MS Exchange Server 2003 Interview Questions and

Answers
What must be done to an AD forest before Exchange can be deployed?
Setup.exe /forestprep

What are the required components of Windows Server 2003 for installing Exchange
2003?
ASP.NET, SMTP, NNTP, W3SVC

What Exchange process is responsible for communication with AD?

DSACCESS

What 3 types of domain controller does Exchange access?

Normal Domain Controller, Global Catalog, Configuration Domain Controller

What connector type would you use to connect to the Internet, and what are the two
methods of sending mail over that connector?
SMTP Connector: Forward to smart host or use DNS to route to each address

How would you optimise Exchange 2003 memory usage on a Windows Server 2003
server with more than 1Gb of memory?
Add /3Gb switch to boot.ini

Name the process names for the following: System Attendant?

MAD.EXE, Information Store STORE.EXE, SMTP/POP/IMAP/OWA
INETINFO.EXE

What is the maximum amount of databases that can be hosted on Exchange 2003
Enterprise?
20 databases. 4 SGs x 5 DBs.

What is the use of NNTP with exchange?

This protocol is used the news group in exchange.

What is DHCP? How we configure DHCP?

DHCP is the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol. (Port 67 and 68). It means asiging
Dynamic IP address to the devices on a network. (Next Doc)

What are the ways to configure DNS & Zones?

DNS = Domain Name System. It can be configured by clicking the Start button, pointing
to the Programs, pointing to Administrative Toolsand clicking DNS Manager (which has
two zones, namely the Forward Lookup Zone and the Reverse Lookup Zone). When the
DNS Server Configuration Wizard starts, click Next. If it does not auto-start, it can be
started by right-clicking the user's server name object in the DNS Manager console and
choosing the Configure Your Server option.
Zones = The next step is to choose to add a forward lookup zone, click Next and ensure
whether the new forward lookup zone is a primary zone or not. It can only accept
dynamic updates if it is a primary zone. Click Primary, and then click Next. It must be
ensured that the zone name must either be the same as the user's Active Directory
Domain name or the same as the suffix for all the computers on the network which are to
be registered with the DNS server (in case of a stand-alone or workgroup environment).
Type the name of the zone and then click Next. The default name is accepted for the new
zone file. Then click Next. Choose to add a reverse lookup zone now and click Next.
Click Primary and then click Next. Type the name of the zone and then click Next. The
zone name should be the same as the Network ID of your local subnet. Accept the default
name for the new zone file and click Next. Then click Finish to complete the Server
Configuration Wizard.

What are the types of backup? Explain each?

FULL, Incremental and Differential.
Full backup is as it says, its a full backup of available data.
Incremental backup stores all files changed since the last FULL, DIFFERENTIAL OR
INCREMENTAL backup. The advantage of an incremental backup is that it takes the
least time to complete.
Differential backup contains all files that have changed since the last FULL backup .
The advantage of a differential backup is that it shortens restore time compared to a full
backup or an incremental backup.

What are Levels of RAID 0, 1, 5? Which one is better & why?

Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) is the combining of several hard
drives into a single unit. Level 0 is used for applications, which do not require
redundancy or striping. Which, means the contents of the files are spread out over the
multiple disks. One of the common uses for level 0 is in editing digital video.
Level 0 there is not falut redundancy, and if one drive happens to fail all the data is lost.
Level 1 is used for applications, which include critical data and referred to as mirroring.
RAID 1 is fault tolerant in situations when a drive fails the system will continue to work.
Level 1 provides twice the transaction rate of single disks.
Level 5 is used when fault tolerance is needed and uses block level striping and
distributed parity. When one disk drive in RAID 5 goes down the data is recovered using
the remaining drives. RAID 5 is considered, to be the most popular RAID level in use
today, because of it's performance, redundancy and storage efficiency.

What are FMSO Roles? List them.

FSMO (Flexible Single Master Operation Role) are used to avoid conflicts in our active
directory as AD provides lot of flexibility for users to do some kind of changes, thus
increases chances of conflicts.
Schma Master Role
Domain Naming Master Role
RID - Relative Identifier.
PDC Emulator.
Infrastructure.

Describe the lease process of the DHCP server.

DORA
D (Discover) : DHCP Client sends a broadcast packets to identify the dhcp server, this
packet will contain the source MAC.
O (Offer) : Once the packet is received by the DHCP server, the server will send the
packet containing Source IP and Source MAC.
R (Request) : Client will now contact the DHCP server directly and request for the IP
address.
A (Acknowledge) : DHCP server will send an ack packet which contains the IP address.

Disaster Recovery Plan?

A disaster recovery plan (DRP) - sometimes referred to as a business continuity plan
(BCP) or business process contingency plan (BPCP) - describes how an organization is to
deal with potential disasters. Just as a disaster is an event that makes the continuation of
normal functions impossible, a disaster recovery plan consists of the precautions taken so
that the effects of a disaster will be minimized and the organization will be able to either
maintain or quickly resume mission-critical functions. Typically, disaster recovery
planning involves an analysis of business processes and continuity needs; it may also
include a significant focus on disaster prevention.

What is scope & super scope?

scope is a valid range of IP addresses which are available for assignments or lease to
client computers on a particular subnet. A superscope is an administrative grouping of
scopes that can be used to support multiple logical IP subnets on the same physical
subnet. Superscopes only contain a list of member scopes or child scopes that can be
activated together.

Logical Diagram of Active Directory? What is the difference between child domain
& additional domain server?
Active directory contains forest, tree, domain and its child domain. Child domian is
comes under parent domain and it shares the name space, its names space append the
parent domain name. Addtional domain controller is the copy of main domain controller
and its for load balancing and fault tolarance.

FTP, NNTP, SMTP, KERBEROS, DNS, DHCP, POP3 port numbers?

ftp = port 21 nntp = 443 smtp = 25 KERBEROS v4 = 88 KERBEROS v5 = 750 dns = 53
dhcp = 67 pop3 = 110

What is Kerberos? Which version is currently used by Windows? How does

Kerberos work?
Kerberos is a network authentication protocol. It is designed to provide strong
authentication for client/server applications by using secret-key cryptography. A free
implementation of this protocol is available from the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology. Kerberos is available in many commercial products as well. Current Version
5.0

Distribution List?
A distribution list, also known as a mailing list, is a collection of email addresses that
allows you to email multiple people at one time. A distribution list can contain a few
addresses, or many.

GAL, Routing Group, Stm files, Eseutil & ininteg - what are they used for?
GAL = Global Address Book (Address book used by users for Email addresses)
Routing Group = A group setup within Exchange to connect to another mailserver
ESEUTIL = is the utilities used to managed the information store.
What is MIME & MAPI?
MIME = Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions
It defines non-ASCII message formats.
MAPI = Messaging Application Programming Interface
It's the programming interface for email.

How would you recover Exchange server when the log file is corrupted?

Tell me a bit about the capabilities of Exchange Server. 1) Outlook Anywhere (OWA)

2) Mailbox Can sync with Blackberry Device.

3) Calendar Sharing.
4) MAPI & POP3 Client support
5) RPC Over HTTP.

What are the different Exchange 2003 versions?

1. exchange 5.5
2. exchange server 2000
3. exchange server 2003
4. exchange server 2007

What are the major network infrastructure for installing Exchange 2003?
1.Geographical considerations
2.Bandwidth and latency
3.Current usage
4.Current messaging system

What is the latest Exchange 2003 Service Pack? Name a few changes in functionality
in that SP.
SP2 is a cumulative update that enhances your Exchange
Server 2003 messaging environment with:
Mobile e-mail improvements
Better protection against spam
Mailbox advancements
What are the disk considerations when installing Exchange (RAID types, locations
and so on).
Server hardware:
Four 1 gigahertz (GHz), 1 megabyte (MB) or 2 MB L2 cache processors
4 gigabytes (GB) of Error Correction Code (ECC) RAM
Two 100 megabits per second (Mbps) or 1000 Mbps network interface cards
RAID-1 array with two internal disks for the Windows Server 2003 and Exchange
Server 2003 program files
Two redundant 64-bit fiber Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) to connect to the Storage Area
Network

You got a new HP DL380 (2U) server, dual Xeon, 4GB of RAM, 7 SAS disks, 64-bit.
What do you do next to install Exchange 2003? (you have AD in place)

Why not install Exchange on the same machine as a DC?

1. Redundancy and Stability - if the exchange server fails then Domain Controller also
fails and it concludes a big Failuire
2. Overload : It may overload your existing server and that can cause a significant
performance problem.

How would you prepare the AD Schema in advance before installing Exchange?
1. Make sure all the following are installd and working on the server SMTP, NNTP,
ASP.NET, IIS, WWW. This can be installed windos component on Add-Remove
program
2. Run Forest Preain Prep
3. Run Domain Prep and you are good to go.

What type or permissions do you need in order to install the first Exchange server
in a forest? In a domain?
you need Schema Admin, Domain Admin and Enterprise Admin Permission. What type
of memory optimization changes could you do for Exchange 2003? Add /3GB switch to
boot.ini file and you can use upto 3GB memory instead of 1GB by default.

How would you check your Exchange configuration settings to see if they're right?
Once your exchange server configuration is done run the tool EXBPA.exc .This will give
you the correct ficture of your exchange organization.

What are the Exchange management tools? How and where can you install them?
To install the Exchange System Management Tools
1. On the dedicated management workstation, insert the Exchange 2003 Setup CD into
the workstation's CD drive, and then locate : \setup\i386\setup.exe.
2. On the Component Selection page, do the following: --Under Component Name, locate
Microsoft Exchange. In the corresponding Action column, select Custom.
--Under Component Name, locate Microsoft Exchange System Management Tools. In the
corresponding Action column, select Install Microsoft Exchange System Management
Tools installation option
3. Click Next, and continue with the wizard.

What types of permissions are configurable for Exchange?

1)Exchange full admin full control over the exchange organization including permission
2)Exchange Admin Manage everything within the organization except org permission.
3)Exchange view only administrator read only administrative access to Exchange
organization
How can you grant access for an administrator to access all mailboxes on a specific
server?
1. Start Exchange System Manager.
2. Drill down to your server object within the appropriate Administrative Group. Right-
click it and choose Properties.
3. In the Properties window go to the Security tab.
4. Click Add, click the user or group who you want to have access to the mailboxes, and
then click OK.
5. Be sure that the user or group is selected in the Name box.
6. In the Permissions list, click Allow next to Full Control, and then click OK.
Note: Make sure there is no Deny checkbox selected next to the Send As and Receive As
permissions.
7. Click Ok all the way out.

What is the Send As permission?

Send As Permission means user A will be able to access the mail box of user B and reply
back to those mail. Even though user A has replied to the mail, the send address will
display user b email.

What other management tools are used to manage and control Exchange 2003?
Name the tools you'd use.
Active Directory Account Cleanup Wizard (adclean.exe)

You created a mailbox for a user, yet the mailbox does not appear in ESM. Why?
Genrally, when you create a mailbox for a user. The user's e-mail address will be updated
in the GAL. During the regular update interval. But in order for you to be able to view the
mail box. The user has to access the Exchange server (either through MS outlook or
OWA). Then you will be able to view the user's mail box.

What are Query Based Distribution groups?

A query-based distribution group is a new additional type of distribution group in
Exchange 2003. This new type of distribution group provides the same functionality as a
standard distribution group; however, instead of specifying static user memberships, a
query-based distribution group allows you to use an LDAP query to dynamically build
membership in the distribution group (for example All employees with a special group
membership). Using query-based distribution groups we can reduce the administration
costs dramatically. However a Query-based Distribution Group needs more Server
resources like CPU power and RAM.
What type of groups would you use when configuring distribution groups in a
multiple domain forest?
create a Universal Distribution Group.

What are System Public Folders? Where would you find them?
In Exchange Server 2003, public folders can be used to share information between a
group of users. In smaller organizations where only one Exchange server is typically
installed, one public folder instance can exist.
Click Start, All Programs, Microsoft Exchange, and then select Exchange System
Manager. Exchange System Manager opens. In the left pane, expand the Public Folders
container. All existing folders in the public folder tree are displayed.

How can you immediately stop PF replication?

right-clicking the Organization name in Exchange System Management and clicking Stop
Public Folder Content Replication

What types of PF management tools might you use?

PFDAVADMIN Tool

What are the differences between administrative permissions and client permissions
in PF?

How can you configure PF replication from the command prompt in Exchange
2003?
PFMIGRATE allows you to move a bunch of Public Folders from an Exchange Server to
an Exchange 2003 Server from the command line.PFMIGRATE.WSF is a Script, which
is located on the Exchange 2003 CD and the Exchange 2003 SP1 under
SUPPORT\EXDEPLOY.
PFMIGRATE requires ONE Exchange 2003 Server in your Enterprise because
PFMIGRATE uses specific WMI functions from Exchange 2003.
The syntax is simple:
To move System Folders
PFMIGRATE.WSF /S:SourceServer /T:DestinationServer /SF /A /N
:100 /F:C:\LOGFILE.LOG
To move Public Folders
PFMIGRATE.WSF /S:SourceServer /T:DestinationServer /A /N:100
/F:C:\LOGFILE.LOG
To remove Public Folders after succesful Replication
PFMIGRATE.WSF /S:SourceServer /T:DestinationServer /D

What are the configuration options in IMF?

First of all, IMF needs to be enabled because it's not by default. To enable, from ESM go
to Global Settings and right click on Message Delivery. Click on the "Intelligence
Nessage Filter" tab, and change from "No Action" to "Archive". Also, enable the IMF on
the Virtual SMTP server by right clicking on the default SMTP server and clicking on
properties, then Advanced tab, then click on edit. Now you can check on the "Apply
IMF" tab.
There are two options in configuring Intelligence Message Filter (IMF):Gateway
Blocking Configuration - this is where the messages will be blocked at the server, and the
users will not even see them. Store Junk E-mail Configuration - this is where the
messages will be delivered to the user's Outlook and stored in their Junk Email folder
(Outlook 2003 in cached mode only, or OWA).

What are virtual servers? When would you use more than one?
Exchange Virtual Server is a clustered Exchange installation. When Exchange is installed
on a Windows Server 2003 cluster, it is configured as an Exchange Virtual Server that
can be passed between cluster nodes transparently to Exchange clients.
1. SMTP Virtual Server,
2. HTTP Virtual Server,
3.POP3 Virtual Server,
4. IMAP4 Virtual Server and so on

Name some of the SMTP Virtual Server configuration options.

The following table lists important configuration information that Exchange Server 2003
stores for SMTP virtual servers in Active Directory.

Important Active Directory attributes for SMTP virtual servers

msExchServerBindings -Specifies the Internet Protocol (IP) port binding for Secure
Sockets Layer (SSL) connections.
msExchAuthenticationFlags -Indicates which type of authentication this SMTP virtual
server accepts.
msExchMaxIncomingConnections -Specifies the maximum number of inbound
connections allowed for this SMTP virtual server.
msExchLogType -Specifies the log formats that this SMTP virtual server uses for
protocol logging.
msExchAccessSSLFlags -Identifies the type of encrypted channel that this SMTP virtual
server supports.

What is a Mail Relay? Name a few known mail relay software or hardware options.
Often referred to as an e-mail server, a device and/or program that routes an e-mail to the
correct destination. Mail relays are typically used within local networks to transmit e-
mails among local users. (For example, all of the student and faculty e-mail of a college
campus.) Mail relays are particularly useful in e- mail aliasing where multiple e-mail
addresses are used but the mail relay forwards all messages to the specified e-mail
addresses to one single address.
A mail relay is different than an open relay, where an e-mail server processes a mail
message that that neither originates or ends with a user that is within the servers local
domain (i.e., local IP range).
Mail relay Softwares:
1.NoticeWare Email Server 4.3
2. Flash Mailer 20.
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How To Configure MS Exchange Server 2003 to Block

SPAM??
As MS Exchange Server Admin you must know, how to block SPAMs to be deliveried
using your domains Email IDs. It a good thing that we have lot of 3rd party Softwares to
block Spams, in the same way MS has designed & included some goodies with MS
Exchange Server to block Spams too.
So What are those MS Goodies included in MS Exchange Server 2003??
DNS Black Hole List (also Known As DNSBL) RealTime Block Hole List (also
Known As RBL) Open Relay Filter (also Known As ORFilter)
As I learnt from Online resources, The MS Antispam tools for MS Exchange are far
way from the 3rd party apps we have in market righnow. Thease tools have no GUI
interface to block users from adding or importing email ids to the server. and you
canot determine the spammed blocks or the function is working fine or not

Now The Step-By-Step Instruction

To configure spams in Exchange Server 2003, follow the steps below. ExServer 2003
allows you to manage three types of mail filtering: connection, recipient and sender.
Run Exchange Systems Manager.
Find Message Delivery under the Global Settings folder.
• The Recipient Filtering allows you to block e-mails being delivered to
recipients on your local Exchange Server. For example, if you have a user
BillG on the techgalaxy.net domain and you dont want this user to receive e-
mails from the outside world, you could set up a recipient filter for
BillG@microsoft.com.

• When you try to add a filter you get the following message:
• You could also set up a recipient filter for a user that does not exist but is
constantly receiving spam mail. For example, you could set up a recipient
filter for a non-existing account called sales@microsoft.com. This will prevent
your catch-all account (e.g. webmaster@microsoft.com) from receiving junk
mail to a non existing account. You can also use this to block emails being
delivered to other internal aliases, such as managers@microsoft.com.
 •

• To block an entire domain (such as hotmail), use a wildcard in place of the

specific user. For example, *@hotmail.com.

• The spam sender will receive a denied message such as:

Your message
To: billg@microsoft.com
Subject: How to become a millionaire
Sent: Sat, 23 Aug 2003 09:50:13 -0700
did not reach the following recipient(s):
billg@microsoft.com on Sat, 23 Aug 2003 09:50:05 -0700
The e-mail address could not be found. Perhaps the recipient moved to a different e-
mail organization, or there was a mistake in the address. Check the address and try
again.

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