Problem : There are other server types to be concerned about, such as the Client
Access server, the Hub and Edge Transport servers, and the Unified
Messaging servers. How do we prepare for a disaster involving these
important servers?
Solution : A variety of ways to restore servers exist; however, Exchange makes the
procedure much easier with many of the server roles because the primary
configuration data is stored in AD.
So, imagine a server has crashed with one of the four
roles internal to your network (MB, CAS, HT, or UM). You can restore
the roles themselves (let’s not worry about MB at this point; we’ve
covered quite a bit already regarding the restoration of the databases)
by running the setup /m:RecoverServer command.
Perhaps you’ve purchased a
whole new server and want that server role back up and running, or
let’s say you have another server that is running a different role and
you want to put the role back on that server. You can do this thanks to
the AD connection.
To start with, you need to
reset the computer account within AD. Then the new server can join up
without a conflict with the older configuration data. To do this,
perform the following:
1. | Select Start, Administrative Tools, and then Active Directory Users and Computers.
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2. | Locate the computer object for the failed server.
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3. | Right-click the server and choose Reset Account.
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With the new server, you
need to configure the same number of disk drives as the original and
assign the disks with the same drive letters. After you have everything
in place, install Windows Server and make sure the name is the same as
the failed server and join the domain.
When you go to install Exchange, type setup.com /m:recoverserver, which will ask AD to restore the roles and settings that are stored to this server.
Keep in mind that
customized settings and files on the server (depending on the type of
server it was, such as UM, CAS, and so on) might require manual
restoration.
Server Restore Points to Remember
Each server role still
has pieces you might want to be aware of and ensure the recovery of in
the event of a problem. For example:
Client Access Server—
Has IIS services running that require you to back up and restore the
IIS metabase data. Microsoft offers direction to back up the data and a
script to restore it at: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb124359(EXCHG.80).aspx.
Unified Messaging—
Some of the audio recordings that are associated with the UM server may
be located in AD (such as the recorded name). If the UM server was the
prompt publishing point for a dial plan, those files might be missing.
If it wasn’t the publishing point, those files might be intact.
Hub Transport Server— You might want to alter the procedure with these. Instead type setup.com /m:RecoverServer /DoNotStartTransport.
The reasoning is that you do not want to have the server come to life
and begin sending messages here and there. Ensure the configuration is
correct before you start up the transport service.
Edge Transport Recovery
The
data is not held in AD logically, so these require a bit of manual
intervention to recover. You need to export the configuration of the
server. Microsoft provides a script to do this.
To use the script, perform the following:
1. | On the Edge Transport server, open the EMS.
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2. | Navigate
to the scripts folder, which is usually located where you installed
Exchange. The standard location you are looking for is C:\Program
Files\Microsoft\Exchange Server\Scripts.
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3. | Type ./ExportEdgeConfig.ps1 -cloneConfigData: “DriveLetter:\EdgeBackupFile.xml” and then press Enter.
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4. | After you see the confirmation message, you can locate and move that file to another server for backup.
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5. | If
you need to restore an Edge Transport server that has crashed—whether
with a new server or new disk—install Server and all the service packs
and hotfixes.
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6. | Install Exchange normally as an Edge Transport server. Use the same server name.
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7. | Run
the ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 script. This creates an answer file based upon
the .xml file you created earlier. You might need to edit the answer
file to ensure you have the proper data, log paths, Send connector
information, and so forth.
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8. | Run
the ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 script again, but this time it will restore
the server using the answer file you adjusted and bring your server back
to its original configuration.
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9. | After
you finish, run the EdgeSync process between a Hub Transport server and
your newly restored Edge Transport server to restore communications
between the two. |
