Disconnected Mailboxes Test
On an Exchange server, when a mailbox enabled user or a mailbox is deleted, the mailbox will be moved to a disconnected state and is left in the mail store for a retention period (this is a configuration setting - usually about 30 days). While the mailbox is in a disconnected state, administrators have the option to reconnect to the mailbox and restore the user/mailbox at any time during the retention period. Once the retention period is reached, the mailbox is removed permanently from the mail store.
Exchange administrators need to monitor the disconnected mailboxes on their servers for two reasons. First, by checking what mailboxes are in the disconnected state, administrators can identify if any mailbox or user has been inadvertently deleted. Secondly, by tracking the time for a disconnected mailbox to be purged by the system, administrators can determine when the storage space reserved for the disconnected mailbox will be released.
The Disconnected MailBoxes test automatically discovers and monitors the disconnected mailboxes on an Exchange server. This test works only on Exchange 2003 or higher. The measures reported by this test are given below.
Target of the test : An Exchange 2003 Server only
Agent deploying the test : An internal agent
Outputs of the test : One set of results for every mailbox on the Exchange 2003 server being monitored.
| Parameters | Description |
|---|---|
|
Test Period |
How often should the test be executed. |
|
Host |
The IP address of the machine where the Exchange Server is installed. |
|
Port |
The port number through which the Exchange Server communicates. |
|
ExchangeServerName |
Enter the name of the Exchange server to be monitored. |
|
DD Frequency |
Refers to the frequency with which detailed diagnosis measures are to be generated for this test. The default is 1:1. This indicates that, by default, detailed measures will be generated every time this test runs, and also every time the test detects a problem. You can modify this frequency, if you so desire. Also, if you intend to disable the detailed diagnosis capability for this test, you can do so by specifying none against DD frequency. |
|
Detailed Diagnosis |
To make diagnosis more efficient and accurate, the eG Enterprise embeds an optional detailed diagnostic capability. With this capability, the eG agents can be configured to run detailed, more elaborate tests as and when specific problems are detected. To enable the detailed diagnosis capability of this test for a particular server, choose the On option. To disable the capability, click on the Off option. The option to selectively enable/disable the detailed diagnosis capability will be available only if the following conditions are fulfilled:
|
| Measurement | Description | Measurement Unit | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Is mailbox disconnected? |
Indicates whether the mailbox is disconnected or not. |
Boolean |
When the value is 1, it means that this mailbox is disconnected. |
|
Messages in disconnected mailbox |
The total number of messages that are in the disconnected mailbox |
Number |
|
|
Disconnected mailbox size |
Indicates the total size of the disconnected mailbox. |
MB |
|
|
Time to purge disconnected mailbox |
Indicates the time left before a disconnected mailbox is to be removed permanently from the mail store. |
Hours |
Administrators can configure alerts to be generated before a disconnected mailbox is to be removed from the Exchange server, so that they can cross verify whether the deletion is valid. The detailed diagnosis of this measure, if enabled, displays the date and time at which the disconnected mailbox was marked for permanent deletion (the Mailbox_deletion_date), and the date and time at which the mailbox is likely to be permanently removed from the Exchange server (the Mailbox_purge_date). This knowledge enables administrators to configure alerts that are to be generated before a disconnected mailbox is to be removed from the Exchange server, so that they can cross verify whether the deletion is valid. |
