Microsoft Exchange Server 2013 Interview Question
1. What are Exchange Sever 2013 and
its evolution?
Microsoft Exchange Server 2013 is an email, calendaring, and
address book system that runs on a centralized Windows Server system
Exchange 4.0 – 5.0 – 5.5 – 2000 – 2003 – 2007 – 2010- 2013
2. What are the new features in
Exchange server 2013
PFs do take advantage of the existing high availability and
storage technologies of the mailbox store, using specially designed mailboxes
to store both the hierarchy (the properties of the PFs and the structure in
which they are organized) and the content (the actual data) of PFs.
- Site Mailbox was introduced in Exchange 2013
- Exchange Administration Center was introduced.
- New Managed Store completely rewritten in C# was introduced.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj150540%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
http://www.msexchange.org/articles-tutorials/exchange-server-2013/planning-architecture/exchange-2013-preview-publicfolders-part1.html
3. What are the features removed
from Exchange 2013 compared to legacy version of Exchange server
- Exchange Management console was removed.
- Removal of storage group.
- Extensible Storage Engine (ESE) streaming backup APIs
- User Datagram Protocol (UDP) notifications
- Document Access, Message Flag, Spell Check, Search folder are removed from Outlook Web App
- Client authentication using Integrated Windows authentication (NTLM) for POP3 and IMAP4 users
- Managed Folder
- Export-Mailbox, Import-Mailbox & Move-Mailbox cmdlets
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj619283%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
4. What are the feature still
remains in Exchange Server 2013 that have not got removed out.
Microsoft still use Jet EDB Database Structure
Exchange 2013 still uses the VSSBackup application
programming for backup
5. How many roles are there in
Exchange Server 2013
There are two roles In Exchange Server 2013.
1. Client Access Server Role and
2 . Mailbox Server Role
There are three roles In Exchange Server 2013 SP1.
1. Client Access Server Role and
2 . Mailbox Server Role
3. Edge Server Role
6. What are different edition in Exchange Server 2010 and
how do you find them
Two server editions:
Standard Edition
Enterprise Edition.
Standard Edition
Enterprise Edition.
The Exchange server edition can be find using the build number. PowerShell command : Get-ExchangeServer | ft
identity, admin*
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb232170%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
7. What is the latest service pack
or patch available in Exchange server 2013.
Exchange Server 2013 Service Pack 1 which got released on
Feb 25 2014
8. List the Exchange server 2013 SP1
License Types
Server licenses A license must be assigned for each
instance of the server software that is being run. The Server license is sold
in two server editions: Standard Edition and Enterprise Edition.
Client Access licenses (CALs) Exchange 2013 also comes in
two client access license (CAL) editions,
which are referred to as a Standard CAL and an Enterprise CAL.
Ref:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-in/exchange/microsoft-exchange-server-licensing-licensing-overview-FX103746915.aspx
9. What are the prerequisites needed
to install exchange Server 2013 SP1 (CPU, Memory, Disk & OS )
Microsoft Operating System: Windows Server 2012 R2,
Windows Server 2012 and Windows Server 2008 R2 with
Service Pack 1 (SP1) operating system
- Components:
o Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5
o Windows Management Framework 4.0
o Remote Tools Administration Pack
o ADLDS for Exchange Server 2013 Edge Server Role
- Memory
o Mailbox 8GB minimum
o Client Access 4GB minimum
o Mailbox and Client Access combined 8GB minimum
o Edge Transport 4GB minimum
- Disk space
o At least 30 GB on the drive on which you install Exchange
o An additional 500 MB of available disk space for each
Unified Messaging (UM) language pack
o 200 MB of available disk space on the system drive
o A hard disk that stores the message queue database on with
at least 500 MB of free space.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb691354%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
10. Where Exchange Server stores the
Exchange related information in Active Directory
Domain Partition – Mail enable recipient, groups and
contact related to domain level are stored
Configuration Partition – Stores the Exchange
configuration information like, policies, global settings, address list, connecters
and it contains the information related to forest level
Schema Partition – stores the Exchange specific classes
and attributes
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa998561%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
11. What are the types of Active
Directory deployment that server supported in Exchange Server 2013 deployment
Single
Forest
Multi
Forest
Resource
Forest
12. Difference between Exchange 2013
on-premises, Online, office 365 and Windows Azure Powershell
The Exchange Online is able to manage the users and
permission of Exchange service. The Office 365 (Windows Azure AD) is to manage
the whole Office 365 service. Windows Azure can use to manage users, domain and
other things which will affect the whole Office 365 service. It is not able to
be used to manage Exchange service, Lync service and SharePoint service. To
manage Exchange service, you need to use Exchange Online PowerShell to perform
the activity.
Ref:http://blogs.technet.com/b/exchange/archive/2012/09/19/comparing-exchange-online-and-exchange-server-2013.aspx
http://community.office365.com/en-us/forums/148/t/193946.aspx
13. List out the purpose of running
prepare schema and prepare AD switches in Exchange server 2013
Prepare Schema – After running the Prepare Schema switch,
the Active directory will contain the classes and attributes required to
support Exchange environment
Prepare AD – after running the Prepare AD switch, new
container will be created to hold the details of the information from server to
databases to connectors. This process also created universal security groups to
manage Exchange and sets appropriate permissions on objects to allow them to be
managed
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb125224%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
14. What happened to HT, UM and Edge
role in Exchange Server 2013
The hub transport role and unified message role are
splited on the Client access server role and mailbox server role to perform the
complete operation. Edge Server was launched again in the Exchange server 2013
service pack 1
Ref: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/jj851175.aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj150569%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
15. How many user databases and
recovery databases are supported in Exchange server 2013
Enterprise Edition can support 50 mounted databases per
server in the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) and (CU1) versions, and 100
mounted databases per server in (CU2) and later versions; Standard Edition is
limited to 5 mounted databases per server
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb232170%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
16. What is the change in the MAPI
connectivity with Exchange Server 2013
Microsoft removed MAPI over RPC in Exchange Server 2013
and they used RPC over HTTP. The also introduced MAPI Over HTTP in Exchange
2013 SP1 which works if you have Outlook 2013 SP1
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dn635177%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb123741%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
17. What is the purpose of
Autodiscover service & Availability Service?
Auto discover service— The Autodiscover service does the
following:
o Automatically configures user profile settings for clients
running Microsoft Office Outlook 2007, Outlook 2010, or Outlook 2013, as well
as supported mobile phones.
o Provides access to Exchange features for Outlook 2007,
Outlook 2010, or Outlook 2013 clients that are connected to your Exchange
messaging environment.
o Uses a user's email address and password to provide
profile settings to Outlook 2007, Outlook 2010, or
Outlook 2013 clients and supported mobile phones. If the
Outlook client is joined to a domain, the user's domain account is used.
Availability service—The Availability service is the
replacement for Free/Busy functionality responsible for making a user’s
calendar availability visible to other users making meeting requests.
o Retrieve current free/busy information for Exchange 2013
mailboxes
o Retrieve current free/busy information from other Exchange
2013 organizations
o Retrieve published free/busy information from public
folders for mailboxes on servers that have previous versions of Exchange
o View attendee working hours
o Show meeting time suggestions
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb124251%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb232134%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
18. What are the DNS host record
required to receiving email from the internet
A mail exchange (MX) record that contains information
about which mail server the domain uses to receive mail.
19. Explain the list of files will
be there under Exchange 2013 database folder
*.edb File - A mailbox database is stored as an Exchange
database (.edb) file.
Checkpoint file .chk, keeps track of which transactional
logs moves into database files. Keep on check the log file entering the
database in a current order
Transactional log – eoo.log file which write the current
transactions into transactional logs. If it reaches 1 MB, it will rename the
log file into E00000001.log
Temp.EDB – Temporary database file, which will process the
transactional logs that are to be to write in .EDB Database file
.JRS – Reserved Log files – if the size of the disk is
full and you can’t write any mails as transactional logs these files will help
into action
20. What you mean by database
portability
Database portability is a feature that enables a Microsoft
Exchange Server 2013 mailbox database to be moved to or mounted on any other
Mailbox server in the same organization running Exchange 2013 that has
databases with the same database schema version. Mailbox databases from
previous versions of Exchange can't be moved to a Mailbox server running
Exchange 2013. By using database portability, reliability is improved by
removing several error-prone, manual steps from the recovery processes. In
addition, database portability reduces the overall recovery times for various failure
scenarios.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd876873%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
21. What is the purpose of DAC?
DAC mode is used to control the startup database mount
behavior of a DAG. When DAC mode isn't enabled and a failure occurs that
affects multiple servers in the DAG, and then when a majority of the DAG
members are restored after the failure, the DAG will restart and attempt to
mount databases. In a multi-datacenter configuration, this behavior could cause
split brain syndrome, a condition that occurs when all networks fail, and DAG
members can't receive heartbeat signals from each other. Split brain syndrome can also occur when
network connectivity is severed between datacenters. Split brain syndrome is prevented by always
requiring a majority of the DAG members (and in the case of DAGs with an even
number of members, the DAG's witness server) to be available and interacting
for the DAG to be operational. When a majority of the members are
communicating, the DAG is said to have quorum.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd979790%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
22. How to check backup is completed
successfully for the Exchange 2013 mailbox database
Powershell Command - Get-Mailboxdatabase -status |
Format-List Identity, *backup*
23. What is the purpose of site
mailbox in Exchange server 2013
Site mailbox requires Exchange 2013 and Sharepoint 2013
which has the functionally of shared storage through an Exchange 2013 mailbox
for email messages and a SharePoint 2013 site for documents, and a management
interface that addresses provisioning.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj150499%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
24. What is the change on public
folder in Exchange Server 2013
Public folder uses specially designed mailboxes to store
both the public folder hierarchy and the content. This also means that there’s
no longer a public folder database. High availability for the public folder
mailboxes is provided by a database availability group (DAG).
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj150538%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
25. Explain the mail flow in
Exchange server 2013
The below diagram provides more detail on the mail flow in
Exchange server 2013. To have more detail look on
http://blogs.technet.com/b/rischwen/archive/2013/03/13/exchange-2013-mail-flow-demystified-hopefully.aspx
26. What is S/MIME certificate and
how to send email using S/MIME certificate
S/MIME (Secure/Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions)used
for users to encrypt outgoing messages and attachments so that only intended
recipients who have a digital identification (ID), also known as a certificate,
can read them. With S/MIME, users can digitally sign a message, which provides
the recipients with a way to verify the identity of the sender and that the
message hasn't been tampered with.
Setting up S/MIME for Outlook Web App needs Exchange 2013
SP1 which can be configured using Powershell command
Get-SmimeConfig and Set-SmimeConfig
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb738140%28v=exchg.141%29.aspx
http://office.microsoft.com/en-in/mac-outlook-help/send-a-digitally-signed-or-encrypted-message-HA102928381.aspx
27. What is RBAC and list out the
management role present in Exchange Server 2013
Role Based Access Control (RBAC) is the permissions model
used in Microsoft Exchange Server 2013. With RBAC, you don't need to modify and
manage access control lists (ACLs), which was done in Exchange Server 2007.
ACLs created several challenges in Exchange 2007, such as modifying ACLs
without causing unintended consequences, maintaining ACL modifications through
upgrades, and troubleshooting problems that occurred due to using ACLs in a
nonstandard way.
o Organization Management
o View-Only Organization Management
o Recipient Management
o UM Management
o Discovery Management
o Records Management
o Server Management
o Help Desk
o Hygiene Management
o Compliance Management
o Public Folder Management
o Delegated Setup
Ref: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd298183%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
28. How to enable Offline Outlook
Web App (OWA) in Exchange Server 2013
Microsoft Outlook Web App (OWA) 2013 has the new option
called "Offline" use. It allows you to use Webmail without being
connected to the server. OWA in "Offline" mode can also be used when
you have no Internet connection. When you turn on "Offline" use, a
local copy of your mailbox data is created. The supported browsers are Internet
Explorer 10, Safari 5 or Chrome 16.
To set offline access for an Outlook Web App mailbox
policy, use:
Set-OwaMailboxPolicy –AllowOfflineOn [NoComputers |
AllComputers | PrivateComputers]
To set offline access for an Outlook Web App virtual
directory:
Set-OwaVirtualDirectory –AllowOfflineOn [NoComputers |
AllComputers | PrivateComputers]
Ref:
http://blogs.technet.com/b/exchange/archive/2012/11/06/offline-access-in-outlook-web-app-2013.aspx
29. How Activesync works in Exchange
Server 2013
Microsoft ActiveSync provides for synchronized access to
email from a handheld device, such as a Pocket PC or other Windows Mobile
device. It allows for real-time send and receives functionality to and from the
handheld, through the use of push technology.
A mobile device that's configured to synchronize with an
Exchange 2013 server issues an HTTPS request to the server.
This request is known as a PING.
The request tells the server to notify the device if any items change in the
next 15 minutes in any folder that's configured to synchronize. Otherwise, the
server should return an HTTP 200 OK message.
The mobile device then stands by. The 15-minute time span is
known as a heartbeat interval.
If no items change in 15 minutes, the server returns a
response of HTTP 200 OK. The mobile device receives this response, resumes
activity (known as waking up), and issues its request again. This restarts the
process.
If any items change or new items are received within the
15-minute heartbeat interval, the server sends a response that informs the
mobile device that there's a new or changed item and provides the name of the
folder in which the new or changed item resides. After the mobile device receives
this response, it issues a synchronization request for the
folder that has the new or changed item. When
synchronization is complete, the mobile device issues a new PING
request and the whole process starts over.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa997252%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
30. What is the purpose of retention
policy tag
Retention tags are used to apply retention settings to
folders and individual items such as e-mail messages and voice mail. These
settings specify how long a message remains in a mailbox and the action to be
taken when the message reaches the specified retention age. When a message
reaches its retention age, it's moved to the user’s In-Place Archive or
deleted.
Unlike managed folders (the MRM feature introduced in
Exchange Server 2007), retention tags allow users to tag their own mailbox
folders and individual items for retention. Users no longer have to file items
in managed folders provisioned by an administrator based on message retention
requirements.
Ref: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd297955%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
31. What is the advantage of mailbox
movement in Exchange Server 2013
It’s online mailbox movement where we don’t user
intervention to close their outlook while moving the mailbox between exchange
server or databases
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj150543%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
32. What are PowerShell cmdlet used
to check the mailbox connectivity with Exchange Server 2013
Test-Mapiconnectivity
Test-Outlookconnectivity
Test-ImapConnectivity
Test-PopConnectivity
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb123681%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd638082%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb738126%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb738143%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
33. How to determine the Exchange server
2013 health status
Test-ServiceHealth
Get-ServerHealth -Identity Server01
Test-ReplicationHealth -Identity MBX1
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa998852%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj218703%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb691314%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
34. Difference between proxy and
re-direction terminology in Exchange Server 2013
Microsoft Client Access server can act as a proxy for
other Client Access servers within the organization. This is useful when
multiple Client Access servers exist in different Active Directory sites in an
organization, and at least one of those sites isn't exposed to the Internet.
A Client Access server can also perform redirection for
Microsoft Office Outlook Web App URLs and for Exchange ActiveSync devices.
Redirection is useful when users connect to a Client Access server that isn't
in their local Active
Directory site, or if a mailbox has moved between Active
Directory sites. It's also useful if users should actually be using a more
effective URL. For example, users should be using a URL that's closer to the
Active Directory site in which their mailbox resides.
Ref:
http://blogs.technet.com/b/exchange/archive/2013/01/25/exchange-2013-client-access-server-role.aspx
35. How to check Exchange 2013
autodiscover service
To verify the auto discover use the Microsoft Remote
Connectivity Analyzer - https://testconnectivity.microsoft.com/
Test-OutlookWebServices -identity:Rajis@mail.com | ft * -AutoSize
–Wrap
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc539050.aspx
36. What is the new feature added in
Exchange 2013 Transport rule
New predicates and actions are added in Exchange 2013
o New predicates
AttachmentExtensionMatchesWords Used to detect messages
that contain attachments with specific extensions.
AttachmentHasExecutableContent Used to detect messages
that contain attachments with executable content.
HasSenderOverride Used to detect messages where the sender
has chosen to override a DLP policy restriction.
MessageContainsDataClassifications Used to detect
sensitive information in the message body and any of the attachments. For a
list of data classifications available, see Sensitive Information Types
Inventory.
MessageSizeOver Used to detect messages whose overall size
is greater than or equal to the specified limit.
SenderIPRanges Used to detect messages sent from a
specific set of IP address ranges.
o New actions
GenerateIncidentReport Generates an incident report that
is sent to a specified SMTP address.
The action also has a parameter called
IncidentReportOriginalMail that accepts one of two values: IncludeOriginalMail
or DoNotIncludeOriginalMail.
NotifySender Controls how the sender of a message that
goes against a DLP policy is notified. You can choose to simply inform the
sender and route the message normally, or you can choose to reject the message
and notify the sender.
StopRuleProcessing Stops the processing of all subsequent
rules on the message.
ReportSeverityLevel Sets the specified severity level in
the incident report. Values for the action are: Informational, Low, Medium,
High, and Off.
RouteMessageOutboundRequireTLS Requires Transport Layer
Security (TLS) encryption when routing this message outside your organization.
If TLS encryption isn't supported, the message is rejected and not delivered.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj150483%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
37. How to move the database from
one drive to another disk
Using Exchange 2013 Powershell command: Move-DatabasePath
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb124742%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
38. What are the Outlook client
versions and browser supported in Exchange Server 2013
Outlook 2013
Outlook 2010 SP1 with November 2012 Cumulative Update
Outlook 2007 SP3 with November 2012 Cumulative Update
Entourage 2008 for Mac, Web Services Edition
Outlook for Mac 2011
Ref:https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/845.outlook-versions-supported-by-exchange-
200720102013online.aspx
39. List the different type of mailboxes can be created in
Exchange Server 2013
User Mailbox
Room Mailbox
Shared Mailbox
Site Mailbox
Linked User Mailbox
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb201680%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
40. List out the service used for CAS server and Mailbox
Server
Microsoft Exchange 2013 Mailbox Services
MSExchangeADTopology.exe Microsoft Exchange Active
Directory Topology
MSExchangeAntispamUpdate.exe Microsoft Exchange Anti-spam
Update
MSExchangeDagMgmt.exe Microsoft Exchange DAG Management
MSExchangeDelivery.exe Microsoft Exchange Mailbox
Transport Delivery
MSExchangeDiagnostics.exe Microsoft Exchange Diagnostics
MSExchangeEdgeSync.exe Microsoft Exchange EdgeSync
MSExchangeFastSearch.exe Microsoft Exchange Search
MSExchangeHM.exe Microsoft Exchange Health Manager
MSExchangeIMAP4BE.exe Microsoft Exchange IMAP4 Backend
MSExchangeIS.exe Microsoft Exchange Information Store
MSExchangeMailboxAssistants.exe Microsoft Exchange Mailbox
Assistants
MSExchangeMailboxReplication.exe Microsoft Exchange
Mailbox Replication
MSExchangeMigrationWorkflow.exe Microsoft Exchange
Migration Workflow
MSExchangePOP3BE.exe Microsoft Exchange POP3 Backend
MSExchangeRepl.exe Microsoft Exchange Replication
MSExchangeRPC.exe Microsoft Exchange RPC Client Access
MSExchangeServiceHost.exe Microsoft Exchange Service Host
MSExchangeSubmission.exe Microsoft Exchange Mailbox
Transport Submission
MSExchangeThrottling.exe Microsoft Exchange Throttling
MSExchangeTransport.exe Microsoft Exchange Transport
MSExchangeTransportLogSearch.exe Microsoft Exchange Transport
Log Search
MSExchangeUM.exe Microsoft Exchange Unified Messaging
Exchange 2013 Client Access Services
MSExchangeADTopology.exe Microsoft Exchange Active
Directory Topology
MSExchangeDiagnostics.exe Microsoft Exchange Diagnostics
MSExchangeFrontEndTransport.exe Microsoft Exchange
Frontend Transport
MSExchangeHM.exe Microsoft Exchange Health Manager
MSExchangeIMAP4.exe Microsoft Exchange IMAP4
MSExchangePOP3.exe Microsoft Exchange POP3
MSExchangeServiceHost.exe Microsoft Exchange Service Host
MSExchangeUMCR.exe Microsoft Exchange Unified Messaging
Call Router
41. What is the service needed to
move mailbox in Exchange 2013
Move requests are processed by two services:
o Microsoft Exchange Mailbox Replication service (MRS)
o Microsoft Exchange Mailbox Replication Proxy (MRSProxy)
service
Ref:
http://www.msexchange.org/articles-tutorials/exchange-server-2013/mobility-client-access/exchange-2013-local-mailboxmoves-part1.html
42. What is the purpose of File
Share Witness
A witness server is a server outside a DAG that's used to
achieve and maintain quorum when the DAG has an even number of members. DAGs
with an odd number of members don't use a witness server. All DAGs with an even
number of members must use a witness server. The witness server can be any
computer running Windows Server. There is no requirement that the version of
the Windows Server operating system of the witness server matches the operating
system used by the DAG members
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd638104%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
43. Llist out the different type of
quorum model used in Exchange server 2013
Even - Node and File Share Majority quorum mode
Odd - Majority quorum mode
DAGs with an even number of members use the failover
cluster's Node and File Share Majority quorum mode, which employs an external
witness server that acts as a tie-breaker. In this quorum mode, each DAG member
gets a vote. In addition, the witness server is used to provide one DAG member
with a weighted vote (for example, it gets two votes instead of one). The
cluster quorum data is stored by default on the system disk of each member of
the DAG, and is kept consistent across those disks. However, a copy of the
quorum data isn't stored on the witness server. A file on the witness server is
used to keep track of which member has the most updated copy of the data, but
the witness server doesn't have a copy of the cluster quorum data. In this
mode, a majority of the voters (the DAG members plus the witness server) must
be operational and able to communicate with each other to maintain quorum. If a
majority of the voters can't communicate with each other, the DAG's underlying
cluster loses quorum, and the DAG will require administrator intervention to
become operational again.
DAGs with an odd number of members use the failover
cluster's Node Majority quorum mode. In this mode, each member gets a vote, and
each member's local system disk is used to store the cluster quorum data. If
the configuration of the DAG changes, that change is reflected across the
different disks. The change is only considered to have been committed and made
persistent if that change is made to the disks on half the members (rounding
down) plus one. For
example, in a five-member DAG, the change must be made on
two plus one members, or three members total.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd979799%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
44. Difference between Primary
Active Manager and Standby Active Manager
Primary Active Manager which runs inside the Microsoft
Exchange Replication Service used to notify and react in case of server
failure. The PAM owns the cluster quorum resource and holds the information
about active, passive and mounted databases.
Standby Active Manager provides information of the server
hosting the active copy of a mailbox database to the Client Access or Transport
services.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd776123%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
45. What is the purpose of
safety-net and transport dumpster
Transport dumpster helps to protect against data loss by
maintaining a queue of successfully delivered messages that hadn't replicated
to the passive mailbox database copies in the DAG. When a mailbox database or
server failure required the promotion of an out-of-date copy of the mailbox
database, the messages in the transport dumpster were
automatically resubmitted to the new active copy of the
mailbox database.
The transport dumpster has been improved in Exchange 2013
and is now called Safety Net.
Similarity between Safety Net and transport dumpster in
Exchange 2010:
Safety Net is a queue that's associated with the Transport
service on a Mailbox server. This queue stores copies of messages that were
successfully processed by the server.
You can specify how long Safety Net stores copies of the
successfully processed messages before they expire and are automatically
deleted. The default is 2 days.
Here's how Safety Net is different in Exchange 2013:
Safety Net doesn't require DAGs. For Mailbox servers that
don't belong to a DAGs, Safety Net stores copies of the delivered messages on
other Mailbox servers in the local Active Directory site.
Safety Net itself is now redundant, and is no longer a
single point of failure. This introduces the concept of the Primary Safety Net
and the Shadow Safety Net. If the Primary Safety Net is unavailable for more
than 12 hours, resubmit requests become shadow resubmit requests, and messages
are re-delivered from the Shadow Safety Net.
Safety Net takes over some responsibility from shadow
redundancy in DAG environments. Shadow redundancy doesn't need to keep another
copy of the delivered message in a shadow queue while it waits for the
delivered message to replicate to the passive copies of mailbox database on the
other Mailbox servers in the DAG. The copy of the delivered message is already
stored in Safety Net, so the message can be resubmitted from Safety Net if
necessary.
In Exchange 2013, transport high availability is more than
just a best effort for message redundancy. Exchange 2013 attempts to guarantee
message redundancy. Because of this, you can't specify a maximum size limit for
Safety Net. You can only specify how long Safety Net stores messages before
they're automatically deleted.
Ref: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj657495%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
46. What is the purpose of crimson log channel in Exchange
Server 2013
The HighAvailability channel contains events related to
startup and shutdown of the Microsoft Exchange Replication service and other
components that run within it, such as Active Manager or VSS writer for
example. The HighAvailability channel is also used by Active Manager to log
events related to Active Manager role monitoring and database action events,
such as a database mount operation and log truncation, and to record events
related to the DAG's underlying
cluster.
The MailboxDatabaseFailureItems channel is used to log
events associated with any failures that affect a replicated mailbox database.
Ref: http://www.msexchange.org/kbase/ExchangeServerTips/ExchangeServer2013/ManagementAdministration/exchange-
2013-crimson-channel-event-logs.html
47. How EWS plays their role in
Exchange Server 2013
The Exchange Web Service holds the below list of features
o eDiscovery
o Archiving
o Personas
o Unified Contact Store
o Retention Policies
o User Photos
o Mail Apps for Outlook Management
o Propose new meeting time
Ref:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/office/jj190903%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
48. What is Outlook Anywhere and how
to configure in email client
In Microsoft Exchange Server 2013, the Outlook Anywhere
feature, formerly known as RPC over HTTP, lets clients who use Microsoft
Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010, or Outlook 2007 connect to their Exchange servers
from outside the corporate network or over the Internet using the RPC over HTTP
Windows networking component. This topic describes the Outlook Anywhere feature
and lists the benefits of using Outlook Anywhere.The Windows RPC over HTTP
Proxy component, which Outlook Anywhere clients use to connect, wraps remote
procedure calls (RPCs) with an HTTP layer.
This allows traffic to traverse network firewalls without
requiring RPC ports to be opened. In Exchange 2013, this feature is enabled by
default, because all Outlook connectivity takes place over Outlook Anywhere.
o On the Tools menu, click Account Settings, select the
Exchange account, and then click Change.
o Click More Settings, and then click the Connection tab-
Under Outlook Anywhere,
o Select the Connect to Microsoft Exchange using HTTP check
box.
o To specify a proxy server, click Exchange Proxy Settings.
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb123741%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
49. How to set Out-of-Office by
Exchange admin when user is on vacation
Using Exchange 2013 Powershell command - Set-
MailboxAutoReplyConfiguration
Example: Set-MailboxAutoReplyConfiguration -Identity
'Rajis' -StartTime '03/27/2014 19:30' -AutoReplyState Enabled -EndTime
'03/29/2014 07:00' –InternalMessage 'I am on vacation and will respond to your
message after I return'–
ExternalMessage 'I am on vacation' –ExternalAudience 'Known'
Ref:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd638217%28v=exchg.150%29.aspx
50. Difference between accepted
domain and remote domain in Exchange Server 2013
Remote domains are SMTP domains that are external to your
Microsoft Exchange organization. You can create remote domain entries to define
the settings for message transferred between your Exchange organization and
specific external domains. The settings in the remote domain entry for a
specific external domain override the settings in the default remote domain
that normally apply to all external recipients. The remote domain settings are
global for the Exchange organization
An accepted domain is any SMTP namespace for which a
Microsoft Exchange Online organization sends or receives.