Exchange Server Cookbook

11.6. Restoring a Database to a Different Machine in Exchange 2000

Problem

The database from your original Exchange 2000 server needs to be restored, but the original Exchange server hardware cannot be used for the restore.

Warning

For best-practices disaster recovery, the original server that hosted the database should be used as the recovery point; this recipe should only be used as a last resort. However, this procedure is very useful to perform test restores to retrieve a point-in-time database state, or recover information without affecting the production server.

Solution

Using a graphical user interface

1. Reset the machine account for the old server:

   1. Start the Active Directory Users and Computers (ADUC) snap-in.

   2. Find the old Exchange server's computer account (its location will depend on whether you have your Exchange servers segregated by OU or domain).

   3. Right-click the computer account and use the Reset command.

2. Build the replacement server. It must have the same version of Windows (with the same service pack) and the same name as the original server.

3. Log on to the replacement server using an account that has Exchange Full Administrator rights.

4. If necessary, install any Windows hotfixes that were present on the old server.

5. If necessary, configure the disks or arrays on the new server so that drive letter and partition assignments match those on the old server.

6. Ensure that the SMTP and NNTP components of IIS are installed on the new server (see Recipe 2.2).

7. Reinstall Exchange with the ...