,483,647 KB (2.1 terabytes). · Prohibit send at (KB) Select this check box to prevent users from sending new e-mail messages after the size of their mailbox reaches the specified limit. To specify this limit, select the check box, and then type the size of the mailbox in KB at which you want to prohibit the sending of new e-mail messages and notify the user. You can enter a value from 0 through 2,147,483,647 KB (2.1 terabytes). · Prohibit send and receive at (KB) Select this check box to prevent users from sending and receiving e-mail messages after their mailbox size reaches the specified limit. To specify this limit, select the check box, and then type the size of the mailbox in KB at which you want to prohibit the sending and receiving of e-mail messages and notify the user. You can enter a value from 0 through 2,147,483,647 KB (2.1 terabytes). · Warning message interval Use this list to specify the time at which mailboxes are scanned for compliance with the storage limits that you set. To configure a custom time, in the Warning Message Interval list, select Use Custom Schedule, and then click Customize. · Keep deleted items for (days) Use this box to set the number of days that deleted items are retained in a mailbox. You can enter a value from 0 through 24,855 days. · Keep deleted mailboxes for (days) Use this box to set the number of days that deleted mailboxes are retained. You can enter a value from 0 through 24,855 days. · Don’t permanently delete items until the database has been backed up Select this check box to prevent mailboxes and e-mail messages from being deleted until after the mailbox database has been backed up. Client Settings · Default public folder database This box shows the location of the default public folder database. The public folder database stores public folder data, OAB information, and free/busy information for Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 and earlier versions. To change the location of the default public folder database, click Browse, and select a new location. · Offline address book This box shows the location of the OAB. To change the location of the OAB, click Browse, and then select a new location.